The British are stockpiling novels for the lockdown period.

According to market research data from Nielsen Book last week, sales of novels in the UK increased by over 30%, while sales of children's educational books rose by 234% compared to the previous week. Puzzle books, craft books, and books on criminal psychology also showed strong upward trends.

Nielsen Book stated: “Sales data on books shows that the British are preparing for an extended period of lockdown.” Waterstones – the largest bookstore chain in the UK – closed after staff feared contracting Covid-19. In this context, readers are turning to online bookstores, with online sales increasing by 400% in just one week. Bestselling books include classics such as: One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera by Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez, Beloved by Toni Morrison, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath…

Hilary Mantel's latest book, *The Mirror and the Light*, released on March 4th, has achieved massive sales in the past three weeks. Simultaneously, dystopian novels—those depicting societies and worlds that develop in a negative direction—have also been selling well. Examples include *The Handmaid's Tale* by Canadian author Margaret Atwood, *Nineteen Eighty-Four* by British author George Orwell, and *Brave New World* by Aldous Huxley.

Many authors, like David Walliams, have opted for audiobooks. Specifically, he began releasing audiobooks of short stories from his "The World's Worst Children" series every day for a month. David Walliams jokingly tweeted, "Parents stuck at home with their kids might need The World's Worst Children." Famous author J.K. Rowling also began loosening copyright restrictions, allowing teachers to upload videos of themselves reading the Harry Potter series for students to watch at home. Additionally, some bookstores have opened forums on Facebook for discussing classic novels.

My Tong