Bookstore sales in October were $1.105 billion, up 8% from $1.023 billion in sales in October 2006, according to preliminary estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. For the year to date, bookstore sales have been $13.470 billion, up 0.3% from $13.429 billion in the first 10 months of 2006. This marks the fourth month in a row that bookstore sales were up over the same period last year--and the first time in 2007 that year-to-date sales have topped last year's comparable figures.
By comparison, total retail sales in October were $336,648 billion, up 6.5% over October 2006, and sales for the year to date were $3.318 trillion, up 3.9%.
Note: under Census Bureau definitions, bookstore sales are of new books and do not include "electronic home shopping, mail-order, or direct sale" or used book sales.