The Lost Symbol, the latest novel by “Da Vinci Code” author Dan Brown, is breaking all sorts of sales records for its publisher, Knopf Doubleday.
The book sold more than a million copies in the U.S., Canada and U.K. on Tuesday, the publisher said.
Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble said, when you include pre-orders, the thriller set records for a single day, too.
But it ain’t no Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter VII: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” the final novel (for now) in the Harry Potter franchise, sold 15 million copies in the first 24 hours – 11 million in the U.S. and U.K. alone.
Hachette’s "Breaking Dawn," the fourth and final novel in the "Twilight" series, sold 1.3 million.
One of the reasons is that books like Harry Potter transcend the adult-young adult divide, where kids and their parents – and even non-parents – were drawn into the series.
These books, of course, are big business for Hollywood.
The Ron Howard-directed "Da Vinci Code" has grossed more than $758 million worldwide since its release in 2006 – including $77 million its opening weekend, according to Box Office Mojo. "Angels & Demons," a prequel, didn’t do quite as well, grossing $46 million for its opening earlier this year. Twilight had a $69 million opening, while the first Harry Potter film did more than $90 million.
To date, the six Harry Potter movies have generated a worldwide total of – get ready for it — $5.4 billion.
