HRC Book Negative Press Roundup

HILLARY CLINTON’S MEMOIR HAD DISAPPOINTING SALES… HEADLINE: “7 Books With Better Sales Rankings Than Hillary Clinton’s ‘Hard Choices’” [The Federalist, 7/3/14] Secretary Clinton’s Declining Book Sales Helped Earn Her Washington Post’s “Worst Week In Washington.” [Washington Post, 6/3/14] Secretary Clinton’s Memoir Sales Dropped Precipitously, Reaching Only 26,000 In Its Third Week. “Do you own a hard copy of Hillary Clinton's book Hard Choices? If so, you're in exclusive company. According to data provided to the Post by Nielsen BookScan, a little over 26,000 more copies of the book were sold in its third week -- down almost 46 percent from the week prior, which was down 44 percent from the week before that.” [Washington Post, 7/2/14] Washington Post: “Three Weeks In, Clinton's Sales Trail Gates' By 58,000 Copies.” [Washington Post, 7/2/14] HEADLINE: “A Provocateur’s Book on Hillary Clinton Overtakes Her Memoir in Sales.” [New York Times, 7/10/14] New York Times: “‘Hard Choices,’ Has Just Been Toppled From Its Spot On The Best-Seller List By A Sensational Clinton Account By Her Longtime Antagonist Edward Klein.” “Of all the headaches of her current book tour — the declining sales, the constant travel, the interviews that generated unkind headlines about her family’s wealth — this one may sting Hillary Rodham Clinton the most: Her memoir, ‘Hard Choices,’ has just been toppled from its spot on the best-seller list by a sensational Clinton account by her longtime antagonist Edward Klein.” [New York Times, 7/10/14] Weekly Standard: “A Veteran Publishing Source Calls The Latest Hillary Clinton Book…A ‘Bomb.’” “In an email this evening, a veteran publishing source calls the latest Hillary Clinton book, Hard Choices, a memoir of her State Department years, a ‘bomb.’ The source is referring to the early but underwhelming sales figures. ‘Between us, they are nervous at S&S [Simon & Schuster],’ says the source, who gave permission for his email to be published. ‘Sales were well below expectations and the media was a disaster.’” [Weekly Standard, 6/16/14] Politico: “Some Reports Have Indicated Weak Sales [For Hard Choices], Especially When Compared With ‘Living History,’ Clinton’s First Memoir.” “Some reports have indicated weak sales, especially when compared with ‘Living History,’ Clinton’s first memoir, in which she discussed, among other things, the scandals she dealt with while her husband was president. Those reports have suggested the book has fallen far short of expectations and has sold poorly when considering the $14 million advance.” [Politico, 6/17/14] HEADLINE: “No One Is Reading ‘Hard Choices,’ Either.” [Washington Post, 7/7/14] Washington Post: In A Measure Of The Most-Highlighted Passages On Kindle, “The Deepest Into Hard Choices The Popular Highlights Get Is Page 33.” “Every time people highlight something in a book on their Kindles, Amazon records that data. Ellenberg takes the top five highlights listed at the site for any given book and correlates them to a page number…Well, there you have it. The deepest into Hard Choices the popular highlights get is page 33, a quote about smart power. Three of the five most-popular highlights occur within the first 10 pages. We will note the same caveat that Ellenberg applies to Piketty. ‘Hard Choices’ is fairly new, and fairly long. Still, though, one would think more people had made it past page 33.” [Washington Post, 7/7/14] HEADLINE: “‘Hard Choices’ Is A Good Example Of Why Publishers Don’t Disclose Advances” [Washington Post, 6/26/14]