The New York Times Fiction Best Sellers of 1948
This is a list of adult fiction books that topped The New York Times Fiction Best Seller list in 1948.
The American publisher Bennett Cerf noted that there had been "only three novels published [in 1948] that were worth reading ... Cry, The Beloved Country, The Ides of March, and The Naked and the Dead."[1] Only Cry did not top the list that year. A total of ten other novels did, however, with most titles spending only a few weeks at the top. The strongest performing title was The Naked and the Dead, Norman Mailer's first best seller, published when he was just 25 years old, which spent 19 weeks at Number 1 and more than 6 months in the top 10. It was the first "big" novel about World War II, based on his own experiences. The Ides of March was by Thornton Wilder and it spent 2 weeks at Number 1 but only 13 weeks in the top 15. The year ended with The Big Fisherman heading the list, Lloyd C. Douglas's follow-up to his huge 1942 best seller, The Robe.[2]
| Date | Book | Author |
|---|---|---|
| January 3 | House Divided | Ben Ames Williams |
| January 10 | ||
| January 17 | ||
| January 24 | ||
| January 31 | ||
| February 7 | East Side, West Side | Marcia Davenport |
| February 14 | ||
| February 21 | House Divided | Ben Ames Williams |
| February 28 | ||
| March 7 | Eagle in the Sky | Van Wyck Mason |
| March 14 | ||
| March 21 | ||
| March 28 | ||
| April 4 | The Ides of March | Thornton Wilder |
| April 11 | Eagle in the Sky | Van Wyck Mason |
| April 18 | The Ides of March | Thornton Wilder |
| April 25 | Raintree County | Ross Lockridge |
| May 2 | ||
| May 9 | unknown; not clear from source | |
| May 16 | Raintree County | Ross Lockridge |
| May 23 | Pilgrim's Inn | Elizabeth Goudge |
| May 30 | Raintree County | Ross Lockridge |
| June 6 | Pilgrim's Inn | Elizabeth Goudge |
| June 13 | ||
| June 20 | The Naked and the Dead | Norman Mailer |
| June 27 | ||
| July 4 | ||
| July 11 | ||
| July 18 | ||
| July 25 | ||
| August 1 | ||
| August 8 | ||
| August 15 | ||
| August 22 | ||
| August 29 | ||
| September 5 | Shannon's Way | A. J. Cronin |
| September 12 | ||
| September 19 | The Naked and the Dead | Norman Mailer |
| September 26 | Shannon's Way | A. J. Cronin |
| October 3 | The Naked and the Dead | Norman Mailer |
| October 10 | ||
| October 17 | ||
| October 24 | ||
| October 31 | ||
| November 7 | The Young Lions | Irwin Shaw |
| November 14 | The Naked and the Dead | Norman Mailer |
| November 21 | ||
| November 28 | The Young Lions | Irwin Shaw |
| December 5 | ||
| December 12 | ||
| December 19 | The Big Fisherman | Lloyd C. Douglas |
| December 26 | ||
References
- (No author.) "Reader's digest: Gossip, news: J. F. Albright reports on A.B.A. meeting," The Dallas Morning News, 30 May 1948, page 6.
- John Bear, The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times bestsellers since the first list, 50 years ago, Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 1992, pp. 31-39