‘Harry Potter’ actress Maggie Smith dies at 89
Oscar-winning actress Maggie Smith, best known for her impeccable performances in the ‘Harry Potter' franchise, ‘Downtown Abbey’ and others passed away at the age of 89.
With billions of books sold worldwide every year and best-sellers cropping up almost every day, it becomes difficult to curate the most popular books that people are reading across the world. The book worm in you would, of course, be curious to know which are the most read books in the world and whether you are updated with the list or not.
Here, we bring you the 10 most read books in the world, according to a source.
1 The Koran: With over a massive 3 billion copies sold, the Koran makes it to the top of the most read books in the world. Koran has been translated into 50 different languages worldwide and has nearly 400 editions.
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2. The King’s James Bible: Part of the Old Testament, the first edition of The King’s James Bible was published in 1611. The Bible is known to have one of the biggest impacts on the English language. The King’s James Bible has sold over 2.5 billion copies making it to the list of the most read books in the world.
3. Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-tung: Authored by Mao Tse-tung, the book ‘Quotations from the Works of Mao Tse-tung’ has sold over a whopping 800 million copies worldwide. The book is a collection of speeches and writings by Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong and was widely carried by the Chinese Communist revolutionaries during the awakening of Cultural Revolution in China. Due to its size and red cover, the book is commonly known as the ‘Little Red Book’ in the West.
4. Don Quixote: Mention chivalry and romantism together and Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote immediately comes to one’s mind. The book, published in two volumes, first came out in 1605 and follows the adventures of Alonso Quixano who gets lost in the world of chivalric romances. The book has over 900 editions and has sold over 500 million copies worldwide.
5. Harry Potter: Yes, your favorite book does make it to the list of most read books in the world. Who has not followed Harry through this journey from ‘cupboard under the stairs’ to the corridors of Hogwarts? Authored by one of the most sought after authors J K Rowling, the Harry Potter series has sold over 450 million copies and has been translated into 67 languages.
6. A Tale Of Two Cities: Written by one of the most celebrated writers of the 19th century, Charles Dickens, A Tale Of Two Cities highlights the plight of the peasantry during the French Revolution. The story is mainly set between London and Paris. The book has sold over 200 million copies and has been translated into 35 languages.
7. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy: The book that made you fall in love with Hobbits, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy is an epic fantasy series that follows a group of Hobbits in their journey to destroy the most powerful ring in middle earth. Written by New York Times bestselling author, JRR Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings has sold more than 150 million copies worldwide and is one of the most read books in the world. What made this trilogy a grand success is its potpourri of adventure, fantasy, magic, weaved into a tri-series.
8. Le Petit Prince: One of the most famous works of French Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Le Petit Prince or The Little Prince is one of the most translated books in history with over 250 translations, also making it one of the most read books in the world of all times. In terms of sale, Le Petit Prince has sold over 140 million copies worldwide.
9. Alice In Wonderland: This heartwarming children’s book follows Alice’s journey down a rabbit hole and into the fantastical ‘Wonderland’ of mad hatters, disappearing cats and talking worms. No doubt, Alice In Wonderland is among the most read books in the world. In fact, the book written by Lewis Carroll has sold over 100 million copies and has over 1,500 editions.
10. Dream Of The Red Chamber: Considered one of China’s Four Great Classical Novels, the Dream Of The Red Chamber or the Story Of The Stone was written by Cao Xueqin during the Qing Dynasty. Like Alice In Wonderland, Dream Of The Red Chamber, too, has sold over 100 million copies worldwide, though it has only been translated in English.
The list has been curated by a UK-based blog for readers
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