As Victor Garcia reports in L'Express, Soumission, de Houellebecq, vendu à 155 000 exemplaires en cinq jours -- Michel Houellebecq's controversial novel has sold an astonishing 155,000 copies in its first five days on sale, with the total print run now being upped to 250,000 (and, no doubt, soon to be increased again)
The French edition seems to be doing phenomenally well on Amazon in the US and UK too: an 'Amazon Best Sellers Rank' of 9,734 at Amazon.com, last I checked, despite a hefty price tage of US$44.96 (reduced from a rather questionable 'list price' of $49.95 -- quite the exchange rate rip-off, given that the French price is €21)), and a decent showing at Amazon.co.uk as well.
While German and Italian translations are due out within the week, the US/UK publishers are presumably kicking themselves for not having proceeded with a bit more urgency. It will still presumably do well in translation -- presumably better than the recent Houellebecqs -- but not like it would have sold now.
The French edition seems to be doing phenomenally well on Amazon in the US and UK too: an 'Amazon Best Sellers Rank' of 9,734 at Amazon.com, last I checked, despite a hefty price tage of US$44.96 (reduced from a rather questionable 'list price' of $49.95 -- quite the exchange rate rip-off, given that the French price is €21)), and a decent showing at Amazon.co.uk as well.
While German and Italian translations are due out within the week, the US/UK publishers are presumably kicking themselves for not having proceeded with a bit more urgency. It will still presumably do well in translation -- presumably better than the recent Houellebecqs -- but not like it would have sold now.