Built to last
Secrets of the world's bestselling business books
HOW to explain the enduring popularity of Jim Collins? The business writer's most recent book, “Good to Great”, has been on the New York Times's list of bestselling non-fiction since its publication in the autumn of 2001. By May this year, HarperCollins, the book's publisher, had sold more than 1.5m copies in hardback—breaking a record set by the 1982 classic, “In Search of Excellence”, by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman. Mr Collins's previous book, “Built to Last”, published in 1994, sold more than 1m copies and has been translated into 13 languages. Mr Collins is probably the most widely read business writer in the world.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Built to last”
From the July 24th 2004 edition
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