Publisher book sales were $729.6 million during the month of April, a 7 percent decrease to the comparable month in 2015, according to the American Association of Publishers (AAP).
The data revealed that trade book sales were up 3.4 percent during the month. Childrens/YA titles increased by 12.8 percent to $118 million and religious titles were up 13.7 percent at $33.4 million. Sales of educational materials dropped 13 percent year-over-year and professional publishing was down 9 percent.
Adult titles generated $383.3 million in sales, essentially the same as April 2015. During the month, paperback book sales grew 21.5 percent and downloaded audio was up 20.4 percent. Ebook sales were down 22.7 percent.