In spite of its title, 鈥淪pare,鈥� bookstores and libraries are unlikely to have extra copies of Prince Harry鈥檚 new memoir stay on their shelves for long.
Penguin Random House, the book鈥檚 publisher, reported sold on the first day, including pre-orders, in the U.S., the U.K., and Canada, setting a record high for a nonfiction title from the .
Two days after the book became available to patrons at the Fort Worth Public Library, more than 500 patrons were in line for the audio book narrated by Harry himself. Over 400 placed a hold on the e-book and the physical hardcover had 115 users waiting in the queue.
As the collection development librarian for adult books, Michelle Morris buys fiction, nonfiction and biographical titles for the Fort Worth Public Library system. The popularity of the book has been 鈥渁stounding,鈥� she said.
鈥淭his is probably the book of the year,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a minute since there鈥檚 been a biography this popular.鈥�
About a month before the book鈥檚 publication, requests slowly trickled in. Morris worried that she might have ordered too many copies, but interest surged after the royal鈥檚 recent .
鈥淭he difference after the 鈥�60 Minutes鈥� interview actually left me a little reeling,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 been an explosive growth of interest.鈥�
In the interview with Anderson Cooper, Harry described losing his mother at age 12 and feelings of shock and disbelief that followed her death. He also discussed the tension within his family and an altercation with his brother Prince William. An audience of tuned in for that discussion, according to data from Nielsen.
Morris has since ordered more copies for the library to help keep pace with demand. She also crafted a reading list of other related titles for readers to check out in the interim:
Nonfiction
- 鈥淒iana, William, and Harry: The Heartbreaking Story of a Princess and Mother鈥� by James Patterson and Chris Mooney (2022)
- 鈥淏rothers and Wives: Inside the Private Lives of William, Kate, Harry, and Meghan鈥� by Christopher Andersen (2021)
- 鈥淕ame of Crowns: Elizabeth, Camilla, Kate, and the Throne鈥� by Christopher Andersen (2016)
- 鈥淔inding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family鈥� by Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand (2020)
- 鈥淭ogether: Our Community Cookbook鈥� by Hubb Community Kitchen (2018) 鈥� Meghan Markle, then the Duchess of Sussex, wrote the foreword.
Fiction
- 鈥淎merican Royalty鈥� by Tracey Livesay (2022)
- 鈥淩ed, White & Royal Blue鈥� by Casey McQuiston (2019)
- 鈥淩oyal Holiday鈥� by Jasmine Guillory (2019)
- 鈥淭he Royal We鈥� by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (2015)
Books recommended by Meghan Markle on her now shuttered website
- 鈥淭he Martian鈥� by Andy Weir (2011)
- 鈥淪tation Eleven鈥� by Emily St. John Mandel (2014)
- 鈥滱ll the Light We Cannot See鈥� by Anthony Doerr (2014)
- 鈥淚n the Company of Women: Inspiration and Advice from over 100 Makers, Artists, and Entrepreneurs鈥� by Grace Bonney (2016)
- 鈥淭he Bluest Eye鈥� by Toni Morrison (1970)
Marcheta Fornoff covers the arts for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at marcheta.fornoff@fortworthreport.org or on . At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy .