Declining YA Book Sales? What's Up?

In a recent blog post, Karen Jensen over at SLJ's Teen Librarian Toolbox blog noted that there is much conversation in YA circles about the decline in YA book sales over the last few years.

Karen writes: "Over the weekend, Twitter was abuzz with the report that sale numbers of Young Adult fiction were the only category that was showing a decline. Those of us that work with teens in libraries have been talking for some time about some of the changes we have been seeing in YA and what that means for us in terms of circulation, and what that means for teens. Right now, it is very challenging for those of us working with teens in terms of circulation. Circulation is for libraries what sales numbers are for publishers, it’s the tools by which we measure how a category is doing. For a lot of libraries, YA circulation is just as sluggish as YA books sales have been."

Jensen goes on to highlight a number of provocative issues that she feels are having an impact on sales - and circulation of YS titles.

Stop here to read her post. [New Reports Show a Decline in YA Book Sales and I Have Some Thoughts as to Why That Might be Happening . Jensen, Karen. Teen Librarian Toolbox blog. School Library Journal. March 20, 2023.]