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Book sales soar for Rep. John Lewis after Trump exchange

 
Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at the confirmation hearing for Attorney General-designate, Sen. Jeff Sessions. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga. testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington at the confirmation hearing for Attorney General-designate, Sen. Jeff Sessions. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
Published Jan. 16, 2017

Donald Trump might admittedly not be an avid reader, but he's certainly boosted book sales for one author: U.S. Rep. John Lewis.

After Lewis' announcement that he would not attend the president-elect's inauguration, Trump on Saturday morning tweeted insulting comments about the civil rights leader and his Atlanta congressional district.

Congressman John Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to......

mention crime infested) rather than falsely complaining about the election results. All talk, talk, talk - no action or results. Sad!

Lewis is also an author: March, his graphic-novel trilogy (with co-author Andrew Aydin and illustrator Nate Powell) about the civil rights movement, has been a bestseller, and its third volume won the National Book Award for young people's literature in November.

BANCROFT: Book lover Obama has been an inspirational reader in chief

By Saturday afternoon, March was the No. 1 bestseller on Amazon.com. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the book's sales had ballooned by 100,000 percent; Amazon sold out of its various editions.

Lewis' 1998 book, Walking With the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement, was the No. 3 bestseller on Amazon on Saturday. It also sold out, as did Lewis' Across That Bridge: Life Lessons and a Vision for Change, published in 2012.

On Monday afternoon, Amazon was still listing most of Lewis' books as "temporarily out of stock" but available for order. The top three bestsellers on the site were a slipcased set of the March trilogy at No. 1, Walking With the Wind at No. 2 and March: Book One at No. 3. The reprint edition of Trump's book The Art of the Deal was at No. 137.