Olivia Nuzzi's highly anticipated memoir, "American Canto", has been met with lukewarm reception, both critically and commercially. The book, which explores the author's personal life, including her relationship with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., was heavily promoted by Vanity Fair, but its sales have fallen short of expectations.
In a joint statement with Nuzzi, Vanity Fair announced that it would be parting ways with the writer, citing "in the best interest of the magazine" to allow her contract to expire at the end of the year. The decision comes as the book has languished in the lower rungs of Amazon's bestseller list, currently sitting at No. 5,546.
Publishing experts have expressed skepticism about the book's commercial potential. Dan Sinykin, an assistant professor of English at Emory University, described the sales ranking as "strikingly low," and predicted that the book will likely underperform expectations.
One reason for this may be that Amazon's bestseller list, which is often seen as a benchmark of success, does not accurately reflect real-time sales figures. The rankings can take days to update, and publishing observers caution that they do not always capture audience demand.
To understand the full picture, it will be necessary to wait until next week when first-week sales figures for "American Canto" are released by Circana Bookscan. Additionally, the New York Times will release its next bestseller list on December 10.
For a book to break into the top 15 on the NYT bestseller list, it typically needs to experience a concentrated burst of sales in its first week, which is something that "American Canto" appears not to have achieved. This suggests that Vanity Fair's decision to part ways with Nuzzi may be a calculated move to avoid any further financial losses.
As one publication observer noted, the Amazon list does not capture all audience demand, and it is clear that there was significant hype surrounding Nuzzi's memoir prior to its release. However, when it comes down to it, it appears that the book has failed to deliver on expectations, both in terms of sales and critical reception.
The fallout from "American Canto"'s disappointing performance will likely be felt for some time to come, with Nuzzi facing an uncertain future as a writer and editor at Vanity Fair.
In a joint statement with Nuzzi, Vanity Fair announced that it would be parting ways with the writer, citing "in the best interest of the magazine" to allow her contract to expire at the end of the year. The decision comes as the book has languished in the lower rungs of Amazon's bestseller list, currently sitting at No. 5,546.
Publishing experts have expressed skepticism about the book's commercial potential. Dan Sinykin, an assistant professor of English at Emory University, described the sales ranking as "strikingly low," and predicted that the book will likely underperform expectations.
One reason for this may be that Amazon's bestseller list, which is often seen as a benchmark of success, does not accurately reflect real-time sales figures. The rankings can take days to update, and publishing observers caution that they do not always capture audience demand.
To understand the full picture, it will be necessary to wait until next week when first-week sales figures for "American Canto" are released by Circana Bookscan. Additionally, the New York Times will release its next bestseller list on December 10.
For a book to break into the top 15 on the NYT bestseller list, it typically needs to experience a concentrated burst of sales in its first week, which is something that "American Canto" appears not to have achieved. This suggests that Vanity Fair's decision to part ways with Nuzzi may be a calculated move to avoid any further financial losses.
As one publication observer noted, the Amazon list does not capture all audience demand, and it is clear that there was significant hype surrounding Nuzzi's memoir prior to its release. However, when it comes down to it, it appears that the book has failed to deliver on expectations, both in terms of sales and critical reception.
The fallout from "American Canto"'s disappointing performance will likely be felt for some time to come, with Nuzzi facing an uncertain future as a writer and editor at Vanity Fair.
I mean, I know it got some hype going into it but 5,546 on Amazon's bestseller list is just low-key embarrassing lol. And the fact that Vanity Fair is letting Nuzzi go because of it... yeah, I can see how that'd be a risk to take. I think the whole thing has been kinda hyped up from the start and people were expecting big things from Olivia Nuzzi 
. Now she's gotta deal with some uncertainty about her future at VF which is bummer 
I'm not surprised by the lukewarm reception of Olivia Nuzzi's memoir 
. To be honest, I didn't see it coming 
. The hype surrounding her relationship with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was pretty intense 
, but sometimes that kind of thing can backfire 
.
. The book's sales just aren't there, and it's not like she was producing top-notch work 
. I mean, a #5,546 spot on Amazon's bestseller list is pretty low 
. You can't keep throwing good money after bad 
.
, and it looks like Nuzzi just didn't quite hit the mark 
. It'll be interesting to see how this plays out for her in the future 
. Maybe she'll bounce back with a new project 
, but for now, it's tough to feel too bad for Vanity Fair 
! And let's be real, who doesn't love a good underdog story? 
Plus, maybe parting ways with Vanity Fair is just what Olivia needs to take her writing career in a new direction 
... we'll see how it plays out, but I'm still rooting for her 
.
. it makes me think about how we can't really know someone until we've had a chance to get to know them better, too - maybe olivia nuzzis book was ahead of its time or something 
. either way, i think this is a good lesson in being careful not to read too much into things before they've even happened 
i mean dont get me wrong i love vanity fair but they gotta take responsibility 4 this one 2 
what happened 2 the hype 
she was hyped up by Vanity Fair and everyone was expecting this huge hit but i guess it didn't quite live up to the hype 
but at the same time, I get why Vanity Fair is being cautious, they don't want to take any financial risks 
. Maybe the book just needs more time to find its footing? And yeah, Amazon's rankings can be a bit misleading... like, I don't think my grandma reads The New Yorker, lol 
. And let's be real, Vanity Fair did give her some serious exposure before the book even hit shelves 
The Amazon list does suck, but it's still a pretty good barometer for sales, you know?
. The sales figures might not be what they expected, but that doesn't mean it's not worth reading 
. And let's be real, Amazon's bestseller list is super skewed by how fast things sell 
. I mean, who needs to get to the top of that list in one week anyway? 
It's like trying to cram all your sales into one day and expecting a miracle 
, and she deserves a second chance 
. Now they're parting ways with her, which is a bit unexpected. I feel bad for Nuzzi, she's still young and just starting out in her career 
. I'll be keeping an eye on Nuzzi's future projects and hoping she bounces back strong 
.
. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what next week brings... but for now, it seems like Nuzzi's memoir is a major flop 
. I mean, we all know that book sales can be super unpredictable, right? One minute it's gonna be a bestseller, the next it's just another forgotten book on Amazon 
. And let's be real, Vanity Fair is just trying to protect themselves from a potential financial loss 
. I mean, 5k546 on Amazon? That's not even a blip on the radar for most readers 