Sales of Hillary's New Book Off to a Not Start

Looks like one element of the Klinton Krime Klan Racket and Shakedown Operation ain’t what it used to be:

Hillary Clinton’s newest book, “Stronger Together,” which provides a policy blueprint for where she hopes to take the country if she is elected president, sold just 2,912 copies in its first week on sale, according to Nielsen BookScan.

Both Mrs. Clinton and her running mate, Senator Tim Kaine, have promoted the book on the campaign trail, but the sales figure, which tallies about 80 percent of booksellers nationwide and does not include e-books, firmly makes the book what the publishing industry would consider a flop.

First-week sales typically account for around a third of the total sold, thanks to the publicity blitzes that accompany publishers’ biggest releases. By comparison, Mrs. Clinton’s 2014 memoir, “Hard Choices,” which also fell short of expectations, sold more than 85,000 copies in its first week.

Mrs. Clinton’s more revealing 2003 memoir, “Living History,” about her years in the White House, sold about six times as many copies in its first week as “Hard Choices.”

Gee, from the description it appears to be a real page-turner:

Named after the campaign’s slogan, “Stronger Together” offers readers, according to the book jacket, “specific and practical solutions, while also articulating a bold and expansive vision of change and renewal.”

Its roughly 250 pages intersperse bullet-point policy ideas, like “launch a national initiative for suicide prevention” and “humanely address the Central American migrant crisis,” with photographs of Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Kaine on the campaign trail, charts in the campaign’s signature chunky font and highlights from Mrs. Clinton’s speeches.

Naturally, the Times has an explanation for why the public’s not eating this dog food:

Candidates often release hurriedly-written books during their campaigns, often aimed at spreading their message and attracting publicity, rather than topping the best-seller charts.

In 2006, Senator Barack Obama published “The Audacity of Hope,” which laid out his vision for the country. In February 2008, when Mr. Obama’s campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination against Mrs. Clinton gained momentum, the book averaged sales of more than 35,000 a week.

And hey — what about Sarah Palin!

Others cash in after an election. Sarah Palin’s “Going Rogue: An American Life” sold 469,000 copies in its first week in November 2009.

There. Now everybody feels better. Right? Right??

A spokesman for the publisher, Simon & Schuster, which also published Mrs. Clinton’s earlier books and Bill Clinton’s best-selling memoir, “My Life,” declined to comment about the first-week sales.