Thursday, May 03, 2012

The Numbers Prove Beinart's "The Crisis Of Zionism" Is Not Mainstream

Jonathan Tobin explains why Beinart Book a Colossal Flop. Relying on Neilsen's Bookscan, which is considered a reliable source on book buying inside the US: this week Beinart has sold 2,845 copies of his The Crisis of Zionism. Since books that sell several thousands more than that are considered by their publishers to be flops, Tobin makes the argument that Beinart's The Crisis of Zionism by comparison would be comparison be "a colossal flop."
Tobin writes that even the book's Amazon rating of 2,530 is less than might be expected for a book that has had the kind of public relations campaign we have seen thus far.

But the crux of the issue is not how poorly the book is selling per se, but rather the broader picture of what the poor sales reveal about the ideas Beinart is peddling in his book:
The point is that the failure of this book undercuts the claim that Beinart represents mainstream American Jewish views. He doesn’t. The apathetic response of a book-buying community like the Jewish one illustrates that the public has as little interest in his misguided views as the critics.
It may be early yet to count Peter Beinart and The Crisis of Zionism out.
Still, the fact that it has not caught on and made an immediate splash should indicate that Beinart's views are just outside the pale.

That does not mean Beinart's ideas should not be discussed.
However those views should be seen for what they are.

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