Sex, Knitting and Helicopters: The BookFinder Top 10 for 2007
- by Michael Stillman
Once a Runner tops BookFinder's list as the most sought-after book of 2007.
By Michael Stillman
BookFinder.com has released its list of the top 10 most sought-after old books of 2007. Making the BookFinder list requires a combination of being both highly desired and hard to find. This will not be a list like the New York Times bestsellers, but as Anirvan Chatterjee points out, 98%-99% of all books ever published are now out of print. So the Times covers about 1%, and BookFinder the rest.
BookFinder notes that "sports, knitting and sex" top this year's list. I understand… except, what is knitting doing in there? Actually, you can add romance, children's books, a mass murderer and helicopters to that. What is the connection between these? Who knows. Maybe those with mayhem on their minds combine mass murder with knitting needles. Perhaps members of the mile-high club buy books about sex and helicopters. Whatever the explanation, here is the list of the top 10 most searched books on the largest book searching site on the web.
10. Dear and Glorious Physician by Taylor Caldwell, a novel concerning the spiritual journey of Luke.
9. One Way Up by John F. Straubel, a history of helicopters that climbs from #10 last year.
8. Aran Knitting by Alice Starmore describes a knitting technique named for the Aran islands off the Irish coast.
7. Raven: The Untold Story of the Reverend Jim Jones and his People by Tim Reiterman recalls the mass murderer who forever changed Kool Aid from meaning poison figuratively to poison literally.
6. The Principles of Knitting by June Hemmons Hiatt, yet another book about this fascinating subject. Number 6 again this year.
5. The Lion's Paw by Robb White, a children's classic that moves up from #7 last year.
4. Promise Me Tomorrow, one of the countless romance novels of Nora Roberts, but one she refuses to reprint.
3. Sex by Madonna, last year's #1, rides that fine line between art and pornography. People buy it for one, but say they buy if for the other.
2. Football Scouting Methods by the son of the New England Patriots' fabulously successful coach Bill Belichick. Steve Belichick's playbook is again #2 this year. I wonder if it includes advice on videotaping your opponents' signals?
1. Once a Runner by John L. Parker, a book highly respected by those dedicated to this most demanding of sports. Last year's #9 crosses the finish line #1.
Slipping out of the top 10 this year was the autobiography of singer Johnny Cash, a poetry collection from Three's Company star Suzanne Sommers, recipes by horror film actor Vincent Price and his wife, and an old self-help book by James Mangan.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
