The top 100 most searched for out-of-print books

Our friends at BookFinder compile one of the most interesting lists in the book business – the top 100 most searched for out-of-print books in the United States. Sadly, books fall out-of-print when publishers decide that there isn’t enough demand. That’s when the used book market becomes important for ensuring that these hard-to-find titles can still be found and bought.
The most recent list is diverse. Madonna’s famous Sex (one of the book’s few images that we could publish is seen left) is top of the list as always and Codex Seraphinianus by Luigi Serafini – dubbed the world’s weirdest book – is also in the top 10. There’s also a cookbook from actor and fine food connoisseur Vincent Price.
There are many famous authors on the list, including Stephen King (twice), Nora Roberts, Ray Bradbury, Barbara Cartland, Carl Sagan, C.S. Lewis and Madeleine L’Engle. There are also books from major artists like Salvador Dali and Cecil Beaton, and the autobiography of musician Johnny Cash.
A small number of these books are so scarce now that even AbeBooks booksellers do not have copies. In some cases, only a handful of copies are now available which means prices have become high.

Top 100 Most Searched for Out-of-Print Books

1. Sex
by Madonna
2. Rage
by Stephen King/Richard Bachman
3. Promise Me Tomorrow
by Nora Roberts
4. My Pretty Pony
by Stephen King
5. Pure, White & Deadly; The Problem of Sugar
by John Yudkin
6. Mandingo
by Kyle Onstott
7. Man in Black
by Johnny Cash
8. Codex Seraphinianus
by Luigi Serafini
9. 365 Bedtime Stories
by Nan Gilbert
10. Tudor Roses
by Alice Starmore
11. Fast Times at Ridgemont High
by Cameron Crowe
12. A Treasury of Great Recipes
by Mary & Vincent Price
13. Dark Carnival
by Ray Bradbury
14. The Jerusalem Bible
illustrated by Salvador Dali
15. Sisters
by Lynne Cheney
16. Arithmetic Progress Papers
by H. Henry Thomas
17. Beyond the Plough
by Janet Woods
18. Labyrinth: A Novel
by A.C.H. Smith
19. In a Dark Place: The Story of a True Haunting
by Ray Garton
20. I Go Pogo
by Walt Kelly
21. Phoebe and the Hot Water Bottles
by Linda Dawson & Terry Furchgott
22. Advise and Consent
by Allen Drury
23. The Centurions
by Jean Larteguy
24. Fly Fishing: Memories of Angling Days
by J.R. Hartley
25. Little Witch
by Anna Elizabeth Bennett
26. Collector’s Guide to Colt .45 Service Pistols
by Charles W. Clawson
27. Reflections of Nero Culture, History & Representation
by Jaś Elsner
28. The Allegory of Love: A Study in Medieval Tradition
by C.S. Lewis
29. The Bishop’s Wife
by Robert Nathan
30. Ilsa
by Madeleine L’Engle
31. The Reluctant King: The Life and Reign of George VI, 1895-1952
by Sarah Bradford
32. Murmurs of Earth
by Carl Sagan
33. Cards As Weapons by Ricky Jay
34. British Battleships of World War Two
by Alan Raven & John Roberts
35. The Book of Indians
by Clancy Holling
36. Halloween
by Curtis Richards
37. Good Vibes
by Jay Cronley
38. The Golden Book of the Civil War
by Charles Flato
39. Ticket to Ride
by Dennis Potter
40. Hell, I Was There
by Elmer Keith
41. House of Bondage
by Ernest Cole
42. The Pink Dress
by Anne Alexander
43. The Big Country
by Donald Hamilton
44. Stuart: A History of the American Light Tank
by R.P. Hunnicutt
45. Big League Sales Closing Techniques
by Les Dane
46. A Payroll to Meet: A Story of Greed, Corruption, and Football at SMU
by David Whitford
47. Too Good to be Threw
by Kate Holmes
48. A Treasury of American Prints
by Thomas Craven
49. To Drop a Dime
by Paul Hoffman
50. Country Landscapes in Watercolor
by John Blockley
51. Crochet Lace: An illustrated Guide to Making Crochet Lace Fabrics
by Mary Konior
52. The Glass of Fashion
by Cecil Beaton
53. The Act of Creation
by Arthur Koestler
54. Bowman of Crecy
by Ronald Welch
55. The Windflower
by Laura London
56. The King Ranch
by Tom Lea
57. The Assembly Line
by Milt Tenopir
58. Practical Gunsmithing
by Edward Matunas
59. Tellers of Tales: 100 Short Stories from the United States, England, France, Russia and Germany
by W Somerset Maugham
60. The Star Conquerors
by Ben Bova
61. Eve of the End
by Allan D Richter
62. Mastering Atmosphere & Mood in Watercolor
by Joseph Zbukvic
63. Second Sight
by David Williams
64. Covenant with Death
by John Harris
65. The Blood Star
by Nicholas Guild
66. McCoys: Their Story as Told to the Author by Eye Witnesses and Descendants
by Truda Williams McCoy
67. The Magic Talisman
by John Blaine
68. The Vision and Beyond
by David Wilkerson
69. The House Without Windows
by Barbara Newhall Follett
70. Pancakes A to Z
by Marie Simmons
71. She Is The Darkness
by Glen Cook
72. Cyborg
by Martin Caidin
73. Currier & Ives: Printmakers to the American People
by Harry Twyford Peters
74. The Wonderful Fashion Doll
by Laura Bannon
75. Jennie / The Abandoned
by Paul Gallico
76. The Bumper Book: A Harvest of Stories and Verses
by Watty Piper
77. The Modern Gunsmith
by James Virgil Howe
78. Drum
by Kyle Onstott
79. Carriage Entrance
by Polan Banks
80. The Septuagint Bible
by Charles Thomson
81. Basic Building Data: 10,000 Timeless Construction Facts
by Don Graf
82. Notations
by John Cage
83. Birds of Britain
by John D. Green
84. Apple Pigs
by Ruth Orbach
85. The Ideal Communist City
by Alexei Gutnov
86. Coal
by Jason Grant
87. War in the Modern Great Power System 1495-1975
by Jack S. Levy
88. A Treasury of Grand Opera
edited by Henry W. Simon
89. Our Journey in the Life
by Doyle C. Barnes
90. Approaches to Translation
by Peter Newmark
91. The Black Sun
by Kyle Onstott & Lance Horner
92. Turkish Delight
by Jan Wolkers
93. Almonds and Raisins
by Maisie Mosco
94. Alvin Fog, Texas Ranger
by John Thomas Edson
95. Basic Medical Laboratory Subjects
by Hugh Woosley
96. Hand and Rod Puppets
by Hansjurgen Fettig
97. The Lost Boys
by Craig Shaw Gardner
98. 102 Favorite Paintings
by Norman Rockwell
99. The Imperialists
by William Stuart Long
100. Against the Stream
by Barbara Cartland