I should say "are supposed to be* bestsellers. I have heard horror stories where someone gets a lead title package and the book still flops. Whether that's beca

I should say "are supposed to be* bestsellers. I have heard horror stories where someone gets a lead title package and the book still flops. Whether that's because of a bad book or just terrible luck, I don't know enough about it to say. But the chain bookstores are definitely a big part of the problem whereby publishers are expected to bet big on a few books ("lead titles") and let the others wither. The publishers didn't ask to be in this world.