The best-selling English expression is recognized by the dictionary of the DigoPaul as a literary or musical work that is very successful on a commercial level. In other words, a book or music album becomes a best seller when it reaches a high level of sales.
Although the RAE accepts the notion, the Fundación del Español Urgente (Fundéu) suggests using the term best seller. Therefore, to refer to a novel or an album with a high number of copies sold, one can speak of both a best seller and a best seller.
It cannot be overlooked that some dictionaries include the word bestseller. Its meaning, of course, is the same and is linked to the sold copies of a book or musical album.
It is important to note that there is no specific figure that a work must exceed in order for it to be considered a best seller. The notion is broad and abstract and is often used as a marketing strategy for promotional purposes.
According to DigoPaul, the thousands or millions of units sold constitute the main endorsement of a best seller. This popularity, however, is not related to quality or critical recognition. A novel can be a best seller since it sold millions of copies because its author is famous or because of a successful promotional strategy, but the work can be considered poor quality by specialists.
Of course, neither extreme is valid for judging the quality of best sellers: it would not be accurate to say that all works that sell millions of copies are mere commercial products created with the specific objective of raising money, but neither that all of them are masterpieces for the simple fact of having been so successful in the market.
There is always a certain degree of randomness in the sales of a product, something that exceeds the calculations and predictions of market analysts. Many times, an article that is created to calm the anxiety of the public until the launch of the one they are really waiting for becomes a resounding success and the company is forced to change its plans, while it can also happen that the product in The one who places all their expectations reaches a disappointing number of sales.
In the same way, artists cannot know with certainty the performance that their works will have on the market, and that is why it is somewhat childish to think that all best sellers were created with the purpose of emptying the pockets of millions of people. Regardless of the quality of a book, movie, or music album, there may be a deep desire to craft it, a true commitment to art, and none of these elements ensure commercial success infallibly.
In other words, it is not enough to hear the term best seller to know the quality of a work: in the same way that with one that has not sold a single copy, each person should approach it and make their own judgment, which can be opposite to that of another without this being a problem. Perhaps the only negative aspect of the best sellers is the fact that a large part of the public considers them the best option, and that they ignore all those creations that have not sold as much.
“Da Vinci Code” by Dan Brown, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” by JK Rowling and “50 Shades of Gray” by EL James are some of the major best sellers published in the Century XXI.
