The incredible success of Passport, the holiday workbook that's a hit
Having sold nearly a million copies last summer, the best-seller for schoolchildren during the summer holidays is the star of the shelf space.
By Aurélie LebelleIt hasn't taken a vacation in nearly fifty years. A star on the shelves of supermarkets and specialty bookstores between the beginning of June and the end of August, the Passeport vacation workbook , published by Hachette since 1976, is still the bestseller in its category. The proof: last year, of the 4.7 million workbooks sold (all publishers combined), nearly 20% were Passeport books. Parents who were immersed in the world of this summer booklet are now buying it for their offspring, as a must-have for the holidays.
"It all started in the late 1970s, when Bernard Jenner, a primary school principal, developed a fun activity book for students to complete during the holidays," explains Nathalie Sannier Théret, director of Hachette's extracurricular activities department. "Even though it may seem trivial today, it was innovative at the time because the child became the protagonist of their book."
Le Parisien
