We would like to mention a few notable titles from the best-seller list of 2015.

【Humanities】

The humanities best-seller list is characterized by the presence of longstanding, classic titles. The top three titles in this list remained the same, but swapped places slightly. W. McNeill’s A World History (1998) continued to remain in great demand. Notable titles not included in the top 10 last year were: Japan in World History by J. Huffman, which compiles Japanese history from the Jomon period to post-1945 in less than 130 pages, and What Does it All Mean?, a concise introduction to philosophy by American philosopher Thomas Nagel (1937- ) originally published in 1987. How to Write Successful Essays, Dissertations, and Exams has also been a favorite text since its first release in 2002.

【Social Science】

Japan and the Shackles of the Past by R. Taggart Murphy was the best-selling social science title in 2015. The author, with nearly 40 years of experience in Japan as an investment banker, economic critic, and professor at the University of Tsukuba, provides an engaging introduction and insightful analysis on the country. The book enjoyed broad success and was translated into Japanese and published by Hayakawa Publishing at the end of 2015.Also notable in the top 10 higher education textbooks are those titles which feature key words such as globalization, poverty and inequality; a sign of the times we live in.

【Natural Science】

The Natural Science ranking remained fairly unchanged and was dominated by highly reputable textbooks such as Atkins’ Physical Chemistry (10th edition) and Organic Chemistry (2nd edition) by Jonathan Clayden et al. The revised and updated 5th edition of Principles of Development by Lewis Wolpert which was published in March 2015 also made it in the ranking last year. While new and recent publications are generally preferred in the field of natural sciences, a 20-year old inorganic materials chemistry textbook from the Oxford Chemistry Primers series came in the ranking at 8th. This renowned series, which provides accessible accounts of a range of essential topics in chemistry and chemical engineering, is currently in the process of undergoing a renewal, and a few titles were updated in 2015 with additional support from our Online Resource Centre.

【Dictionaries】

Not much changed in the category of language dictionaries in 2015, a list which has not seen a new release of an English dictionary since 2013. While Oxford dictionaries come in a variety of sizes, compact dictionaries are often the favorites in the top 10, including the Mini and Beginner’s Japanese dictionaries. The official import version of the Oxford English Dictionary 2nd edition on CD-ROM, also takes root in this category.

• Downloadable Best of 2015 listYou can use this list as the order sheet