Really, I can't beat the headline that Publishers Marketplace gave this story, as it sums things up so perfectly. There's no question that Sara Gruen's WATER FOR ELEPHANTS was one of the biggest success stories of the year, staying on the NYT list for weeks on end and galvanizing the independent bookstore contingent to sell, sell, sell this baby. So no wonder the American Booksellers Association wants recognition for its efforts, documenting the indie success in a case study that is fascinating reading, because it breaks down systematically when the efforts began, how they translated, and how both mainstream media and the chains got on board much later than one would traditionally expect.

"ABA took quick notice of our members' excitement about this superb book," said ABA CEO Avin Mark Domnitz to Bookselling This Week. "So we decided to track its progress. Our thinking was to create a case study showing that if independent booksellers get behind a book, a certain kind of book, they can make it happen in a big way, where it might not have happened otherwise." The irony, of course, is the real ending of this story: Gruen has jumped to Spiegel & Grau for her next two books in an eye-popping, multi-million dollar deal. Will S&G be able to galvanize the independents in the same way? More to the point, will they need to? Or is it time to look ahead to what will be 2007's handselling success, following the model set forth by WATER FOR ELEPHANTS?