By Josh Katzowitz
Tim Tebow is America’s sweetheart (or foil, depending on your perspective). He’s 7-3 as the Broncos starter since taking over for Kyle Orton, and although he probably has no business playing as an NFL quarterback, the guy has a knack for lifting his team to victory. So much so that the Broncos will qualify for the postseason with a win this week.
But more than that, Tebow inspires. And that’s probably why the book he and co-author Nathan Whitaker released before the season began is the top-selling religious book of the year.
According to the Washington Post, “Through My Eyes” has sold 220,000 copies since it was released in June. Chances are, once the holiday figures are tallied, that number is going to increase heavily.
| The Life of Tebow |
“(Readership) is beyond the evangelical world and NFL fans now,” Mark Tauber, senior vice president and publisher at HarperOne, told the newspaper. “There’s just sort of a general intrigue about what drives this guy.”
Book sales increased dramatically when Tebow took over for Orton. As the paper writes, the publisher began selling 2,000 per week when he was named starter, and eventually, after piling up a number of improbable, extraordinarily-exciting wins, he sold 25,000 in the week ending Dec. 18.
For now, there are nearly a half-million books in print, and the publisher expects to keep selling high volume in the offseason when Tebow can promote it more actively.
“We’ve had a number of accounts say, ‘We’re betting on this guy into January, February and beyond’ and their orders are evidence of that,” Tauber said. “So I don’t think 475,000 is at all where we’re going to stop. I know it’s not.”
For more NFL news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnNFL on Twitter, Like Us on Facebook, subscribe to our NFL newsletter, and while you're add it, add our RSS Feed.
