Book Imports Increase 8%

Costa Rica imported $48 million in books this year, an eight percent increase from the year before, according to the daily La Nación.

Bookstore representatives told the daily that the sector’s growth is due to an increased demand for foreign and national books, which has prompted the opening of more bookstores in the country.

Gabriela Lavagni, spokeswoman for Universal’s book department, said books that Costa Ricans read the most are literature, novels, poetry and essays. She said there’s also a growing demand for selfhelp, business, and cookbooks, among others.

In recent years, the demand for books has also been driven by a rise in the number of youth readers. Youth literature such as the Harry Potter series and Chronicles of Narnia have received boosts in sales due to the books having become major motion pictures, the daily reported.

Universal has eight bookstores around the country, four of which opened in the past year. Librería Internacional has 10, and opened its new Escazú shop this year.