Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi

Norton, of course, is the publisher of the Planet Money book and also a financial supporter of NPR.

At the top of Norton's winter catalog for 2026, we spy a new history of ancient Carthage called Carthage, A New History.

Fisher runs me through the different variables they use to decide how many copies of a book to buy or whether to order it at all.

First, there are the basics.

For example, the book about Carthage...

There's the cover image so Fisher can imagine the book on the shelf.

There's a quick summary of what the book's about, along with the author's name.

For that, Fisher is checking to see if the author is a household name.

Is this the latest celebrity memoir from Matthew McConaughey?

Is it a political tell-all from a former White House insider?

Does the author have a big social media following?

That'll often be listed prominently.

And like what number feels significant enough to make a difference?

In the case of Carthage, Fisher has never heard of the author, a historian named Eve MacDonald, nor does she have more than a million followers.

But Fisher still wants to check to see whether Eve MacDonald potentially lives nearby.

Some of the biggest book purchases that Fisher makes are often because the author is local.

Got to root for the home team.

Sort of the Louisville of Wales.

Every catalog entry that Fisher surveys has a section denoting any publicity campaigns or media appearances.

Will there be a book tour or other live events?