Big Book Sales for MTV Reality Stars Not a 'Shore' Thing

Nicole Polizzi, better known as Snooki from MTV's smash hit Jersey Shore, has at last count more than 1,105,000 followers on Twitter.

But that huge Internet platform didn't exactly translate into a monster first week for her punny debut novel, A Shore Thing. The book came out on January 4th and, according to Bookscan, had moved 4,000 copies through January 9th. Bookscan tracks approximately 75% of all retail sales in the United States.

That works out to about one book for every 276 Twitter followers.

The overall track record of Jersey Shore stars selling books has, meanwhile, been unremarkable. Gym, Tanning, Laundry: The Official Jersey Shore Quote Book is available under "Bargain Books" at Amazon.com. It's priced at just $4.80 and makes a wonderful gift for someone you don't especially like.

Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino, the other breakout star of the show, released the 144-page paperback, Here's the Situation: A Guide to Creeping on Chicks, Avoiding Grenades, and Getting in Your GTL on the Jersey Shore back in November. According to Bookscan, that title has sold 12,000 copies to date.

That's not a horrible sales figure -- but given that Jersey Shore's Season Three premiere episode drew 8.45 million viewers earlier this month, it certainly seems lackluster. And you have to think the publishers who bought these books had higher hopes.