New pope hits bestseller list

The selection of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new pope Tuesday led to immediate demand for his many books. “We’re being overwhelmed with orders,” said Anthony Ryan, director of marketing for Ignatius Press, a nonprofit, San Francisco-based publisher that has issued the German-born Ratzinger’s works in English for more than 20 years.

Within hours of the announcement, several books by Ratzinger jumped onto the bestseller list of Amazon.com, including “Salt of the Earth,” “The Ratzinger Report,” “Introduction to Christianity” and his memoirs, “Milestones,” which covers his life through 1977. Many of the books were not immediately available to customers because of high demand.

According to Ignatius President Mark Brumley, a second volume of the memoirs is being translated and will be published “as soon as possible.”