Swedes Like It

When Reader's Digest editors several months ago decided to publish at Stockholm a Swedish language edition* called Det Besta ur Reader's Digest (TIME, Feb. 1) they figured they would be lucky to sell 20,000 copies of the first issue. Optimistically, they decided to run off 75,000 copies anyway, just in case.

They underestimated the neutral Swedes. First issue, looking almost exactly like the U.S. version and selling for 50 ore (12-c-) a copy, hit Swedish newsstands Feb. 25, sold out in a week. Result: second issue's press run will be 140,000.

The third may be even bigger: there is plenty of paper in Sweden and Det Besta ur Reader's Digest's ultimate circulation will be limited only by its popularity.

The Reader's Digest also publishes Chinese, British and Latin American editions. With 8,300,000 U.S. readers, the magazine's total circulation this month was 9,675,000. In July, the Digest will launch a French-Canadian edition which will have an expected 50,000 readers, may also circulate in North Africa.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.