R.R. Bowker’s Books in Print database reported in May that book publishing in the United States is up more than 3% from 2005 to 2006, introducing 291,920 new titles and editions last year. Bowker is a leader in bibliographic information management, and its findings are based on preliminary figures gathered from 83,000 U.S. publishing companies. Despite industry growth in 2006, figures still have not matched their peak in 2004, when findings reported 295,5623 new titles issued.

Kelly Gallagher, general manager of the business intelligence unit in Bowker’s New Providence, New Jersey office, said, “What these statistics for last year illustrate is that most publishers are done with retrenching for the time being. But since the overall numbers have not yet returned to the level of 2004, it shows the industry is still being cautious about what books they add to their catalogs.”

Of the over 290,000 titles introduced in 2006, there were 5,486 poetry titles published, according to Daryn Teague, media contact for Bowker. The title figure for memoirs is a bit more difficult to obtain however, as the category within Bowker’s database is dubbed “Biography & Autobiography,” and does not differentiate between the two sub-genres. The total number for Biography and Autobiography titles published in 2006 was 6,195.

Among the most popular categories of 2006 were business books, which increased by 12% to 9,006 titles released. Juvenile titles, a major publishing category, saw its output plummet for the second consecutive year—a two-year title release drop of 30%.