"You would hardly imagine that the English version of 'Steve Jobs:A Biography' could sell in remote Xinjiang and Tibet," she told Xinhua.

According to Zhao, in addition to "Steve Jobs: A Biography," the "Harry Potter" and "Twilight" series have also hit record sales in second- and third-tier cities across China. The novel "Cloud Atlas" by David Mitchell and non-fiction book "Big Data" by Viktor Mayer-Schonberger are the top two sellers in China this year.

However, publishers have also faced troubles despite the booming sales as digital versions of pirated books have eaten into their market share.

"We have sustained losses from pirated books, but at the same time it tells us that China is a large potential market," she said.

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