ROME, Feb 26: Pope John Paul's publishers have never had trouble selling his books, but now that the pontiff is ailing in hospital they can barely keep up with demand.

The prolific pontiff's latest bestseller, "Memory and Identity: Conversations Spanning Millenniums," has been flying off the shelves since it came out on Wednesday, with copies being snapped up at the rate of up to 100 a day, bookstores across Rome report.

"We're selling really a lot of copies," said the cashier at the Feltrinelli bookshop in the central Largo Argentina square, where the book was prominently displayed Saturday, with another 200 copies stacked on the floor.

"Memory and Identity," his fifth book as pope, had an exceptional first print run of 330,000 copies, and publisher Rizzoli said Saturday it had ordered another 30,000 because stocks were about to run out.

Rizzoli, which also publishes the Italian daily Corriere della Sera, has already contracted for 14 foreign editions including English and French as well as Korean, Croatian and the pope's native Polish.

The 84-year-old pontiff reflects in the book on the most challenging issues and events of his era, including terrorism and the attempt on his life in 1981. He also sparked controversy by likening abortion to the Holocaust of the Jews.

"Crossing the Threshold of Hope," his first book written with Italian journalist Vittorio Messori, has sold nearly 20 million copies in 32 languages. Sales are still brisk, with 1.5 million copies sold last year in Italy alone, and another five million around the world.

Other bestsellers include a book of poetic meditations on death, the autobiographical "Rise, Let Us Be On Our Way" which has sold half a million in Italy, and "Gift and Mystery" marking the 50th anniversary of the pope's ordination in 1996, explaining his call to God.

All royalties from John Paul II's books go into a charitable fund.

In addition to his books, the pope has written hundreds of encyclicals, or teachings, decrees, letters, sermons and talks.-AFP