Our Bestsellers Lists for this Week from December 19th

Reporting our bestsellers is always an interesting weekly chore for me, but this week is particularly fun, as I see numbers (for non-events, at least) higher that I never see at other times. This week's numbers do actually show the effect of two events, our talk with John Eastburg for the Captain Frederick Pabst Mansion, and Reyna Grande's Dancing with Butterflies reading.

I'm glad to see a nice pop from my rec on The Power of Kindness in our email newsletter. Jason told me we should have been more prepared, as we could have sold another dozen copies this weekend. Hey, who knew that a week before Christmas, I can actually sell books in quantity out of the email newsletter? That was almost as surprising as when several folks came in with our Shepherd Express ad for Michael Sandel's Justice the week prior.

hardcover fiction

1. Too Much Happiness, by Alice Munro

2. Half Broke Horses, by Jeannette Walls (event at Alverno, 1/9)

3. Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel
4. Little Bee, by Chris Cleave

5. A Gate at the Stairs, by Lorrie Moore

6. Await Your Reply, by Dan Chaon

7. A Short History of Women, by Kate Walbert
8. The Help, by Kathryn Stockett

9. Chronic City, by Jonathan Lethem

10. Every Man Dies Alone, by Hans Fallada

Wow, this is quite the list. Do we not sell the commercial titles in quantity because our customer base is different, or because of the aggressive discounting going on with those titles? The Stockett of course, is the word-of-mouth book that's selling everywhere. And as you can see, we're getting the New York Times Book Review ten best of the year pop.

hardcover nonfiction

1. The Captain Frederick Pabst Mansion, by John Eastberg

2. Ad Hoc at Home, by Thomas Keller

3. The Book of Genesis, as interpreted by R. Crumb

4. Stones into Schools, by Greg Mortenson

5. Milwaukee Sketchbook, by MIAD Students, with text by Fran Bauer

6. One People, Many Paths, by John Gurda

7. Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers

8. True Compass, by Ted Kennedy

9. My Bread, by Jim Lahey

10. Inside of a Dog, by Alexandra Horowitz

paperback fiction

1. Olive Kitteridge, by Elizabeth Strout

2. Dancing with Butterflies, by Reyna Grande

3. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larrson

4. In Other Rooms, Other Wonders, by Daniyal Mueenuddin (event 1/20)

5. The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein

6. The Road, by Cormac McCarthy (opened at the Downer Theatre on Friday)

7. Let the Great World Spin, by Colum McCann

8. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, by Mary Ann Shaeffer and Annie Barrows

9. The Private Patient, by P.D. James

10. The Company Car, by C. J. Hribal (sold books at Sugar Maple)

paperback nonfiction

1. The Power of Kindness, by Piero Ferrucci

2. Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Morenson

3. The Blind Side, by Michael Lewis

4. Race Rules, by Michael Eric Dyson

5. Inventory, by the A. V. Club (of the Onion)

6. Milwaukee's Italian Heritage, by Anthony Zignego

7. Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue, by John McWhorter

8. It's Beginning to Look at Lot like Zombies, by Michael Spradlin

9. Mary Nohl, by Barbara Manger and Janine Smith

10. The Master Cheesemakers of Wisconsin, by James Norton and Becca Dilley

If we've got copies left, you can reserve copies on our website.