Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 26, 2022

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 26, 2022

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Cartographers, by Peng Shepherd (Register for April 18 in-person and broadcast event here)
2. French Braid, by Anne Tyler
3. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, by Charlie Mackesy (am I the only person who thinks this is fiction?)
4. Violeta, by Isabel Allende
5. A Sunlit Weapon, by Jacqueline Winspear
6. Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr
7. The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley
8. Black Cake, by Charmaine Wilkerson
9. Disorientation, by Elain Hshieh Chou
10. Groundskeeping, by Lee Cole

Disorientation is the debut novel from Elain Hshieh Chou, which has a rec from Jenny Chou, which you can read if you click on the title. It's about a grad student who discovers that the Chinese poet she's doing her dissertation on is not actually Chinese. It also has some great critical reviews, including Leland Cheuk in The Washington Post: "The hyperactive satire is so consistently funny it almost makes the reader forget about the serious societal issues that undergird the humor. The premise of Disorientation is based on a real-life controversy. In 2015, the Best American Poetry anthology featured a poem by Yi-Fen Chou, who turned out to be Michael Derrick Hudson, a middle-aged White man. Frustrated by literary rejection, Hudson began submitting work under a Chinese pseudonym."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. The 1619 Project, created by Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times
2. The Midwest Survival Guide, by Charlie Berens
3. We Don't Know Ourselves, by Fintan O'Toole
4. Atlas of the Heart, by Brené Brown
5. The Nineties, by Chuck Klosterman
6. I Was Better Last Night, by Harvey Fierstein
7. There Is Nothing Good for You Here, by Fiona Hill
8. Every Good Boy Does Fine, by Jeremy Denk
9. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
10. Let's Summon Demons, by Steven Rhodes

I Was Better Last Night is the memoir of the Tony-Winning (Torch Song Trilogy and La Cage aux Folles) and Tony-nominated (Newsies, Kinky Boots, more) actor and playwright. From being cast in Andy Warhol's only play as a teenager to confronting his addictions and reaching sobriety, Harvey Fierstein tells his story in a series of vignettes. From Library Journal: "His memoir is filled with evocative characters and scenes, and his wit and way with dialogue shine." And for the person who said, "We've got to get an advance copy of Fierstein's memoir to Henry Winkler, stat!" it paid off. Winkler writes: "Harvey is the king and queen of Broadway. He can take you on a journey with his words and he is hysterical."

Paperback Fiction:
1. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro
2. Circe, by Madeline Miller
3. Murder on the Orient Express, by Agatha Christie
4. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins-Reid
5. The Anomaly, by Hervé Le Tellier
6. Leave the World Behind, by Rumaan Alam
7. Send for Me, by Lauren Fox
8. Empress of Salt and Fortune, by Nghi Vo 
9. The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett
10. Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens

Looks like folks are reading Murder on the Orient Express in connection with the Milwaukee Rep adaptation that is opening May 31. Adapted for the stage by Ken Ludwig, Broadway World called this play "Glamourous… enthralling from the beginning to the end.” Tickets and more info on the Milwaukee Rep website.

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. The Midwest Gardeners Handbook, by Melinda Myers
2. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
3. Entangled Life, by Merlin Sheldrake
4. Untangled, by Lisa Damour (Register for April 7 event here)
5. On Tyranny graphic edition, by Timothy Snyder
6. Tacky, by Rax King
7. In Lieu of Flowers, by Nancy Cobb
8. North Point Historic Districts, by Shirley De Fresne McArthur
9. Complete Mushroom Hunter Revised, by Gary Lincoff
10. Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari

It looks like the bookseller pundit who told me that 2022 is the year of the mushroom is vindicated, with two of the hot fungal folios hitting our top 10 - Entangled Life, by Merlin Sheldrake (I am always late on these things but I was amused when Coach Beard was reading this on Ted Lasso) and The Complete Mushroom Hunter by Gary Lincoff. Lincoff has led mushroom courses at the New York Botanical Gardens and for 25 years chaired the Telluride Mushroom Festival. Didn't know about this event? It happens this August - start planning your trip!

Books for Kids:
1. Believe in Yourself: What We Learned from Arthur, by Marc Brown
2. Stella Keeps the Sun Up, by Clothilde Ewing
3. The Ogress and the Orphans, by Kelly Barnhill
4. I'm not Scared, You're Scared, by Seth Meyers, illustrations by Rob Sayegh
5. The Last Cuentista, by Donna Barba Higeuera
6. ABCs of Wisconsin, by Sandra Magsamen
7. Cat Kid Comic Club: Perspectives V2, by Dav Pilkey
8. Anatomy: A Love Story, by Dana Schwartz
9. I Must Betray You, by Ruta Septys
10. It Fell From the Sky, by the Fan Brothers

I know that these sorts of books are done 50 at a time, one for each state, with several big cities probably getting their own entries (generally not Milwaukee, which is one reason why Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee does so well for us - a lovely book with little competition), but these state-specific kids books do well for us too and even better at mass merchants, if the Bookscan numbers that we used to see are an indication. The ABCs of Wisconsin is a board book from last fall from Sanra Magsamen, author/illustrator of ABCs of Chicago, New England, California, and even some non-geography-specific books like I Love You, Honey Bunny. More on her lifestyle brands on Wikipedia.

Over at the Journal Sentinel, Chris Foran offers his roundup of 11 new baseball books.

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 19, 2022

Boswell bestsellers, week ending March 19, 2022

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Cartographers, by Peng Shepherd (Register for April 18 in-person/virtual event here)
2. The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley
3. Murder at the Porte de Versailles, by Cara Black (Register for April 7 in-person event here)
4. Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir
5. Black Cake, by Charmaine Wilkerson
6. One Italian Summer, by Rebecca Serle
7. Give Unto Others, by Donna Leon
8. The Paris Bookseller, by Kerri Maher
9. Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr
10. Violeta, by Isabel Allende

In the years since I've been paying attention to these things, two things that have been consistent is Cara Black's Aimée Leduc series (20 titles in the series) and Donna Leon's Guido Brunetti (31 titles in the series). Paris and Venice, two places I wouldn't mind visiting for the second (Black) or first (Leon) time. We'll be talking about Murder at the Porte of Versailles for Black's visit on April 7, but I should say a few words about Give Unto Others. In one way, the series are very different - Leduc's titles use the Sue Grafton formula, with each episode set after the last, but by not too much, meaning the new book is set in 2001. The Brunetti series keeps a contemporary timeline - so Give Unto Others is set in a Venice that is recovering from the worst of COVID. Coincidentally Donna Leon's visit was our last big event in 2020 before we shut down for COVID.

I should also probably mention that three of the top ten books this week are set in Paris.  

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Last Call at the Hotel Imperial, by Deborah Coeh (Register for March 27 in-peson/Virtual event here)
2. The Insect Crisis, by Oliver Milman (watch the recording here)
3. We Don't Know Ourselves, by Fintan O'Toole
4. Giannis, by Mirin Fader
5. Origin, by Jennifer Raff
6. Lessons from the Edge, by Marie Yovanovitch
7. In Love, by Amy Bloom
8. In Praise of Good Bookstores, by Jeff Deutsch (Register for April 25 in person/virtual event here)
9. Atlas of the Heart, by Brené Brown
10. Off the Edge, by Kelly Weill (watch the recording here)

Some people celebrate St Patrick's Day by staying home and reading. We had a nice pop in sales for Finan O'Toole's We Don't Know Ourselves: A Personal History of Modern Ireland. From the Library Journal review: "Irish Times columnist O'Toole (The Politics of Pain: Postwar England and the Rise of Nationalism) has written a forceful account of how Ireland entered the modern age, beginning with his own personal history, which he effectively ties in with an almost year-by-year recounting of what happened in his country during the late 20th century." Lots more raves on Bookmarks.

Paperback Fiction:
1. Standing Up, by Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller
2. Verity, by Colleen Hoover
3. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
4. It Ends with Us, by Colleen Hoover
5. Copper Yearning, by Kimberly Blaeser
6. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro
7. Shady Hollow, by Juneau Black (register for May 6 in-person event here)
8. The House in the Cerulean Sea, by TJ Klune
9. Murder on Monte Vista, by David Pederson
10. The White Tiger, by Aravinda Adiga

With David Pederson moving on to Arizona, so go his characters. Murder on Monte Vista is the first of the Mason Adler mysteries, set in 1946 Phoenix. It's a locked-room mystery set at a dinner party, with a Pederson twist.

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. Union, by Colin Woodard
2. American Nations, by Colin Woodard
3. Midwest Gardeners Handbook, by Melinda Myers
4. The Numbers, by Oliver Linton
5. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
6. The Splendid and the Vile, by Erik Larson
7. If Nuns Ruled the World, by Jo Piazza
8. Entangled Life, by Merlin Sheldrake
9. Madhouse at the End of the Earth, by Julian Sancton
10. The Hidden World of the Fox, by Adele Brand

It's been nine years (or so my inventory system says) since the first edition of Melinda Myers's The Midwest Gardeners Handbook: All You Need to Know, Plant, and Maintain a Midwest Garden, and in the first week, we've already sold close to half the copies we did of the previous version over the life of the book. The difference? Last time The Garden Book for Wisconsin (also from Myers) was still available, but now it's no longer available.

Books for Kids:
1. Max and the Midknights: Tower of Time V3 by Lincoln Peirce
2. Max and the Midknights V1, by Lincoln Peirce
3. Believe in Yourself, by Marc Brown
4. Firekeeper's Daughter, by Angeline Boulley
5. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse, illustrations by Renée Graef
6. The Assignment, by Liza Wiemer
7. We Are Power, by Todd Hasak-Lowy
8. The Ogress and the Orphans, by Kelly Barnhill
9. She Persisted in Science, by Chelsea Clinton
10. Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think I've ever given a shout out for Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao, a teen series opener set in Huaxia, a futuristic world with Chinese characteristics. This #1 NYT bestseller also hit several best-of lists since its September 2021 release. From Shelf Awareness: "Iron Widow is an exciting, action-packed sci-fi story and a scathing indictment of patriarchal culture. Zetian is a ruthless yet sympathetic antiheroine whose determination to overturn the status quo, where women are 'born to be used and discarded,' will earn readers' compassion."

From the Journal Sentinel, Jim Higgins reviews The Cartographers, the new novel from Peng Shepherd. He writes: "The power of maps to fascinate and to lead somewhere unexpected infuses Peng Shepherd's novel The Cartographers, which straddles the loosely defined territories of fantasy and thriller... Even though most characters in this novel who aren't police officers are brilliant minds with advanced degrees, Shepherd writes graceful, fluid prose that's easy to follow; this is a novel for adults, but it also could appeal to teenagers who like smart fantasy, especially given Nell, who comes across as emotionally younger than her age." Shepherd will be talking to Jim Higgins at Boswell on April 18. Here's that registration link once again. You'll have plenty of time to read the book before the event. 

A special non-Boswell event with William Boyd - more on TRIO, and Rakestraw Books

I enjoy reading other bookstore newsletters. It's a great way to find out what other booksellers are enjoying, how they are running their store, and what kind of event programming they are doing. You would think that I would have enough author visits on my plate, both virtual and in-person, that I would not be interested in seeing more. But this week I received notice from Rakestraw Books in Danville, California (a store that's high on my list for an eventual visit) that they were hosting an event with William Boyd, the acclaimed Scottish novelist, short story writer and screenwriter. Boyd has received numerous honors, including the Whitbread Prize, the Costa Prize, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His popular titles include Any Human Heart, Restless, and Brazzaville Beach. He even wrote a James Bond novel, Solo. (Yes, he wrote it himself, but that's also the title)

William Boyd's latest novel is Trio, which was published by Knopf in hardcover and is now available in a Vintage edition. James Lasdun offered this take in The New York Times: "It would be hard to think of a living novelist whose books encompass more history, more settings, more professions, more varieties of individual fate, than William Boyd - at least with anything like his assurance. Spies, photographers, climatologists, psychiatrists - in colonial Africa, prewar Vienna, the American South: You name it, and there is almost certainly something in Boyd’s prolific oeuvre that has it covered. For readers who go to fiction for the pleasures of panoramic sweep, elaborate plotting and the company of a humane, genial intelligence, he has become one of the preferred masters."

I should note that this is one of 16 raves Boyd has collected for his latest, per BookMarks. He's also got one positive review and one pan, in The Evening Standard, which is almost a badge of honor.

I wound up chatting with Michael Barnard, the owner of Rakestraw, a bit about the program. Barnard is a huge Boyd fan, which you can see from his email newsletter and the pile of Boyd hardcovers pictured. We had a delightful conversation about Tessa Hadley, as he is currently reading Free Love, which I also really enjoyed. "Should I read more of her?," I asked. Yes, Michael replied. He also cued me in that this Saturday morning slot has worked well for Rakestraw regarding authors from across the Atlantic. We've had success with that weekday afternoon slot but we might just try one on Saturday AM, at his suggestion.

The book that's gone to the top of my list on talking to Michael is Still Life, by Sarah Winman. I don't know why I've put this off. I started the book before it came out, as I was a fan of her previous novel, Tin Man, but I didn't get into it. I even wound up recommending it to my sister Merrill, who enjoyed it. We sold a respectable amount of books, but the number that Michael has hand-sold is staggering - Leonard and Hungry Paul numbers. I'm going to try again - I'm always looking for a book where I'll be thanked for the suggestion!

If you like these virtual programs, you should sign up for the Rakestraw event with William Boyd this Saturday morning, March 19, 11:30 Central (which is 9:30 Eastern). We have books available, but it's also available from Rakestraw, for a very nice price of $21 including USPS Media Mail shipping. Here's a link for more about the event, with links to register and to purchase the book. 

Four events, including one in person and one school visit - Kelly Weill with Doug Gordon, Oliver Milman with Sue Stuart-Smith, Marc Brown with Elmbrook Schools, and Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller with Tony Baez

Here's what's happening this week: 

Tuesday, March 15, 7 pm

Kelly Weill, author of Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything 

In Conversation with Doug Gordon for a virtual event

Register for this event here.

Journalist and author Kelly Weill joins us for a virtual conversation about her new book of reporting from America’s fringes: Off the Edge, a book that tells a powerful story about belief, exploring how we arrived at this moment of polarized realities, and explaining what needs to happen so that we might all return to the same spinning globe. In conversation with WPR Host and Producer Doug Gordon. This event is cosponsored by Wisconsin Public Radio. 

Since 2015, there has been a spectacular boom in a nearly two-hundred-year-old delusion - the idea that we all live on a flat plane, under a solid dome, ringed by an impossible wall of ice. It is the ultimate in conspiracy theories, a wholesale rejection of everything we know to be true about the world in which we live. Where did this idea come from? Weill draws a straight line from today’s conspiratorial moment back to the early days of Flat Earth theory in the 1830s, showing the human impulses behind divergences in belief. Faced with a complicated world out of our individual control, we naturally seek patterns to explain the inexplicable. The only difference between then and now? Social media. And, powered by Facebook and YouTube algorithms, the Flat Earth movement is growing.

Here’s a recommendation from Boswellian Chris Lee: “It’s weird! It’s wild! It’s full of cranks and cooks, utopians and grifters (and recently, Nazis. Yikes.). It’s the flat earth movement, and it’s back, baby! Kelly Weill’s fantastic book traces the history of flat earth, from utopian English communes to a cabin in the California desert to its resurgence online, and it’s totally not what you think it is. How has such an absurdly stupid, baldly false idea become a pet cause of pro athletes, white supremacists, and a fast-growing number of otherwise average normies? Weill offers an insightful examination of the way conspiracies untether believers from the reality. What a great book - a fascinating hidden history story and an investigation of a subset that sheds eye-opening light on the ways fringe ideas can take hold of entire cultures.”

Kelly Weill is a journalist at the Daily Beast, where she covers extremism, disinformation, and the internet. She has discussed Flat Earth and other digital fringes on ABC's Nightline, CNN, Al Jazeera, and other national and international news outlets. Doug Gordon is host of WPR’s show BETA.

Wednesday, March 16, 2 pm

Oliver Milman, author of The Insect Crisis: The Fall of the Tiny Empires That Run the World
in Conversation with Sue Stuart-Smith for a virtual event

Register here for this event. The first 30 people to preorder a copy will get a signed bookplate and a special packet of lavender seeds.

Schlitz Audubon Nature Center and Boswell present an afternoon virtual event with journalist Oliver Milman, talking about his new book, a devastating examination of how collapsing insect populations worldwide threaten everything from wild birds to the food on our plate. For this event, Milman will be in conversation with Sue Stuart-Smith, author of The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature.

From ants scurrying under leaf litter to bees able to fly higher than Mount Kilimanjaro, insects are everywhere. Three out of every four of our planet’s known animal species are insects. In The Insect Crisis, acclaimed journalist Oliver Milman dives into the torrent of recent evidence that suggests this kaleidoscopic group of creatures is suffering the greatest existential crisis in its remarkable 400-million-year history. What is causing the collapse of the insect world? Why does this alarming decline pose such a threat to us? And what can be done to stem the loss of the miniature empires that hold aloft life as we know it?

By connecting butterfly and bee, moth and beetle from across the globe, the full scope of loss renders a portrait of a crisis that threatens to upend the workings of our collective history. Part warning, part celebration of the incredible variety of insects, The Insect Crisis is a wake-up call for us all. Michelle Nijhuis, author of Beloved Beasts, says, "The Insect Crisis is elegantly written, admirably nuanced, and terrifyingly important."

The New York Times calls the book "gripping, sobering and important," and notes that "Milman has an ear for a good quote and a knack for explaining scientific research." The Guardian also has a great review, concluding that, "As much as a crisis of pesticides and habitat loss, the insect crisis seems one of indifference, of our failure to appreciate what is at our feet. It’s here that the book’s power lies, for once you read it you cannot fail to notice the butterfly underfoot."

Oliver Milman is a British journalist and the environment correspondent at the Guardian. Sue Stuart-Smith is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist and author of The Well Gardened Mind, named gardening book of the year by The Sunday Times.

Thursday, March 17, 9:30 am
Marc Brown, author of Believe in Yourself: What We Learned from Arthur for a virtual school visit.
Register below for this event.

Elmbrook School District will host a virtual school visit featuring Marc Brown, creator of the beloved Arthur Adventure book series, for a presentation about his latest, Believe in Yourself: What We Learned from Arthur. As the award-winning Arthur TV series reaches its twenty-fifth anniversary, what better way to celebrate America's favorite aardvark than this collection of life lessons? Cosponsored by Boswell.

This school visit presentation is open to the public. Click here to visit the registration page in order to sign up to view the event. For those not associated with one of the schools, simply choose "Other" in the drop-down menu when prompted to choose a school. 

Join Arthur and his friends as they share the funniest and most heartfelt moments from the longest-running children's  television show in US history and classic book series created by master storyteller Marc Brown. This treasure trove of quotes  and life lessons is divided into five sections that will inspire readers of all ages to listen to their hearts, work together, have an original point of view, and most of all, to believe in themselves! With more than 60 pieces of all-new artwork, this book is a perfect keepsake for superfans young and old as well as those just being introduced to this beloved character.

Marc Brown's Arthur Adventure book series has over 160 million Arthur books in print. He also is the executive producer of Arthur on PBS. 

Friday, March 18, 6:30 pm
Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller, authors of Standing Up: Tales of Struggle
in Conversation with Tony Baez in-person at Boswell Book Company

Register for this event here. Registration is required to attend this event in-person at Boswell, and capacity is limited. 

Boswell presents an evening with Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller, authors of Standing Up: Tales of Struggle. For this event, Bravo and Miller will be in conversation with activist, educator, and musician Tony Baez. This event is cosponsored by Wisconsin AFL-CIO and 9to5. Order a copy of the book here. 

Please Note: Masks are encouraged for this event.

In Standing Up, Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller have taken inspiration from their five decades organizing for labor and social justice to craft a novel about the people who clean bloody hospital sheets, forge parts for sewer pipes, arrange flights, or process checks, all while caring for kids, holding relationships together, and wrestling with multiple forms of oppression. It is about the people we see every day but do not know their names, their joys, or their sorrows. The novel shares the moments when people realize that oppression is not normal or inevitable, that change is possible, and that they can be part of that change.

From Gloria Steinem, "writer, lecturer, political activist, and feminist organizer: So much fiction is about escape and fantasy, but these powerful Tales of Struggle will enrich our real and daily lives." And from Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance: "Great storytelling about standing up to injustice, filled with hope and powered by love and human interdependence. We see the anatomy of stand-ups: courage bolstered by support, where we tell each other, 'Yes, you can,' and tell our oppressors, 'No, you won’t.'"

Ellen Bravo is a lifelong activist, former director of 9to5 (the group that inspired the movie), and co-founder of Family Values @ Work, a network of state coalitions working for family-friendly policies. Bravo is the award-winning writer of three non-fiction books, the most recent being Taking on the Big Boys and the novel Again and Again. Among her commendations is a Ford Foundation Visionary award. 

Photo credits
Kelly Weill by Scott Heins

Oliver Milman by Lyndal Stewart

More on the Boswell upcoming events page. Thanks to Rachel for putting this together (Daniel)

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 12, 2022

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 12, 2022

Hardcover Fiction:
1. Run, Rose, Run, by Dolly Parton and James Patterson
2. Booth, by Karen Joy Fowler (signed tip-in copies)
3. The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley
4. One Italian Summer, by Rebecca Serle
5. The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig
6. Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr
7. When I'm Gone Look for Me in the East, by Quan Barry (signed copies)
8. Call Us What We Carry, by Amanda Gorman
9. Love and Saffron, by Kim Fay (Register for April 6 event here)
10. Moon Witch, Spider King, by Marlon James

The #1 Indie Next Book for March is One Italian Summer, by Rebecca Serle, the follow up to In Five Years, which was a national bestseller with very strong sales at Boswell. Her latest is what, not exactly time travel but that time shift concept that has become so popular of late (I just read another upcoming book in this genre yesterday). The Indie Next quote from Kaitlin Smith at California's Copperfield's Books: "One Italian Summer is pure magic. Rebecca Serle marvelously creates a literary world that feels full and alive, like I can catch a flight with Katy and experience Italy alongside her. This treasure of a book is sure to delight readers.” Plus Alice Rancilio from Associated Press: "Yes, you’ll want to keep reading to figure out what is happening and, yes, you’ll have to suspend belief to enjoy the story but in these cynical times full of snark and memes, it’s nice to surrender to magic every now and then."

More Indie Next Picks for March here.

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. The Light of Days, by Judy Batalion (signed copies)
2. The Wok, by J Kenji Lopez-Alt
3. In Love, by Amy Bloom
4. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
5. The Nineties, by Chuck Klosterman
6. The Midwest Survival Guide, by Charlie Berens
7. The 1619 Project, created by Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times
8. How to Be Perfect, by Michael Schur
9. Aftermath, by Harald Jahner
10. The Beauty of Dusk, by Frank Bruni
11. In Praise of Good Bookstores, by Jeff Deutsch (Register for April 25 event here)

The top nonfiction breakout this week is J Kenji Lopez-Alt's The Wok: Recipes and Techniques, his follow-up after seven years of the bestselling and James Beard-winning The Food Lab. From the starred Publishers Weekly review: "López-Alt's conversational prose never fails to entertain, even when detailing how the alkaline properties of baking soda are "the secret to plumper, snappier shrimp." Readers will be cooking with gas thanks to this fiery and insightful work."

Paperback Fiction:
1. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishigruo
2. Admiring Silence, by Abdulrazak Gurnah
3. The Paris Library, by Janet Skeslien Charles
4. The Promise, by Damon Galgut
5. It Ends with Us, by Colleen Hoover
6. Verity, by Colleen Hoover
7. Shady Hollow, by Juneau Black
8. All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr
9. Leave the World Behind, by Rumaan Alam
10. The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett

Admiring Silence first came out in the United States from New Press in 1996, but a Nobel Prize has led to renewed interest in Abdulrazak Gurnah's work, and Bloomsbury has just published a paperback edition (March 8). Upon its original publication, Publishers Weekly wrote: "This tightly focused story of an unnamed Zanzibarian expatriate who returns home after a 20-year exile in England poignantly evokes the cultural limbo of many emigres." The New York Times reported about the prize, noting that Gurnah was the first Black winner since Nadine Gordimer and the first winner from African in "more than a decade." I think they were referring to Doris Lessing in 2007.

Paperback Nonfiction: 

1. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
2. The Body Keeps the Score, by Bessel van der Kolk
3. Entangled Life, by Merlin Sheldrake
4. Better World Shopping Guide, by Ellis Jones
5. Slouching Towards Bethlehem, by Joan Didion
6. Girls Can Kiss Now, by Jill Gutowitz
7. Just Kids, by Patti Smith
8. Maus I, by Art Spiegelman
9. Maus II, by Art Spiegelman
10. Women and Other Monsters, by Jess Zimmerman

I get a little confused by what gets tracked by BookMarks and what doesn't. Jill Gutowitz's Girls Can Kiss Now, just out this week, seems to have gotten enough reviews (Publishers Weekly, New York Journal of Books, Associated Press) but there's no link to BookMarks on iPage. Is it because it's a paperback original? Leanne Butkovic at Thrillist used Jill Gutowitz's collection to look back at Lindsay Lohan's career, noting it is time for a reappraisal.

Books for Kids:
1. The Ogress and the Orphans, by Kelly Barnhill (signed copies available)
2. Map of Flames V1, by Lisa McMann
3. The Unwanteds, by Lisa McMann
5. The Last Cuentista, by Donna Barba Higuera
6. Loyalty, Avi
7. The Light of Days Young Readers Edition, by Judy Batalion
8. The View from the Very Best House in Town, by Meera Trehan
9. A Comb of Wishes, by Lisa Stringfellow
10. Maizy Chen's Last Chance, by Lisa Yee

It just seems like it was a few months ago that I was championing Lisa McMann's Clarice the Brave, but now McMann has Map of Flames, the first in a new series (The Forgotten Five) that was also a hit with area schools when we hosted a day of virtual school visits. From Sabrina Carnesi in School Library Journal: "This new series blends science fiction with the animal kingdom, highlighting incredible feats of nature alongside a compelling quest to survive. Middle graders seeking a new twist on science fiction and superpower heroism will find this fast-paced first installment the answer to their search."

At the Journal Sentinel, Jim Higgins profiles A Creative Place: A History of Wisconsin Art, by Thomas D Lidtke and Annemarie Sawkins, published by the Cedarburg Art Museum.

Three events, including one in person - Nancy Johnson with Lisa and Daniel, Kelly Barnhill at Boswell, Karen Joy Fowler with Jane Hamilton

Here's what's going on this week!

Tuesday, March 8, 7 pm
Nancy Johnson, author of The Kindest Lie
in Conversation with Daniel Goldin and Lisa Baudoin for a Virtual Event
Register for this event here.

Readings from Oconomowaukee, the virtual event series that puts authors in conversation with booksellers, presents a virtual evening with Nancy Johnson. Powerful and revealing, The Kindest Lie captures the heartbreaking divide between Black and white communities and offers both an unflinching view of motherhood in contemporary America and the never-ending quest to achieve the American Dream.

I spoke to Jane Glaser about this, who named The Kindest Lie one of her top books of 2021. "Every book club should have this book on their reading list," she told me. Similarly, The Kindest Lie has taken off with the booksellers at Books and Company. It's the featured title in Ken's upcoming book club newsletter.

Perfect for fans of Tayari Jones and Brit Bennett, The Kindest Lie is a thought-provoking, page-turning debut about race, class, identity, and the pursuit of the American dream. It’s 2008, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago, Ruth Tuttle, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to - and was forced to leave behind - when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back, but Ruth knows that to move forward, she must make peace with the past.

From my recommendation: "Ruth has made it as an engineer in Chicago. She’s got a great husband in Xavier and nice condo in Bronzeville. But when Xavier starts talking about children, she can’t put out of her mind the child she gave up as a teenager so she could go to university. Desperate to unlock her past, Ruth abruptly leaves her husband and heads to Ganton, Indiana to get some answers from the grandmother who raised her. But she winds up getting involved with her Mama’s White friend Lena and her troubled grandson Midnight, and she finds herself caught in the town’s racial tensions. Told from alternating perspectives of Ruth and Midnight, it becomes clear that a lie, however kind, is not what is going to set Ruth free. You can’t help but root for Ruth in this provocative and engaging debut."

A Chicago South Side native, Nancy Johnson worked for more than a decade as an Emmy-nominated, award-winning television journalist at CBS and ABC affiliates nationwide. A graduate of Northwestern University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she lives in downtown Chicago and manages brand communications for a large nonprofit.

Wednesday, March 9, 6:30 pm
Kelly Barnhill, author of The Ogress and the Orphans
In-Person at Boswell Book Company
Register for this event here. Walk-ups may not be available.

Join us for a very special event when we host an evening with Newbery medalist Kelly Barnhill for her new novel, a fantasy that’s sure to be an instant classic about the power of generosity and love - and how a community suffers when they disappear. Best for readers age 10 and up. Please note that this is our first in-person, in-store, inside, middle grade event in two years!

Stone-in-the-Glen, once a lovely town, has fallen on hard times. Only the clever children of the Orphan House and the kindly Ogress at the edge of town can see how dire the town’s problems are. Then one day a child goes missing from the Orphan House, and all eyes turn to the Ogress. The Orphans know this can’t be: the Ogress, along with a flock of excellent crows, secretly delivers gifts to the people of Stone-in-the-Glen. But how can the Orphans tell the story of the Ogress’s goodness to people who refuse to listen?

From the starred Booklist review: "Barnhill's gift for storytelling immediately draws readers into this character-driven tale where dragons lurk, crows prove great friends, and an unusual narrator relays events with a unique perspective. These fairy-tale trappings cloak modern lessons and timeless ideals that readers will do well to take to heart, no matter their age."

Boswellian Tim McCarthy's review: "It’s an elaborate story, woven in great detail with dragons and ogres and loving orphans, animals who converse with people, heroes alongside a treacherous villain, and a town which, once very lovely, has fallen apart. The demise of Stone-in-the-Glen began with a fire that destroyed perhaps the most beautiful library imaginable. Everything started to crumble from there, including the will of most citizens to support and believe in one another. They do have a polished and beloved Mayor, a world renowned dragon slayer, who tells them he can fix it all, while also telling them to suspect everyone else. Most of the townspeople have become reclusive and have no desire to understand the remarkable Ogress nearby, but the struggling orphans and the Ogress will meet. Perhaps there is magic in the world, and there certainly is magic in Barnhill’s beautiful words and her thoughtful perceptions of life."

Barnhill will sign and personalize. You can also order a personalized copy if you are not able to attend.

Minnesotan Kelly Barnhill is author of four novels, most recently The Girl Who Drank the Moon, winner of the 2017 John Newbery Medal. She is also the winner of the World Fantasy Award and has been a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award, a Nebula Award, and the PEN/USA literary prize.

Friday, March 11, 7 pm
Karen Joy Fowler, author of Booth
in Conversation with Jane Hamilton for a Virtual Event
Register for this event here.

Boswell presents an evening of conversation with Man Booker finalist Karen Joy Fowler for a conversation about her epic new novel about the family behind one of the most infamous figures in American history: John Wilkes Booth. In conversation with Jane Hamilton, Wisconsin-based author of novels such as A Map of the World and The Excellent Lombards.

In 1822, a secret family moves into a secret cabin thirty miles northeast of Baltimore, to farm, to hide, and to bear ten children over the course of the next sixteen years. Junius Booth - breadwinner, celebrated Shakespearean actor, and master of the house in more ways than one - is at once a mesmerizing talent and a man of terrifying instability. One by one the children arrive, as year by year, the country draws frighteningly closer to the boiling point of secession and civil war. The Booths emerge from their hidden lives to cement their place as one of the country’s leading theatrical families. But behind the curtains of the many stages they have graced, multiple scandals, family triumphs, and crimical disasters begin to take their toll, and the solemn siblings of John Wilkes Booth are left to reckon with the truth behind the destructively specious promise of an early prophecy.

Great for fans of Colum McCann and Geraldine Brooks, Booth has been named a most anticipated book of 2022 by Kirkus Reviews, Entertainment Weekly, The Millions, and more. Booklist says "Fowler presents an omniscient, bird’s-eye view of these lives, along with a nod to what could be apocryphal. The result is an engrossing portrayal of a nineteenth-century family living through the U.S.’ most turbulent era."

Here is my recommendation: "The first thing you should know about Karen Joy Fowler is that she’s not one to repeat herself. Coming off We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, still well known for The Jane Austen Book Club, and nominated for several Nebula short story awards earlier in her career (and winner in 2004), you probably wouldn’t have expected a historical novel that chronicles the family of John Wilkes Booth and his family, but that’s what we have. Expertly researched (including details about George Putnam, the namesake of this very novel’s imprint) but still packed with Fowler’s creative imagination to fill in the gaps with undocumented details, Booth ponders how relationships and experiences shape beliefs, and small acts, some positive, some not, can have big consequences. It’s also hard not to see parallels with the modern world. As one would say in the world of theater, bravo!"

Karen Joy Fowler is the bestselling author of six novels, including The New York Times bestseller The Jane Austen Book Club and the PEN/Faulkner winner We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award. Wisconsin’s Jane Hamilton is author of The Book of Ruth and A Map of the World, both selections of Oprah's Book Club. Her nonfiction has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Elle, and various anthologies.

Photo credits

Nancy Johnson by Nina Subin

Kelly Barnhill by Janna Fraboni

Karen Joy Fowler by Nathan Quintanilla  

More on the Boswell upcoming events page.

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 5, 2022

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending March 5, 2022

Hardcover Fiction:
1. Groundskeeping, by Lee Cole
2. The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles
3. Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doerr
4. The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley
5. Black Cake, by Charmaine Wilkerson
6. Violeta, by Isabel Allende
7. Recitatif, by Toni Morrison
8. Moon Witch, Spider King, by Marlon James
9. Pure Colour, by Sheila Heti
10. The Books of Jacob, by Olga Tokarczuk

Not every celebrity book club book takes off, but it certainly helps us when everything comes together. Groundskeeping is the Read with Jenna pick, but it also has great blurbs (Ann Patchett, for one), an Indie Next Pick, and great reviews. From Hamilton Cain in The New York Times Book Review: "If economic class is the third rail of American life, then Cole eases his hand out, gently, to touch it, his realism a meld of Richard Russo and Anne Tyler by way of Sally Rooney."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. The Insect Crisis, by Oliver Milman (Register for March 16 event here)
2. The Midwest Survival Guide, by Charlie Berens 
3. The 1619 Project, created by Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times
4. Atlas of the Heart, by Brené Brown
5. Off the Edge, by Kelly Weill (Register for March 15 event here)
6. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
7. The Nineties, by Chuck Klosterman
8. Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama, by Bob Odenkirk
9. The Best We Could Do, Thi Bui
10. The Beauty of Dusk, by Frank Brune

From the publisher, on Bob Odenkirk's Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama "In this hilarious, heartfelt memoir, the star of Mr. Show, Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul opens up about the highs and lows of showbiz, his cult status as a comedy writer, and what it’s like to reinvent himself as an action film ass-kicker at fifty." From Lisa Henry at Library Journal: "Odenkirk's account of triumph, struggle, and his firm belief that comedy is a unifying source of connection will inspire his fans and motivate aspiring entertainers."

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett
2. Shady Hollow, by Juneau Black
3. By Any Other Name, by Lauren Kate
4. That Old Country Music, by Kevin Barry (watch our virtual event video here)
5. Hook Line and Sinker, by Tessa Bailey
6. Black Buck, by Mateo Askaripour
7. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro
8. Standing Up, by Ellen Bravo and Larry Miller (Register for March 18 event here)
9. Committed, by Viet Thanh Nguyen
10. The Lost Apothecary, by Sarah Penner

Black Buck, by Mateo Askaripour has been out in paperback since January, but it's the first week in our top 10. It was a Read with Jenna pick in hardcover, with this praise from Colson Whitehead: “Askaripour closes the deal on the first page of this mesmerizing novel, executing a high wire act full of verve and dark, comic energy.” From Ron Charles in The Washington Post: "This young debut author apparently polished his patter as director of sales at a tech start-up. Now he’s bounced off that success to produce an irresistible comic novel about the tenacity of racism in corporate America. Black Buck, which marks the launch of an effervescent new career, is alternately sly and sweet, a work of cultural criticism that laments and celebrates the power of money."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. The Splendid and the Vile, by Erik Larson
2. Educated, by Tara Westover
3. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
4. The Copenhagen Trilogy, by Tove Ditlevsen
5. Wax Pack, by Brad Balukjian
6. Defund Fear, by Zach Norris
7. Atlas of Extinct Countries, by Gideon Defoe
8. The Hidden World of the Fox, by Adele Brand
9. Germany, by Helmut Walser Smith
10. Frederick Douglass, by David W Blight

There are two foxes headlining this week's bestseller list. First there's Vera Vixen, ace reporter and featured player in Shady Hollow - Cold Clay came out this week, but hasn't yet hit our bestseller list. Next week for sure! And then there's Adele Brand's The Hidden World of the Fox, now in paperback. From Martin Hemmings in The Sunday Times (UK): "Brand, a professional ecologist, loves foxes. That’s foxes, the out-of-control urban menace that, when not having noisy sex, spread disease, murder cats and attack babies. Except, argues Brand, they do not. She has written a lovely little book in the animal’s defence (defense). Quietly lyrical, often funny and gently persuasive, The Hidden World of the Fox is the ideal ironic stocking-filler for the sleep-deprived anti-vulpinist in your life"

Books for Kids:
1. The Magic in Changing Your Stars, by Leah Henderson
2. I Love You as Big as Wisconsin, by Rose Rossner, illustrations by Joanne Partiss
3. Operation Do Over, by Gordon Korman
4. Max and the Midknights: The Tower of Time, by Lincoln C Peirce
5. Unplugged, by Gordon Korman
6. Watercress, by Andrea Wang, illustrations by Jason Chin
7. From an Idea to Disney, by Lowey Bundy Sichol
8. Everything Comes Next, by Naomi Shihab Nye
9. Idea Makers, by Lowey Bundy Sichol
10. When Stars Are Scattered, by Victoria Jamieson

If Watercress keeps winning awards, there will no room for the jacket illustration on the cover of the book. It won the Caldecott medal for Jason Chin's artwork and a Newberry honor for Andrea Wang's story. Wang talked to Amanda Balaban on NPR Weekend Edition: "'My parents were trying to protect me, by not telling me those stories of the hardships they went through,' Wang says. 'And I think in some part they were trying to protect themselves, because they didn't want to relive their trauma.' But as a kid, Wang remembers feeling disconnected from her history - unmoored. Her greatest hope for Watercress is that it inspires families to have these difficult conversations."

Do you want to know the selections of the Aaron Rodgers book club? I'm sure you do. From Kendra Meinert in the Green Bay Press Gazette, via the Journal Sentinel.