Boswell bestsellers for the week ending July 23, 2022

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending July 23, 2022

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Poet's House, by Jean Thompson
2. Horse, by Geraldine Brooks
3. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin
4. Upgrade, by Blake CroUch (Register for August 12 in-store event here)
5. Portrait of an Unknown Woman, by Daniel Silva
6. Switchboard Soldiers, by Jennifer Chiaverini (Register for July 25 Greendale Public Library event here - almost at capacity!
7. Lapvona, by Ottessa Mosghfegh
8. The It Girl, by Ruth Ware
9. This Time Tomorrow, by Emma Straub
10. Bewilderment, by Richard Powers

Boy, doesn't Riverhead wish that Paula Hawkins could write as quickly as Ruth Ware, similarly strong critical reviews with book releases on a regular timeline. She's been compared to golden age greats with past works and The It Girl is no exception. From Tom Nolan in The Wall Street Journal: "Ms. Ware’s stories are often compared to Agatha Christie’s, but in mood she’s closer to Daphne du Maurier or Francis Iles. In previous works, such as The Death of Mrs. Westaway, the author placed psychologically vulnerable characters in heightened physical and mental jeopardy to great suspenseful effect. Here, through careful descriptive scrutiny of Hannah’s emotional barometer, Ms. Ware makes even her heroine’s most misguided decisions seem plausible. The It Girl  may well be her best book yet."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Slaying the Dragon, by Ben Riggs
2. The Book of Delights, by Ross Gay
3. Help Thanks Wow, by Ane Lamott
4. Happy-Go-Lucky, by David Sedaris
5. The Book of Common Prayer, from Church Publishing
6. Crying in the Bathroom, by Erika L Sánchez (register for September 16 event here)
7. Between the World and Me, by Ta-Nehisi Coates
8. An Immense World, by Ed Yong
9. All That Moves Us, by Jay Wellons
10. Dirtbag, Massachusetts, by Isaac Fitzgerald

All That Moves Us: A Pediatric Neurosurgeon, His Young Patients, and Their Stories of Grace and Resilience may not have major reviews posted on Book Marks, but it was featured on NPR's Fresh Air, and that alone will pop sales. From the interview with Dave Davies: "Wellons, who's from south Mississippi, says he didn't set out to become a pediatric surgeon. When he first went to medical school, he envisioned himself as a small-town family medicine doctor, who might "occasionally get paid in tomatoes and chickens." But a gross anatomy lab where he learned about the spinal cord and the nerves of the brachial plexus changed his path: "I remember just spending hours dissecting that out and just being absolutely entranced by it."

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
2. Book Lovers, by Emily Henry
3. The Love Songs of WEB Dubois, by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers
4. Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens
5. The Lost Apothecary, by Sarah Penner
6. The Final Girl Support Group, by Grady Hendrix
7. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro
8. The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle, by Matt Cain
9. The Priory of the Orange Tree, by Samantha Shannon
10. Animal, by Lisa Taddeo

Nowadays when we look up a publisher on our wholesaler's database it leads to dead ends, so I had to go to Edelweiss to learn that John Sconamaglio Books is an imprint of Kensington when I was trying to learn more about The Secrt Life of Albert Entwistle from Matt Cain. Hey, I'm not the buyer. The book was an Indie Next and Library Reads Selection. And our buyer Jason liked it. Oh, and someone compared it to Leonard and Hungry Paul! Sir Ian McKellan offered this praise: “This rollicking romance entrapped me! True in its detail and its scope, it is amusing yet heart-breaking.”

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. Letters to a Young Artist, by Ana Deveare Smith
2. Sand County Almanac, by Aldo Leopold
3. Do the Work, by W. Kamau Bell and Kate Schatz
4. Beyond Katrina, by Natasha Trethewey
5. A History of Milwaukee Drag, by BJ Daniels and Mikhail Takach
6. Art in the After Culture, by Ben Davis
7. The Invention of Nature, by Andrea Wulf
8. The Viking Heart, by Athur Herman
9. London's Number One Dog Walking Agency, by Kate MacDougall
10. Stuck Improving, by Decoteau Irby (Register for July 31 event here)

Something happened to our initial order of Do the Work!: An Antiracist Activity Book, by W. Kamau Bell so of course we're having a run on it and trying to figure out what happened. This is a Workman-style guide with "creative, practical, actionable ideas, advice, and guidance via humorous, thought-provoking activities on antiracism." From Kirkus: "Overall, the narrative is practical and accessible, balancing historical context with self-reflection and direct action. The dialogues between the authors are informative, frank, and vulnerable, creating a safe space for both learning and taking risks."

Books for Kids:
1. The Very Hungry Caterpillar's ABC, by Eric Carle
2. Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Septys
3. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse and Renée Graef
4. Heartstopper V4, by Alice Oseman
5. The Summer I Turned Pretty, by Jenny Han
6. The Inheritance Games, by Jennifer Barnes
7. The Merciless Ones V2, by Namina Fona
8. The Dawn of Yangchen V3, by FC Yee
9. Our Crooked Hearts, by Melissa Albert
10. What Feelings Do When No One's Looking, by Tina Oziewicz

From the BookTok Display comes The Inheritance Games, the New York Times-bestselling series that has sold over 750,000 copies fom Jennifer Lynn Barnes that is now up to three installments and finally gets a mention here. Katherine McGee (American Royals) writes: "A thrilling blend of family secrets, illicit romance and high-stakes treasure hunt, set in the mysterious world of Texas billionaires. The nonstop twists kept me guessing until the very last page!" From Kirkus: "Part The Westing Game, part We Were Liars, completely entertaining."

From the Journal Sentinel, Jim Higgins talks to Maya Payne Smart about Reading for Our Lives, her new book arriving August 2. From Payne's interview: "'I think what sets this book apart from most raising-a-reader books is that it's not a collection of book recommendations,' Smart said. 'I mentioned very few children's books by name in the book, because I don't want people to feel like there's some specific set of books that they need to get and read. … I want to give parents an understanding of how reading unfolds.'" From Kirkus: "Smart is a knowledgeable, capable guide who has distilled a vast amount of research into an approachable package. A solid resource for diligent parents who want to create readers for life."

Register for the Milwaukee Public Library event on August 2 with Maya Payne Smart in Conversation with pediatrician-librarian Dipesh Navsaraia.