Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 24, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 24, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Road from Belhaven, by Margot Livesey (signed copies)
2. The Price You Pay, by Nick Petrie (WFB event Feb 26)
3. The Women, by Kristen Hannah
4. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
5. Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt
6. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
7. Martyr!, by Kaveh Akbar
8. True North, by Andrew J Graff
9. Prophet Song, by Paul Lynch
10. Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver

Since we've already covered all then titles in previous bestseller blogs, let's find another quote from one of the 2023 novels that is still selling well. From Mark Athitakis in the Los Angeles Times: "North Woods, the fifth novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist Daniel Mason, has become one of the fall’s most acclaimed books on the strength of its innovation as a sweeping and stealthy historical saga. But it is also another tree-stuck story: Set in a patch of a Massachusetts forest, it follows the fate of multiple residents of a house across nearly three centuries. Some familiar themes of the genre apply: The tragedy of environmental devastation, the beauty of the natural landscape, nature’s stubborn capacity to endure well past human folly. But because Mason’s novel operates in such a robust variety of styles and voices, it is - perhaps more than its arboreal literary brethren - an unusually spectacular showcase of the various powerful responses that nature provokes in us, from wonderment to utter derangement."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
2. The Little Frog's Guide to Self Care, by Maybell Eequay
3. The Comfort of Crows, by Margaret Renkl
4. Supercommunicators, by Charles Duhigg
5. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
6. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
7. My Name Is Barbra, by Barbra Streisand
8. The Art of the Grimoire, by Owen Davies
9. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
10. Life After Power, by Jared Cohen

Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, has a new book out this week - Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection. A blurb from Adam Grant points people in the right direction. And all the advance trade reviews are positive. This from Library Journal: " A how-to-guide and useful overview for readers wanting to communicate more effectively. Along with David Brooks's recent How To Know a Person, a timely primer for creating deeper connections with others."

My friend John sent me a video of Barbra Streisand accepting the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award.   

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Drifter, by Nick Petrie
2. I Have Some Questions for You, by Rebecca Makkai
3. Who Moves the Dead, by T Kingfisher
4. The Shamshine Blind, by Paz Prado
5. Dune, by Frank Herbert
6. Babel, by RF Kuang
7. Chain Gang All Stars, by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
8. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
9. The Priory of the Orange Tree, by Samantha Shannon
10. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, by VE Schwab

It's the first week out for I Have Some Questions for You in paperback. The book was the featured title of the 2023 Friends of the Milwaukee Public Library Literary Lunch and had 14 raves and 6 positives on BookMarks. Since I find it hard to find quotes from the St Louis Post Dispatch, I can't resist using this from Jennifer Alexander: “Makkai combines skilled storytelling with abundant human insight. [I Have Some Questions for You] is so well-plotted and thought-provoking that readers may struggle with conflicting impulses to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next or to stop and think about what it all means.”

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. The Way Home, by Ben Katt (signed copies)
2. Wisconsin for Kennedy, by BJ Hollars (Boswell event March 19)
3. Dopamine Nation, by Anna Lembke
4. The Hundred Years War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
5. Murdle, by GT Karber
6. The Fight for Black Empowerment, by Kareem Muhammad (Boswell event March 18)
7. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
8. Last Call at the Hotel Imperial, by Deborah Cohen (CEA event info March 20)
9. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
10. Endurance, by Alfred Lansing

So many nonfiction paperback reprints fall flat in sales, and many don't even see the light of day. But a book like Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence has hugged the bestseller lists tight for over a year, after strong but not bestseller-blasting sales in hardcover. Here's an interview of Anna Lembke conducted by Mary Beth Maslowski in Psychiatry Advisor.

Books for Kids:
1. Just Gus, by McCall Hoyle
2. A Pack of Your Own, by Maria Nilsson Thore
3. Art Club, by Rashad Doucet
4. Slugfest, by Gordon Korman
5. Treasure Island: Runaway Gold, by Jewell Parker Rhodes
6. Forever Twelve, by Stacy McAnulty
7. Above the Trenches, by Nathan Hale
8. The Mona Lisa Vanishes, by Nicholas Day
9. Cranky, by Phuc Tran, illustrations by Pete Oswald
10. Mr S, by Monica Arnaldo

Jen and I spent a morning last week presenting kids books to area school librarians. This week's bestseller list has some of our picks. At the top is Just Gus from McCall Hoyle, part of the Best Friends Dog Tales from Shadow Mountain, which has been a Boswell bestseller for the last year. School Library Journal notes: "As a read-aloud to the canine obsessed in the early grades or just an engaging tale for dog lovers, Hoyle quietly unleashes a barking good tale. Its charm is due to Gus and to a real love of dogs." Jen also talked up the next book in the series, Millie.

A more recent pick is Art Club, a graphic novel by SCAD Professor Rashad Doucet. From Booklist: "Adults are often challenging to please, especially when they think they know what's best for you. Dale and his friends face a daunting challenge as they endeavor to convince Vice Principal Ruffin that art is as meaningful and valuable as any other profession. With the guidance of Miss Je'Nae, this misfit group collaborates to resurrect their school's art club and explore ways to make it profitable."

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending February 17, 2024

Boswell bestsellers for the week ending February 17, 2024

Hardcover Fiction: 

1. Martyr, by Kaveh Akbar
2. The Women, by Kristin Hannah
3. The Price You Pay V8, by Nick Petrie (Feb 22 at Elm Grove Library, Feb 26 at Whitefish Bay Library - click the link to register)
4. House of Flame and Shadow V3, by Sarah J Maas (2 editions)
5. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
6. Good Material, by Dolly Alderton
7. Iron Flame V2, by Rebecca Yarros
8. Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus
9. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
10. Whalefall, by Daniel Kraus (Apr 8 Boswell event)

Good Material is novelist-memoirist-relationship columnist Dolly Alderton's second novel, but her first since Everything I Know About Love exploded on TikTok. It's also a Read with Jenna pick. Four postivies on BookMarks, with several comparisons to Nick Hornby. From Booklist: "This warm and relatable novel about relationships and heartache will please Alderton's many fans."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
2. The Wager, by David Grann
3. The Lede, by Calvin Trillin
4. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
5. Milwaukee Rock and Roll 1950-2000 ,by David Luhrssen, Phillip Naylor, and Bruce Rogers Cole
6. Ghosts of Segregation, by Richard Frishman
7. King: A Life, by Jonathan Eig
8. Eve, by Cat Bohannon
9. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
10. Our Ancient Faith, by Allen C Guelzo

The Lede: Dispatches from a Life in the Press, by Calvin Trillin is a collection of essays about journalism and journalists. Five raves and a positive from BookMarks. Also feels like the first book I've highlighted at the $31 price point, though I think I have previously noted $30.50 and $30.99. From Dwight Garner in The New York Times (ellipis and brackets courtesy of the publisher): "This book is buoyant and crunchy from end to end [and] contains profiles...that are acknowledged classics of the form and will be studied until A.I. makes hash out of all of us.

I had no idea that APA doesn't care whether the three dots in ellipsis have spaces or not?

Paperback Fiction:
1. Bride, by Ali Hazelwood
2. A Marvellous Light V1, by Freya Marske
3. Time to Shine, by Rachel Reid
4. Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries V1, by Heather Fawcett
5. Ocean's Echo, by Everina Maxwell
6. The Women Could Fly, by Megan Giddins
7. The Wolf and the Woodsman, by Ava Reid
8. Witch's Heart, by Genevieve Gornichec
9. Exiles, by Jane Harper
10. Pedro Paramo, by Juan Rulfo

Oli got to help the folks at a UWM student group choose books for blind date with a book. I'm guessing none of the attendees read this blog, so I'm not worried about giving anything away.

In other worlds, Jane Harper's third Aaron Falk novel, Exiles, debuts in our top 10 in its second week of sales. My sister Merrill is a big fan. Four raves and two positives on BookMarks. From Sarah Weinman in The New York Times: "Falk’s investigation is a terrific one, but what makes the book memorable is Harper’s skill at plumbing personal mysteries - for instance, why a friendship has ebbed, or how not knowing the fate of a loved one affects a family."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. The Switch, by Jason Puskar
2. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
3. Last Call at the Hotel Imperial, by Deborah Cohen
4. Wisconsin for Kennedy, by BJ Hollars (Boswell March 19 event)
5. Complete Mediterranean Cookbook, by America's Test Kitchen
6. The Gardeners Guide to Prairie Plants, by Neil Diboll
7. The Power Broker, by Robert Moses
9. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer 

10. We've Got to Try, by Beto O'Rourke (MPL event Feb 23)

It's a quiet week for paperback nonfiction. We had a very nice event with UWM's Jason Puskar for The Switch: An Off and On History of Digital Humans. The program was recorded by BookTV and should air in the next few months.

Books for Kids:
1. The Eyes and the Impossible, by Dave Eggers
2. One True Loves, by Elise Bryant
3. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse, illustrations by Renée Graef
4. The Lightning Thief V1, by Rick Riordan
5. The Toni Morrison Treasury, by Toni Morrison
6. Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
7. The One and Only Ruby, by Katherine Applegate (May 15 Elmbrook event)
8. Most Ardently, by Gabe Novoa
9. Are You Big?, by Mo Willems
10. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko

Out since fall, but still selling is A Toni Morrison Treasury, a collection of eight of her picture books in one volume, cowritten with her son Slade Morrison, including The Ant or the Grasshopper and Please, Louise.

Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 10, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 10, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Price You Pay, by Nick Petrie (signed copies)
2. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
3. The Women, by Kristin Hannah
4. Martyr!, by Kaveh Akbar (Last chance - Register for Feb 13 event)
5. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
6. The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray
7. The House of Flame and Shadow V3, by Sarah J Maas
8. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
9. Good Material, by Dolly Alderton
10. This Is the Honey, edited by Kwame Alexander

In The Women, a student joins the Army Nursing Corps during the Vietnam War. From Stephanie Merry in The Washington Post: "Why am I doing this to myself? The thought occurred to me as I reached the bottom of Page 20 in Kristin Hannah’s new novel, The Women. Barely three chapters in, and already protagonist Frankie McGrath was learning that her charming, mischievous older brother had been killed in action in Vietnam. 'Shot down … in a helicopter … No remains … all hands lost.' If you’ve read Hannah’s historical novels, you know that this development will be but one snowflake in a blizzard of tear-jerking tragedy that will inundate you over the next 450 pages."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
2. The Wager, by David Grann
3. The Little Frogs Guide to Self Care, by Maybell Eequay
4. Becoming Ella Fitzgerald, by Judith Tick 

5. Upside Down World, by Benjamin Moser
6. King: A Life, by Jonathan Eig
7. Texture Over Taste, by Joshua Weissman
8. Disillusioned, by Benjamin Herold
9. Best Minds, by Jonathan Rosen
10. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin

From the impulse table comes The Little Frog's Guide to Self Care, which, per the publisher, concerns a "fashionable little frog with its mushroom hat and fabulous footwear" who "brings positivity with a dead-pan sense of humor to its many admirers on social media." We've been selling this regularly since its release last September.

Paperback Fiction:
1. Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
2. The Drifter, by Nick Petrie
3. Throne of Glass V1, by Sarah J Maas
4. Bride, by Ali Hazelwood
5. The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig
6. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, by Sangu Mandanna
7. Venomous Lumpsucker, by Ned Beauman
8. Babel, by RF Kuang
9. House of Earth and Blood V1, by Sarah J Maas
10. This Other Eden, by Paul Harding

This Other Eden  quietly amassed 12 raves and one mixed review on BookMarks, but didn't seem to take off until the book was shortlisted for the National Book Award and Booker Prize. From the publisher: "In 1792, formerly enslaved Benjamin Honey and his Irish wife, Patience, discover an island where they can make a life together. Over a century later, the Honeys’ descendants and a diverse group of neighbors are desperately poor, isolated, and often hungry, but nevertheless protected from the hostility awaiting them on the mainland." From Claire Messud in Harpers: "This Other Eden is beautiful and agonizing - rather like the real place that inspired it."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. Killers of the Flower Moon, by David Grann
2. All About Love, by bell hooks
3. The Switch, by Jason Puskar (Boswell event Feb 15 - register here)
4. Saving Time, by Jenny Odell
5. A Philosophy of Walking, by Frédéric Gros
6. One Room Schools, by Susan Apps-Bodilly
7. Old Farm Country Cookbook, by Jerry Apps and Susan Apps-Bodilly
8. Viral Justice, by Ruha Benjamin
9. Cream City Chronicles, by John Gurda
10 Four Thousand Weeks ,by Oliver Burkeman

Just out in paperback and selling off the new paperback table is Princeton Professor Ruha Benjamin's Viral Justice: How We Grow the World We Want, winner of the Stowe Prize from the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center. From Matthew Desmond: "Wide-ranging and provocative, soaring yet grounded, Viral Justice reveals how racism poisons our bodies, communities, and institutions, but the book also chronicles inspired movements seeking repair and justice."

Books for Kids:
1. This Is a Story, by John Schu
2. Clifford's Valentine level 1 reader, by Norman Bridwell
3. Clifford Loves, by Norman Bridwell
4. This Is a School, by John Schu
5. Every Day's a Holiday, by Stef Wade, illustrations by Husna Aghiniya
6. The Skull, by Jon Klassen
7. M Is for Monster, by Talia Dutton
8. Clifford the Small Red Puppy, by Norman Bridwell
9. Peekaboo Love, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius
10. Clifford the Big Red Dog, by Norman Bridwell

The fight for the top spots was between John Schu at the Wisconsin State Reading Association conference and Clifford, who appeared at Boswell and an area school. For the third consecutive year, Schu has a book coming out a month after the conference with Louder Than Hunger, which will be a March-April Indie Next Pick. On Norman Bridwell's heart-shaped board book, Clifford Loves: "Clifford the Big Red Dog loves playing outside. Clifford loves reading and swimming, too. But most importantly, Clifford loves spending time with his friends-especially Emily Elizabeth." Not too late for a V-Day gift.

Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 3, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending February 3, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. House of Flame and Shadow V3, by Sarah J Maas
2. Northwoods, by Amy Pease (signed copies)
3. Martyr!, by Kaveh Akbar (Boswell event Feb 13 - register here)
4. Fury, by Alex Michaelides
5. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
6. Come and Get It, by Kiley Reid
7. Starter Villain, by John Scalzi
8. The Frozen River, by Ariel Lawhon
9. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
10. Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect V2, by Benjamin Stevenson

A bookseller was explaining to me all the exclusive editions of House of Flame and Shadow, the third volume in Crescent City series. No fancy edge stain on our editoin, but exclusive content. I went to Target and saw four different versions of the CD of 1989 (Taylor's version). which for some reason I connect in my head. No advance reviews from the trades (no need for ARCs, but the publisher called it "stunning." Probably one of the bigger openings for the first half of 2024.

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Fight Right, by Julie Schwartz Gottman and John Gottman
2. My American Dream, by Barbara Feigin
3. Atlas of the Heart, by Brené Brown
4. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
5. The Intersectional Environmentalist, by Leah Thomas
6. Wisconsin Supper Clubs 2E, by Ron Faiola
7. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, by Tim Alberta
8. All the Beauty in the World, by Patrick Bringley
9. Our Hidden Conversations, by Michele Norris
10. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney

The Intersectional Environmentalist: How to Dismantle Systems of Oppression to Protect People + Planet came out in 2022 and has been selling steady since then, though this is the first time in our top 10. At the time, Nylah Burton offered a round-up of environmentally themed books in Shondaland. There are well-known titles like The Parable of the Sower and Braiding Sweetgrass and other suggestions that still might be new to readers.

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Silent Patient, by Alex Michaelides
2. The Best That You Can Do, by Amina Gautier
3. Trespasses, by Louise Kennedy
4. Three Theban Plays, by Sophocles
5. A Court of Thorns and Roses V1, by Sarah J Maas
6. Horse, by Geraldine Brooks
7. Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut
8. Hamlet, by William Shakespeare
9. Babel, by RF Kuang
10. Assistant to the Villain, by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Two upcoming Boswell-run book club picks here. Trespasses is the next Lit Group pick, while Assistant to the Villain is the February Romance Book Club selection. Trespasses was shortlisted for the Woman's Prize and was a best book of the year by The Washington Post. Kevin Power in The Guardian wrote: ""Distinguished by a quality rare in fiction at any time: a sense of utter conviction. It is a story told with such compulsive attention to the textures of its world that every page feels like a moral and intellectual event."

Regarding the older titles on the list, several are student purchases for high school and college courses, while Three Theban Plays is being read by a local book club.

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. My American Dream, by Barbara Feigin
2. The Hundred Years War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
3. The Switch, by Jason Puskar (Boswell event Feb 15 - register here)
4. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
5. A Philosophy of Walking, by Frédéric Gros
6. Everything I Know About Love, by Dolly Alderton
7. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
8. All About Love, by bell hooks
9. An Immense World, by Ed Yong
10. Penny, by Karl Stevens

Barbara Sommer Feigin appeared locally for My American Dream: A Journey from Fascism to Freedom, speaking to her son Peter Feigin of the Milwaukee Bucks organization. Her memoir alternates growing up a refugee in Seattle with details of her family's escape from Nazi journal, using her father's journals as source material.

Books for Kids:
1. Buffalo Fluffalo, by Bess Kalb, illustrations by Erin Kraan
2. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate, illustrations by Gennifer Choldenko
3. The Eyes and the Impossible, by Dave Eggers
4. Most Ardently, by Gabe Novoa
5. The Knight Owl, by Christopher Denise
6. Who Got Game: Basketball, by Derric Barnes
7. Peekaboo Love, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius
8. The Lightning Thief V1 deluxe edition, by Rick Riordan
9. Out and About, by Liza Wiemer (Wauwatosa Library event March 5)
10. Eclipse, by Andy Rash (Solar eclipse is April 8)

The Knight Owl is a Caldecott Honor Book that also has a rec from Jen: "Superb illustrations from the author as well as a story that is sure to be a bedtime favorite!" Plus Kirkus offered: "A charming blend of whimsy and medieval heroism highlighting the triumph of brains over brawn." The second book in the series, Knight Owl and Early Bird, is scheduled for this October.