Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 27, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 27, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Ascent, by Adam Plantinga (signed copies)
2. Martyr!, by Kaveh Akbar (Boswell Feb 13 event - register here)
3. Iron Flame V2, by Rebecca Yarros
4. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
5. The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray
6. Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt
7. Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver
8. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
9. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
10. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin

Our top debut this week is Kaveh Akbar's Martyr!, what with a front page New York Times Book Review placement and other raves - it's the best reviewed book on LitHub's BookMarks last week. From Junot Diaz's review: "In Cyrus, Akbar has created an indelible protagonist, haunted, searching, utterly magnetic. But it speaks to Akbar’s storytelling gifts that Martyr! is both a riveting character study and piercing family saga."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Tread Loudly, by Kristine Cherek
2. Correction, by Ben Austen
3. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
4. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
5. Never Enough, by Jennifer Breheny Wallace
6. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
7. The Rediscovery of America, by Ned Blackhawk
8. Eve, by Cat Bohannon
9. Poverty, by America, by Matthew Desmond
10. Wisconsin Supper Clubs, by Ron Faiola

Many 2023 titles are still dominating our list, including The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History, by Ned Blackhawk. This National Book Award winner was also a Tims Top 5 book for 2023. It is also notable that Ingram is currently out of the book at all warehouses. From Kathleen DuVal in The Wall Street Journal: ""Eloquent and comprehensive. . . . By presenting post-1492 history as a series of encounters between the various peoples of the Americas and the peoples from Europe, Africa, and Asia--rather than as an account of Europe's discovery of a new world--Blackhawk provides a view of that past from multiple perspectives."

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Best that You Can Do, by Amina Gautier (signed copies)
2. Horse, by Geraldine Brooks
3. Chain Gang All Stars, by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
4. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
5. Pedro Paramo, by Juan Rulfo
6. Bad Cree, by Jessica Johns
7. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, Satoshi Yagisawa
8. And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie
9. All the Light We Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr
10. A Death in Door County, by Annelise Ryan

We are constantly being asked the question, "So when will this book be out in paperback?" and what many years ago was a sure thing - 12 months, has become much more of a guessing game. The standard for a book that did well enough to go into paperback (omitted paperback reprints are more common than they used to be for fiction) seems to be inching to eight months for several large publishers, such as Chain Gang All Stars, but a perennial bestseller will keep it going in hardcover, and while that used to be the trajectory for one title a year, it's much more common. Horse was officially in hardcover for 19 months.

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. My American Dream, by Barbara Feigin (signed copies available)
2. Rescuing Our Sons, by John Duffy
3. The Hundred Year War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
4. High Risers, by Ben Austen
5. Hollywood Standard, by Christopher Riley
6. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
7. The Lemon Tree, by Sandy Nolan
8. How to Do Nothing, by Jenny Odell
9. The Shortest History of Israel and Palestine, by Michael Scott Baumann
10. The Switch, by Jason Puskar (Boswell Feb 15 event - register here)

The Hundred Years' War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017 leads sales for the three books on the Middle East war. It is also top 10 on the New York Times bestseller list. From David Gardner in The Financial Times: ""Rigorous and lucid . . . Rashid Khalidi, the intellectual heir to Edward Said, has written one of the great books on the Israeli-Palestinian question."

Books for Kids:
1. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko
2. Buffalo Fluffalo, by Bess Kalb, illustrations by Erin Kraan
3. The Eyes and the Impossible, by Dave Eggers
4. Clifford the Big Red Dog board book, by Norman Bridwell (Boswell Feb 10 photo op - register)
5. What Feelings Do When No One's Looking, by Tina Oziewicz, illustrations by Aleksandra Zajac
6. Eclipse, by Andy Rash
7. Have You Seen My Invisible Dinosaur, by Helen Yoon
8. Rabbit Listened, by Cori Doerrfeld
9. M Is for Monster, by Talia Dutton (Boswell Feb 7 event - register here)
10. Who Got Game?: Basketball, by Derrick Barnes

The cuteness of Buffalo Fluffalo has captivated many a bookseller, including the Boswellians. From Booklist: "Wordplay, rhythm, and rhyme add greatly to the fun of sharing this picture book with children, who will enjoy chiming in on the chorus, particularly on days when they too have 'had enuffalo.' Great fun for reading aloud." Kirkus added: "Fun, silly stuffalo."

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 20, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 20, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. True North, by Andrew J Graff
2. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
3. Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus
4. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
5. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club, by J Ryan Stradal
6. The Frozen River, by Ariel Lawhon
7. Hot Springs Drive, by Lindsay Hunter
8. Northwods, by Amy Pease (Boswell Feb 3 event - register here)
9. The Waters, by Bonnie Jo Campbell
10. The Ascent, by Adam Plantinga (Boswell Jan 26 event - register here)

2024 events count for half of this week's hardcover top 10, with previous programs for True North and The Waters, this week's event with Lindsay Hunter for Hot Springs Drive, and upcoming programs with Amy Pease for Northwoods and Adam Plantinga for The Ascent. Signed copies are available for all, and you can request personalization for Pease and Plantinga. And of course our friend Jason (not the buyer, the rep) noted both North Woods and Northwoods are both in our top 10.

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Atomic Habits, by James Clear
2. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
3. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
4. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, by Tim Alberta
5. Correction, by Ben Austen (Boswell Jan 23 event - register here)
6. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
7. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
8. The Wager, by David Grann
9. How Not to Age, by Michael Greger
10. Eve, by Cat Bohannon

The 2024 personal growth table might have helped How Not to Age: The Scientific Approach to Getting Healthier as You Get Older. From Kirkus Reviews: "None of Greger's revelations seems likely to lead to vast life extension, but this is a welcome addition to a genre that continues to grow in popularity. A physician tells you everything you ever wanted to know about life extension with less nonsense than usual."

Paperback Fiction:
1. The Thursday Murder Club V1, by Richard Osman
2. Pedro Páramo, by Juan Rulfo
3. The Best You Can Do, by Amina Gautier (Boswell Jan 25 event - register here)
4. The House of Sky and Breath V2, by Sarah J Maas
5. Horse, by Geraldine Brooks
6. A Map for the Missing, by Belinda Huijuan Tang (Upcoming Boswell-run book clubs)
7. The London Bookshop Affair, by Louise Fein
8. A Little Life, by Hanya Yanagihara
9. The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig
10. The Last to Vanish, by Megan Miranda

Selling off the new paperback table is Pedro Páramo, a reissued novel that has taken on new life with an upcoming Netflix adaptation by Rodrigo Prieto. The publisher calls it a "highly influential masterpiece of Latin American literature, now published in a new, authoritative translation, and featuring a foreword by Gabriel García Márquez." Carlos Fuentes called it "The essential Mexican novel, unsurpassed and unsurpassable."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
2. Master Slave Husband Wife, by Ilyon Woo
3. Everything I The Know About Love, by Dolly Alderton
4. The Hundred Years War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
5. A Philosophy of Walking, by Frederic Gros
6. Killers of the Flower Moon, by David Grann
7. My American Dream, by Barbara Feigin (JCC January 23 event - more here)
8. Short and Sweet Mini Crossword, from the New York Times
9. Rand McNally Road Atlas 2024
10. G Man, by Beverly Gage

It's the first week out for Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom in paperback. The book spent three weeks on The New York Times bestseller list in hardcover and had five raves and three positives on BookMarks. From Priscilla M Jensen in The Wall Street Journal: "Anyone who has read the subtitle will already know that the Crafts made it not only to Savannah but to a new life outside of bondage. But the story is so richly dramatic, and Ms. Woo so skilled at spinning it out, that at times it’s a genuine nail-biter."

Books for Kids:
1. Misfits V1, by Lisa Yee, illustrations by Dan Santat
2. Maizy Chen's Last Chance by Lisa Yee
3. Who Got Game?: Basketball, by Derrick Barnes
4. Divine Rivals, by Rebecca Ross
5. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko (Virtual school visit January 23 - more here)
6. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, by Suzanne Collins
7. Winter Turning V7 graphic novel, Tui T Sutherland
8. Bear Hugs from Brown Bear and Friends, by Eric Carle
9. Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
10. Powerless V1, by Lauren Roberts

The opening entry in a YA fantasy romance duology, Divine Rivals has been out since last April and is not due for paperback until 2026. The Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books notes: "Eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow drops out of school to make ends meet, and her mother's alcoholism worsens after Iris' older brother joins the goddess Enva's war against the god Dacre. Taking a job at a major newspaper, Iris finds herself competing for the columnist position with the infuriating, and infuriatingly handsome, Roman Kitt. To cope, she types letters to her missing brother, knowing she cannot send them, and instead slips them into a wardrobe where, much to her surprise, they disappear time and time again. It's even more surprising when someone other than her brother suddenly writes back." Whatever your trope, enemies to lovers or enchanted typewriters, this one's for you. 

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 13, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 13, 2024

Hardcover Fiction
1. The Waters, by Bonnie Jo Campbell
2. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
3. Iron Flame V2, by Rebecca Yarros
4. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
5. Prophet Song, by Paul Lynch
6. Absolution, by Alice McDermott
7. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
8. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
9. The Atlas Complex V3, by Olivie Blake
10. Starter Villain, by John Scalzi
11. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
12. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club, by J Ryan Stradal
13. Northwoods, by Amy Pease (Boswell event Fri Feb 2)
14. The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray
15. Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt

The Waters? Maybe the book should be renamed The Ice Block, what with the weather forecast for this week. Bonnie Jo Campbell's event last Friday was converted to a virtual event so the author could get safely home to Michigan. If media mail and the weather cooperate, we could have signed copies back at the bookstore this week. BookMarks lists five raves and two positive reviews, including Jane Smiley's in the Los Angeles Times: "A thought-provoking and readable exploration of eccentricity and of all different kinds of love - familial love, romantic love, love of knowledge, love of animals and love of one’s own environment, even when it is a difficult place to live."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
2. The Wager, by David Grann
3. 1000 Words, by Jami Attenberg
4. Democracy Awakening, by Heather Cox Richardson
5. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
6. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
7. Prequel, by Rachel Maddow
8. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
9. Building, by Mark Ellison
10. The Secret Lives of Color, by Kassia St Clair

First week out and a sellout for 1000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round. Per the publisher: "Inspired by Jami Attenberg’s wildly popular literary movement #1000WordsofSummer, this writer’s guide features encouraging essays on creativity, productivity, and writing from acclaimed authors including Roxane Gay, Lauren Groff, Celeste Ng, Meg Wolitzer, and Carmen Maria Machado." Booklist called it "a fantastic set of essays."

Paperback Fiction:
1. Hide V1, by Tracy Clark
2. A Map for the Missing, by Belinda Huijuan Tang (Boswell Book Clubs here)
3. Trespasses, by Louise Kennedy
4. The Priory of the Orange Tree, by Samantha Shannon
5. A Court of Silver Flames V5, by Sarah J Maas
6. Empire of Storms V4, by Sarah J Maas
7. How to Sell a Haunted House, by Grady Hendrix
8. The Thursday Murder Club V1, by Richard Osman
9. A Death in Door County V1, by Annelise Ryan
10. The Bodyguard, by Katherine Center

No surprise that Hide, Tracy Clark's first novel in the Harriet Foster series outsold the second (Fall) at the event. That's just a mystery thing, which is why Thursday Murder Club is the book that continually popping up on our bestseller list and why we may still be seeing A Death in Door County when volumes 3 and 4 are also available. So what's with volume 5 of two Sarah J Maas series showing up? Clark was delightful and we hope she'll come back for book #3. What's her secret go juice for writing? Why Twizzlers and V8!

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. No Friend But the Mountains, by Behrouz Boochani
2. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
3. Everything I Know About Love, by Dolly Alderton
4. The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz
5. The Switch, by Jason Puskar (Boswell event Feb 15)

I believe that the sales for No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison were in conjunction with the HOME at the Lynden Book Club. Behrouz Boochani is an ethnic curd who escaped from Iran only to be detained on Manus, a remote island in the Admiralty Islands of Papua New Guinea. The author won Australia's richest literary prize but was unable to attend the ceremony because of Australia's policy on refugees. Four raves and two positives from BookMarks. From JM Coetzee in The New York Review of Books: "As autobiography, No Friend is not the summing up of a life but a work in progress, the absorbing record of a life-transforming episode whose effects on his inner self the writer is still trying to plumb."

Books for Kids:
1 Zoey and Sassafras V1: Dragons and Marshmallows, by Asia Citro
2. Fish in a Tree, by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
3. The Misfits: Royal Conundrum, by Lisa Yee, illustrations by Dan Santat
4. Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things that Go, by Richard Scarry
5. Bunny and Tree, by Balint Zsako

This week's winter weather involved some rescheduling the likes of which we haven't had to deal with in a couple of years. Derrick Barnes's plane was delayed so he was only able to do one rescheduled school event for Who Got Game? Basketball. And Dan Santat and Lisa Yee couldn't do any of their events for The Misfits on Tuesday - they were here but the schools were cancelled. One got rescheduled for Wednesday while the other two can enjoy a wonderful virtual conversation - so can you, right here. And they also got to have lunch with some bookseller meeting at the Hilton to plan this fall's Heartland Fall Forum, a bookseller trade show that will be in Milwaukee this fall. Kirkus called The Misfits "a fantastical blend of quirky characters and goofy adventures."

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 6, 2024

Boswell bestsellers, week ending January 6, 2024

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
2. Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver
3. The Door-to-Door Bookstore, by Carsten Henn
4. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
5. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
6. Wellness, by Nathan Hill
7. The Frozen River, by Ariel Lawhon
8. First Lie Wins, by Ashley Elston
9. Death in the Dark Woods, by Annelise Ryan
10. Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby Van Pelt

It's the beginning of the month, and that means the national book clubs have announced their January picks. Had The Waters, by Bonnie Jo Campbell been released this week, it would have gone to #1, what with pre-orders from our upcoming January 12 event, but no, the top debut is Reese's pick, First Lie Wins. 

Here's the set-up, per the publisher: "Evie Porter has everything a nice, Southern girl could want: a perfect, doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence and a garden, a fancy group of friends. The only catch: Evie Porter doesn't exist." So many psychological suspense novelists (at least the ones who have visited Boswell) have given this one blurbs, from Megan Miranda to Mary Kubica to Ashley Winstead.

Hardcover Nonfiction
1. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
2. Prequel, by Rachel Maddow
3. Wisconsin Field to Fork, by Lori Fredrich
4. Wisconsin Supper Clubs 2e, by Ron Faiola
5. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
6. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory, by Tim Alberta
7. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
8. Start Here, by Sohla El-Waylly
9. Big Heart, Little Stove, by Erin French
10. The Art of the Grimoire, by Owen Davies

December releases can be so tricky, with books getting lost in holiday round-ups and best-of features. But based on the reorders at Ingram, The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism seems to have found its audience. Three raves from Bookmarks, including The New York Times and The Guardian. And it's also on the Obama year-end favorites list. 

Paperback Fiction:
1. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
2. Shady Hollow, by Juneau Black
3. What Moves the Dead, by T Kingfisher
4. Time to Shine, by Rachel Reid
5. Days a the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa
6. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, by VE Schwab
7. Essex Dogs V1, by Dan Jones
8. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, by Sangu Mandanna
9. The Enigma of Room 622, by Joël Dicker
10. The Cartographers, by Peng Shepherd

A combination of sales off the paperback table and a coveted spot on Oli's rec shelf (one of the protagonists is a mycologist) gets What Moves the Dead, the first entry in the Sworn Soldier series, placement in our top 10. It's the third week of strong sales, but post holiday, a book that holds stead in sales moves up greatly in ranking. I hear it's a retelling of The Fall of the House of Usher. Library Journal adds: "Retold Gothic classics and fungus-themed horror are both having a moment." Fungus-themed horror!

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
2. The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown
3. Where the Deer and the Antelope Play, by Nick Offerman
4. Wordslut, by Amanda Montell
5. The Storyteller, by Dave Grohl

Despite meh critical reviews, The Boys in the Boat is doing above expectations at the box office (56% score on Rotten Tomatoes), what with Amazon following the lead of other streamers and doing a longer theatrical release than they sometimes do (but with their acquisition of MGM, that might have affected the strategy). It has grossed just under $30 million on a $40 million budget.

Books for Kids:
1. Who Got Game: Basketball, by Derrick Barnes, illustrations by Jez Tuya
2. Sharice's Big Voice by Sharice Davids with Nancy K Mays
3. Dogtown, by  Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko (virtual school visit January 23)
4. Buffalo Fluffalo, by Bess Kalb
5. Heartstopper V5, by Alice Oseman
6. Cat Kid Comic Club V5: Influencers, by Dav Pilkey
7. The Tale of the Desperaux, by Kate Di Camillo
8. The Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
9. Star Splitter by Matthew J Kirby
10. Peekaboo Love, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius

Derrick Barnes is visiting schools this week for Who Got Game: Basketball and this is our moment to say thank you to everyone who helped raise money to buy copies of the book for students at an MPS School. From Kirkus: "Even non-fans will enjoy the breathless tales of miracle comebacks Barnes dishes out on his way to a closing pep talk."

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 30, 2023

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 30, 2023

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
2. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
3. Iron Flame V2, by Rebecca Yarros
4. Starter Villain, by John Scalzi (Books and Beer Book Club selection Jan 15 - more info here)
5. Prophet Song, by Paul Lynch
6. The Frozen River, by Ariel Lawhon
7. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club, by J Ryan Stradal
8. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin
9. Roman Stories, by Jhumpa Lahiri
10. Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver

Ariel Lawhon's fifth solo novel, The Frozen River, has now sold the most copies of her five releases at Boswell in hardcover, though we did beat that number with the paperback of I Was Anastasia, as she appeared at the Lynden Sculpture Garden in 2019. Her latest is a historical mystery based on the real-life case of Martha Ballard, which our rep Jason told us was also the inspiration for the Pulitzer Prize-winning nonfiction book, The Midwife's Tale. The starred Booklist noted that "Lawhon's first-rate tale should entrance readers passionate about early America and women's history."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
2. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
3. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
4. Democracy Awakening, by Heather Cox Richardson
5. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
6. World Within a Song, by Jeff Tweedy
7. Wisconsin Supper Clubs 2E, by Ron Faiola
8. Best Minds, by Jonathan Rosen
9. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
10. Correction, by Ben Austen (Register for Boswell January 23 event)

How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen, which has been a steady presence on our bestseller list since its October 24 release, finally takes the lead in the week after Christmas. From the publisher: "Brooks draws from the fields of psychology and neuroscience, and from the worlds of theatre, history, and education, to present a hopeful approach to human connection. Along the way he offers a possible remedy for a society that is riven by fragmentation, hostility, and misperception." It's not listed on BookMarks - a quick search explains why. That said, Kirkus called it "a hands-on guide to making meaningful human connections."

Paperback Fiction:
1. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
2. Ex-Wife, by Ursula Parrott
3. All This Could Be Different, by Sarah Thankam Mathews
4. A Court of Silver Flames V5, by Sarah J Maas
5. The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler
6. The Last to Vanish, by Megan Miranda
7. Big Swiss, by Jen Beagin
8. Sea of Tranquility, by Emily St John Mandel
9. A Court of Thorns and Roses V1, by Sarah J Maas
10. Circe, by Madeline Miller

A sales record broken in the psychological suspense field. This week Megan Miranda scores her biggest paperback to date at Boswell with The Last to Vanish, besting 2016's All the Missing Girls, which went into paperback in 2017. The latest had raves from Booklist, Bookpage and Publishers Weekly. From Booklist: "This eerie thriller, in which the setting itself may be actively malevolent, can stand next to Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House and Stephen King's The Shining."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. Secret Milwaukee, by Jim Nelsen
2. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
3. All About Love, by bell hooks
4. The Hundred Years' War on Palestine, by Rashid Khalidi
5. Think Again, by Adam Grant
6. Dopamine Nation, by Anna Lembke
7. A Philosophy of Walking, by Frédéric Gros
8. Four Thousand Weeks, by Oliver Burkeman
9. Everything I Know About Love, by Dolly Alderton
10. Stay True, by Hua Hsu

Another book that has been floating around since this summer is Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, by Oliver Burkeman, which got a rave and three positives from BookMarks. From Barbara Spindel in The Wall Street Journal: "Mr. Burkeman’s overarching goal is to convince readers to confront their finitude. Unlike traditional time-management techniques—which turn on an unrealistic promise of doing it all - Mr. Burkeman, citing the work of Buddhist scholars, meditation teachers, philosopher Martin Heidegger and others, argues instead that 'the only route to psychological freedom is to let go of the limit-denying fantasy of getting it all done and instead to focus on doing a few things that count.'”

Books for Kids:
1. Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
2. Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, by Suzanne Collins
3. Murtagh V5, by Christopher Paolini
4. Something Someday, by Amanda Gorman, illustrations by Christian Robinson
5. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse, illustrations by Renée Graef
6. Cat Kid Comic Club V5: Influencers, by Dav Pilkey
7. The Eyes and the Impossible McSweeneys edition, by Dave Eggers
8. Peekaboo Love, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius
9. Bluey: Christmas Swim, edited by Gabriela Taboas Zayas
10. Ruthless Vows V2, by Rebecca Ross

This is a great interview with Amanda Gorman and Christian Robinson for Something Someday on the Today Show, back when the book was published in September. I was looking at the visual and thought, that book is bulked up like middle grade fiction, not a 40-page picture book. Check the 20 second mark. 

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 23, 2023

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 23, 2023

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
2. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
3. The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray
4. Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver
5. Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus
6. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
7. The Fraud, by Zadie Smith
8. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
9. Prophet Song, by Paul Lynch
10. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club, by J Ryan Stradal
11. The Iliad, by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson
12. Starter Villain, by John Scalzi
13. Let Us Descend, by Jesmyn Ward
14. Iron Flame V2, by Rebecca Yarros
15. Absolution, by Alice McDermott

Starter Villain, one of Rachel C.' picks for the holiday season, is also the featured title of our Books & Beer Book club on January  15. Here is the upcoming meeting schedule for Boswell-run book clubs. From Library Journal: "Readers of humorous fantasy are sure to love Scalzi's latest as much as those cats; it's also for those who enjoy seeing superhero stories folded, twisted, and mutilated and anyone wishing for a righteous villain lair surrounded by intelligent sharks. Highly recommended."

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. The Wager, by David Grann
2. Why We Love Baseball, by Joe Posnanski
3. World Within a Song, by Jeff Tweedy
4. The Comfort of Crows, by Margaret Renkl
5. Wisconsin Field to Fork, by Lori Fredrich
6. Prequel, by Rachel Maddow
7. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
8. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
9. Democracy Awakening, by Heather Cox Richardson
10. My Name Is Barbra, by Barbra Streisand
11. Wisconsin Supper Clubs 2E, by Ron Faiola
12. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
13. The Globemakers, by Peter Bellerby
14. Poverty, by America, by Matthew Desmond
15. Start Here, by Sohla El-Waylly

We usually see a nice pop on cookbooks in the fourth quarter and there are two on this week's list. Wisconsin Field to Fork has been strong all season, what with its seasonal ties, and it's nice to see Start Here from Sohla El-Waylly, Jason cookbook pick on Lake Effect. We got a very nice note back from Aly Miller, the book's Wisconsin illustrator. Very nice to have a local tie-in to this great cookbook.  From Publishers Weekly: " As tasty and appealing as it is informative, this is the ideal handbook for those starting out in the kitchen." Listen to the Lake Effect interview here. 

Paperback Fiction:
1. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
2. A Death in Door County, by Annelise Ryan
3. The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig
4. Wizard's Dream, by Louisa Loveridge Gallas
5. The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, by VE Schwab
6. The Secret History, by Donna Tartt (per Jason, trending on Tiktok)
7. A Court of Thorns and Roses V1, by Sarah J Maas
8. Best American Short Stories 2023, edited by Min Jin Lee
9. The Maid V1, by Nita Prose
10. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro
11. Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, by Jesse Q Sutanto
12. Shady Hollow V1, by Juneau Black
13. Godkiller V1, by Hannah Kaner
14. Best American Mystery and Suspense 2023, edited by Lisa Unger
15. The Odyssey, by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson

Selling off Jen's rec shelf is Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers. Jesse Q Sutanto, who is based in Indonesia, Singapore, and Oxford, has written a cozy mystery set in San Francisco's Chinatown. You don't usually see paperback original mysteries getting indexed on LitHub, but with one rave and three positives, I'm glad to see it got that extra help. 

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
2. Secret Milwaukee, by Jim Nelsen
3. A Year in the Woods, by Torbjorn Ekelund
4. A Philosophy of Walking, by Frédéric Gros
5. Cream City Chronicles, by John Gurda
6. Brewtown Tales, by John Gurda
7. Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner
8. Dopamine Nation, by Anna Lembke
9. An Immense World, by Ed Yong
10. Penny, by Karl Stevens
11. Where the Deer and the Antelope Play, by Nick Offerman
12. The Shortest History of Israel and Palestine, by Michael Scott Baumann
13. Murdle V2, by GT Karber
14. Lyrics, by Paul McCartney 

15. How We Live Is How We Die, by Pema Chõdrõn

The outdoor world continues to captivate Boswell customers, at least on the new and noteworthy tables. I still can't understand why other stores haven't put piles of A Year in the Woods and A Philosophy of Walking on their front tables or displays. We're not the only store selling these books week after week, but it appears that a lot of stores that could sell these books well without much work are carrying either one spined out in a section or not carrying them at all.

Books for Kids:

1. Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
2. How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney?, by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen
3. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko
4. Cat Kid Comic Club V5: Inflencers, by Dav Pilkey
5. The Snowy Day board book, by Ezra Jack Keats
6. The Eyes and the Impossible McSweeneys edition, by Dave Eggers
7. How to Catch a Polar Bear, by Stacy DeKeyser
8. Heartstopper V5, by Alice Oseman
9. Murtagh V5, by Christopher Paolini
10. What You Need to Be Warm, edited by Neil Gaiman
11. Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Sleigh, by Mo Willems
12. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse, illustrated by Renée Graef
13. Diary of a Wimpy Kid V18 No Brainer, by Jeff Kinney
14. Winter Turning graphic novel editionV7, by Tui T Sutherland
15. Peekaboo Car, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius

A late add from a Neil Gaiman collab is selling well off our impulse table. What You Need to Be Warm. With the help of multiple illustrators, Gaiman, Goodwill Ambassador for the UN refugee agency UNHCR, has taken responses to the question and woven them into a poem. From Booklist: " A moving meditation on what it means to be safe and warm in a difficult world. "

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 16, 2023

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 16, 2023

Hardcover Fiction:
1. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
2. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
3. A Death in the Dark Woods V2, by Annelise Ryan
4. The Fraud, by Zadie Smith
5. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
6. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
7. Good Night, Irene, by Luis Alberto Urrea
8. Lessons in Chemistry, by Bonnie Garmus
9. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
10. Let Us Descend, by Jesmyn Ward

Deacon King Kong (2020) had a huge increase (quadrupled) in sales for us in 2020 over his previous novel The Good Lord Bird (2013), but The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store is already has double that, and with lots of life left in the book. It wouldn't be surprising to see the novel on the 2024 holiday bestseller lists, much like Lessons in Chemistry and Demon Copperhead are holdovers from 2022.

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Areté, by Brian Johnson
2. The Wager, by David Grann
3. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
4. World Within a Song, by Jeff Tweedy
5. My Name Is Barbra, by Barbra Streisand
6. Wisconsin Field to Fork, by Lori Fredrich
7. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
8. The Best Minds, by Jonathan Rosen
9. The Creative Act, by Rick Rubin
10. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks

The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions place in the top 10 books of the year both for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. It also has eight raves and a positive on BookMarks. It's kind of the Stay True of 2023. From Alexandra Jacobs in The New York Times: "Behind most performances, in other words - most lives - lies some measure of mess and violence, and exposing this can be uncomfortable. But Rosen’s own memoir is the opposite of ruinous. It’s an inch-by-inch, pin-you-to-the-sofa reconstruction of his long friendship with Michael Laudor, who made headlines a decade after the Ginsberg reading: first in The New York Times, as a Yale Law School graduate destigmatizing schizophrenia; then pretty much everywhere, after stabbing his pregnant girlfriend, Caroline Costello, to death with a kitchen knife, confusing her with a windup doll."

Paperback Fiction:
1. A Death in Door County V1, by Annelise Ryan
2. Shady Hollow V1, by Juneau Black
3. Before We Were Innocent, by Ella Berman
4. A Little Life, by Hanya Yanagihara
5. Bookshops and Bonedust, by Travis Baldree
6. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
7. Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, by Satoshi Yagisawa
8. Cloud Cuckoo Land, by Anthony Doer
9. The Enigma of Room 622, by Joël Dicker
10. Under the Whispering Door, by TJ Klune

It's the second week out and first week in our top 10 for Ella Berman's Before We Were Innocent, which was a Reese's Book Club pick in hardcover. From the publisher: "A summer in Greece for three best friends ends in the unthinkable when only two return home in this new novel from Ella Berman." No BookMarks for this one (one suspects they don't often track Berkley), but a nice Kirkus: "With evocative and astute prose, Berman's sophomore effort is a slow but searing portrayal of the intoxicating power of privilege, youth, and female friendship."

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda
2. Secret Milwaukee, by Jim Nelsen (Register for December 27 Boswell event)
3. A Year in the Woods, by Torbjorn Ekelund
4. Walking Milwaukee, by Royal Brevvaxling and Molly Snyder
5. Brewtown Tales, by John Gurda
6. Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
7. The Boys in the Boat, by Daniel James Brown
8. An Immense World, by Ed Yong
9. The Philosophy of Walking, by Frédéric Gros
10. Murdle V1, by GT Karber

Now that's the kind of list we expect from paperback nonfiction - four books about Milwaukee. Seasonally speaking, however, they seem like summer books - three of the four are guidebooks. That and three four more of the books would be classified as nature titles, which I should note, often dominate this list, whatever the season.

Books for Kids:
1. Death's Door, by Barbara Joosse, illustrations by Renée Graef
2. How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney?, by Mac Barnett, illustrations by Jon Klassen
3. Something Someday, by Amanda Gorman, illustrations by Christian Robinson
4. Lulu and Rocky in Milwaukee, by Barbara Joosse, illustrations by Renée Graef
5. Peekaboo Love, by Camilla Reid, illustrations by Ingela P Arrhenius
6. The Snowy Day board book, by Ezra Jack Keats
7. Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
8. Winter Tales, by Dawn Casey, illustrations by Zanna Goldhawk
9. Red and Green, by Lois Ehlert
10. Heartstopper V5, by Alice Oseman

I guess the winner in the holiday-themed picture book sweepstakes is Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen's How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney? From Kirkus: "For all that it leans heavily on absurdity, this book exhibits some serious heart. In the market for an understated Christmas classic? Behold! A Christmas miracle!" We also had a late Jon Klassen holiday card edition from Red Cap of Santa's reindeer going down the chimney one at a time. I don't normally bring in new Christmas cards in December, but how could I resist?

Find all books mentioned here on the Boswell Books website.

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 9, 2023

Boswell bestsellers, week ending December 9, 2023

Hardcover Fiction:
1. Tom Lake, by Ann Patchett
2. The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, by James McBride
3. The English Understand Wool, by Helen Dewitt
4. The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray
5. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse, by Charlie Mackesy
6. Fourth Wing V1, by Rebecca Yarros
7. North Woods, by Daniel Mason
8. The Door-to-Door Bookstore, by Carsten Henn
9. The Narrow Road Between Desires, by Patrick Rothfuss
10. The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese
11. Prophet Song, by Paul Lynch
12. Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan
13. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club, by J Ryan Stradal
14. Absolution, by Alice McDermott
15. The Vulnerables, by Sigrid Nunez

Who are the influencers of the holiday season?  1) The New York Times and Washington Post together are clearly driving The Bee Sting and North Woods, being in both their top tens. 2) Ann Patchett recommendations are the clear driver of The English Understand Wool (hey, it's a year old) and have influence on Heaven and Earth Grocery Store (it's also top 10 Washington Post, plus book of the year for B&N and Amazon) and Absolution and The Comfort of Crows in nonfiction. Here is the Ann Patchett recommends page. 3) The newsletter landing has given a sales pop to Jason's back-page pick of The Door-to-Door Bookstore. 

Hardcover Nonfiction:
1. Wisconsin Field to Fork, by Lori Fredrich
2. The Comfort of Crows, by Margaret Renkl
3. Oath and Honor, by Liz Cheney
4. While You Were Out, by Meg Kissinger
5. The Wager by David Grann
6. Lula Cafe, by Jason Hammel
7. The Art Thief, by Michael Finkel
8. Why We Love Baseball, by Joe Posnanski
9. My Name Is Barbra, by Barbra Streisand
10. How to Know a Person, by David Brooks
11. Wisconsin Supper Club, by Ron Faiola
12. Prequel, by Rachel Maddow
13. The Globemakers, by Peter Bellerby
14. Poverty, by America, by Matthew Desmond
15. Fire Weather, by John Vaillant

Supper Club 2023 continues with Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club joining Wisconsin Supper Clubs in the top 10.  The Oath and Honor demand was not quite expected by Hachette - Ron Charles noted in his Washington Post newsletter that it was very hard to find copies in the Beltway. In terms of celebrity memoirs, My Name Is Barbra (Streisand) is doing the best for us. The Woman in Me (Spears) had the biggest first week pop but has since calmed, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing (Perry) resurgence was quite, and is out of stock anyway, and Being Henry (Winkler) is the staff favorite because two of us read it. It was also on a friends top three - her reading focuses on disability narratives, and Winkler discusses his dyslexia at length. Her other two were The Country of the Blind and Leg. 

Paperback Fiction:
1. Our Town, by Thornton Wilder
2. Trust, by Hernan Diaz
3. Bel Canto, by Ann Patchett
4. The Death of Us, by Lori Rader-Day
5. This Is Happiness, by Niall Williams
6. The Dutch House, by Ann Patchett
7. State of Wonder, by Ann Patchett
8. Woman of Light, by Kali Fajardo-Anstine (upcoming Boswell book club meetings here)
9. A Death in Door County, by Annelise Ryan (register for December 14 Boswell event)
10. The Patron Saint of Liars, by Ann Patchett

Four Patchetts, two Patchett recommendations (Our Town and This Is Happiness), two events, one former (The Death of Us - these are signed) and one upcoming, plus one book club pick (Woman of Light) and one prizewinner (Trust). 

Paperback Nonfiction:
1. John Gurda's Milwaukee, by John Gurda (pre-order for December 16 Boswell signing)
2. Secret Milwaukee, by Jim Nelsen (Register for December 27 Boswell event)
3. These Precious Days, by Ann Patchett
4. This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage, by Ann Patchett
5. Truth and Beauty, by Ann Patchett
6. Good Arguments, by Bo Seo
7. Killers of the Flower Moon, by David Grann
8. Perseopolis, by Marjane Satrapi
9. A Year in the Woods, by Torbjorn Ekelund
10. Dopamine Nation, by Anna Lembke

Three Patchetts, two Milwaukee books, one movie tie-in, one past event, one high school required reading book, and two books off the new and noteworthy table, Dopamine Nation, from a big publisher, which is selling everywhere (we're #30 on Edelweiss), and A Year in the Woods, which should but is not (we're #3 on Edelweiss), perhaps because it is from the Canadian indie Greystone. If you are store that could sell a book like this, maybe you need to have 5 on display?

Books for Kids:
1. Patchwork Prince, by Baptiste Paul
2. The Field, by Baptiste Paul
3. Dogtown, by Katherine Applegate and Gennifer Choldenko (January 23 virtual event registration)
4. Murtagh V5, by Christopher Paolini
5. Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Sleigh, by Mo Willems
6. How Does the Santa Go Down the Chimney, by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen
7. Cat Kid Comic Club V5: Influencers, by Dav Pilkey
8. The Snowy Day board book, by Ezra Jack Keats
9. The Chalice of the Gods V6, by Rick Riordan
10. Winter Tales, by Dawn Casey, illustrated by Zanna Goldhawk

Our next-to-last school visit of 2023 was with Baptiste Paul, whose new picture book, The Patchwork Prince, was a hit with students and teachers alike. It's a book inspired by his own life growing up in St. Lucia. From Publishers Weekly: "It's a loving portrait of a child embracing their innate value, taught by the queen who loves them best." 

I should also note that fully half the top ten are either holiday or winter-themed. 

Visit https://www.boswellbooks.com/ to read more about these books and perhaps purchase them from us.