11.14.2004

This Week's Bestsellers (And Other Books You Should Be Reading)

First, a tip of the hat to the Sunday Book section from the NY Times. Laura Miller's essay about the National Book Awards finalists--and the whiners who weren't. She provides an interesting juxtaposition between an honor bestowed by writers and an honor expected by readers.

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Sean Rocha wrote a great column for Slate about the infamous Bestsellers list.

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Margo Baldwin, publisher of indi-press Chelsea Green Publishing, takes on the NY Times and its book categorization in this essay on Alternet.

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Without further ado, this week's Bestseller and Web Mentioned lists:

The Weekly Bestsellers List: The Tops Tens
Publishers Weekly
Hardcover Fiction
Week of 11.15.04.
1. Baldacci, David. The Hour Game. Warner: 448 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:1.
2. Evanovich, Janet. Metro Girl. HarperCollins: 304 pgs. Times on List:1. Last Position:na.
3. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. Doubleday: 454 pgs. Times on List:85. Last Position:2.
4. Alborn, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Hyperion: 198 pgs. Times on List:58. Last Position:4.
5. Roth, Philip. The Plot Against America: A Novel. Houghton Mifflin: 400 pgs. Times on List:7. Last Position:3.
6. Steele, Danielle. Echoes. Delacorte: 336 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:5.
7. Salavatore, R.A. The Two Swords. Wizards of the Coast: 352 pgs. Times on List:3. Last Position:6.
8. Shreve, Anita. Light on Snow. Little, Brown: 320 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:7.
9. King, Stephen. The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower. Scriber/Grant: 864 pgs. Times on List:7. Last Position:8.
10. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code: Special Illustrated Edition. Doubleday: 480 pgs. Times on List:1. Last Position:na.

NY Times
Hardcover Fiction
Sales Week Ending 11.06.04
1. Evanovich, Janet. Metro Girl. HarperCollins: 304 pgs. Times on List:1. Last Position:na.
2. Baldacci, David. The Hour Game. Warner: 448 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:1.
3. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code: 454 pgs. Doubleday. Times on List:86. Last Position:4.
4. Steele, Danielle. Echoes: 336 pgs. Delacorte. Times on List:2. Last Position:2.
5. Alborn, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Hyperion: 198 pgs. Times on List:59. Last Position:5.
6. Roberts, Nora. Northern Lights. Putnam: 562 pgs. Times on List: 4. Last Position:3.
7. Roth, Philip. The Plot Against America: A Novel. Houghton Mifflin: 400 pgs. Times on List:7. Last Position:6.
8. Flagg, Fannie. A Redbird Christmas. Random House: 240 pgs. Times on List: 1. Last Position: na.
9. Shreve, Anita. Light on Snow. Little, Brown: 320 pgs. Times on List:4. Last Position:8.
10. King, Stephen. The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower. Scriber/Grant: 864 pgs. Times on List:7. Last Position:10.

Book Sense: Bestsellers From Independent Bookstores
Hardcover Fiction
Week of 11.11.04, Sales For Week Ending 11.07.04
1. Roth, Philip. The Plot Against America: A Novel. Houghton Mifflin: 400 pgs. Times on List:7. Last Position:1.
2. McCall Smith, Alexander. The Sunday Philosophy Club. Pantheon: 256 pgs. Times on List:6. Last Position:2.
3. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. Doubleday: 454 pgs. Times on List:85. Last Position:4.
4. Clarke, Susanna. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. Bloomsbury. Times on List:10. Last Position:45.
5. Baldacci, David. The Hour Game. Warner: 448 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:3.
6. Evanovich, Janet. Metro Girl. HarperCollins: 304 pgs. Times on List:1. Last Position:na.
7. Shreve, Anita. Light on Snow. Little, Brown: 320 pgs. Times on List:4. Last Position:6.
8. Alborn, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Hyperion: 198 pgs. Times on List:59. Last Position:7.
9. Moore, Christopher. The Stupidist Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Holiday Terror. William Morrow: 288 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:8.
10. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code: Special Illustrated Edition. Doubleday: 480 pgs. Times on List:1. Last Position:na.

Publishers Weekly
Trade Paperback
Week of 11.15.04.
1. Housseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. Riverhead: 384 pgs. Times on List: 10. Last Position: 1.
2. Haddon, Mark. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Vintage: 240 pgs.
Times on List: 25. Last Position: 2.
3. Agatston, Arthur. South Beach Diet Good Fats/Good Carbs Guide. Rodale: 160 pgs.
Times on List: 44. Last Position: 8.
4. Cussler, Clive. Sacred Stone (Oregon Files). Berkley: 404 pgs. Times on List: 5. Last Position: 6.
5. Bissinger, H.G. Friday Night Litghts: A Town, A Team, and a Dream. De Capo: 400 pgs. Times on List: 5. Last Position: 9.
6. Nafisi, Azar. Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books. Random House: 384 pgs. Times on List: 43.
Last Position: 3.
7. Niffenegger, Audrey. The Time Traveler's Wife. Harcourt/Harvest: 536 pgs. Times on List: 24. Last Position: 7.
8. National Commission on Terrorist Attacks. The 9/11 Commission Report. Norton: 516 pgs. Times on List: 16. Last Position: 4.
9. Monk Kidd, Sue. The Secret Life of Bees. Penguin: 320 pgs. Times on List: 92. Last Position: 5.
10. Sparks, Nicholas. The Wedding. Warner: 256 pgs. Times on List: 19. Last Position: 13.

Book Sense: Bestsellers From Independent Booksellers
Trade Paperback: Fiction
Week of 11.11.04, Sales For Week Ending 11.07.04
1. Housseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. Riverhead: 384 pgs. Times on List: 28. Last Position: 1.
2. Haddon, Mark. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Vintage: 240 pgs.
Times on List: 25. Last Position: 2.
3. Jones, Edward P. The Known World. Amistad: 432 pgs. Times on List:24. Last Position:4.
4. Monk Kidd, Sue. The Secret Life of Bees. Penguin: 320 pgs.. Times on List: 92. Last Position: 8.
5. Niffenegger, Audrey. The Time Traveler's Wife. Harcourt/Harvest: 536 pgs. Times on List: 24. Last Position: 3.
6. Eudenides, Jeffrey. Middlesex. Picador: 544 pgs. Times on List:60. Last Position:5.
7. Lahiri, Jhumpa. The Namesake. Mariner: 304. Times on List:15. Last Position:6.
8. McCall Smith, Alexander. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Anchor:240 pgs. Times on List:91. Last Position:7.
9. Tyler, Anne. The Amateur Marriage. Ballantine: 336 pgs. Times on List:2. Last Position:9.
10. Martel, Yann. Life of Pi. Harvest: 336 pgs. Times on List:. Last Position:10.

Bookwatch: An Online Site Tallying Book Mentions in Blogs
Top Five
Week Ending 11.14.04.
1. Frank, Thomas. What's The Matter With Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America. Metropolitan Books: 320 pgs. 23 mentions.
2. Stewart, Jon and The Daily Show staff. The Daily Show Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. Warner: 240 pgs. 20 mentions.
3. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. Doubleday: 454 pgs. 16 mentions.
4. Lakoff, Dean and Hazen. Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate--the Essential Guide for Progressives. Chelsea Green Publishing Company: 144 pgs. 10 mentions.
5. Anonymous. Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror. Brassey's, Inc: 309 pgs. 8 mentions.

All Consuming: A Second Online Site Tallying Book Mentions In Blogs
Top Five
Week Ending 11.14.04
1. Stewart, Jon and The Daily Show staff. The Daily Show Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. Warner: 240 pgs. 24 mentions.
2. Brown, Dan. The Da Vinci Code. Doubleday: 454 pgs. 18 mentions.
3. Frank, Thomas. What's The Matter With Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America. Metropolitan Books: 320 pgs. 15 mentions.
4. Lakoff, Dean and Hazen. Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values and Frame the Debate--the Essential Guide for Progressives. Chelsea Green Publishing Company: 144 pgs. 9 mentions.
5. Roth, Philip. The Plot Against America: A Novel. Houghton Mifflin: 400 pgs. 8 mentions.

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Don't believe in bestseller or web mentioned lists? Email your picks on what to read to bookaday@gmail.com.

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