Maw Books Blog

The New York Times Bestseller List
April 20th, 2008

Hardcover Fiction

1. WHERE ARE YOU NOW?, by Mary Higgins Clark.  A woman searches for the truth about her brother, who is alive but has disappeared.
2. UNACCUSTOMED EARTH, by Jhumpa Lahiri.  Stories about the anxiety and transformation experienced by Bengali parents and their American children.
3. CERTAIN GIRLS, by Jennifer Weiner. ) A girl discovers the sexy, somewhat autobiographical novel her mother wrote years earlier.
4. BELONG TO ME, by Marisa de los Santos.  When she moves to the suburbs, a woman becomes enmeshed in complications and secrets.
5. SMALL FAVOR, by Jim Butcher.  Book 10 of the Dresden Files series about a wizard detective in Chicago.

Hardcover Nonfiction

1. HOME, by Julie Andrews.  A memoir of Andrews’s early years.
2. MISTAKEN IDENTITY, by Don and Susie Van Ryn and Newell, Colleen and Whitney Cerak, with Mark Tabb.  The families of two girls whose identities were confused after a 2006 accident describe their experience.
3. BEAUTIFUL BOY, by David Sheff.  A father struggles with his son’s meth addiction.
4. LADIES OF LIBERTY, by Cokie Roberts.  The influential women of early America.
5. ARMAGEDDON IN RETROSPECT, by Kurt Vonnegut. Twelve unpublished writings on war and peace by the novelist, who died in 2007.

Hardcover Advice

1. THE LAST LECTURE, by Randy Pausch with Jeffrey Zaslow.  After learning he has terminal cancer, a Carnegie Mellon professor shares his thoughts on the importance of “seizing every moment.”
2. THE SECRET, by Rhonda Byrne.  The law of attraction as a key to getting what you want.
3. GEORGIA COOKING IN AN OKLAHOMA KITCHEN, by Trisha Yearwood.  Fried chicken, stuffed pork chops and other family recipes from the country music singer.
4. THE 4-HOUR WORKWEEK, by Timothy Ferriss. Reconstructing your life so that it’s not all about work.
5. BECOME A BETTER YOU, by Joel Osteen. Seven keys to living with joy.

Children’s Picture Books

1. GALLOP!, written and illustrated by Rufus Butler Seder. Animals seem to move when you flip the page. (Ages 4 to 8 )
2. DIRT ON MY SHIRT, by Jeff Foxworthy. Illustrated by Steve Bjorkman. Poems of childhood by the comedian and TV host. (Ages 4 to 7)
3. DON’T BUMP THE GLUMP!, written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein. His first collection of nonsense verse, originally published in 1964. (Ages 5 and up)
4. THE JELLYBEANS AND THE BIG DANCE, written by Laura Numeroff and Nate Evans. Illustrated by Lynn Munsinger.  Cat friends work together to prepare for a recital
5. KNUFFLE BUNNY TOO, written and illustrated by Mo Willems.  One of Trixie’s classmates has a bunny just like hers. (Ages 4 to

Children’s Chapter Books

1. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: RODRICK RULES, written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. How Greg embarrassed himself on his summer vacation (ask his older brother, Rodrick); a sequel to “Diary of a Wimpy Kid.” (Ages 9 to 12)
2. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID, written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. The travails of adolescence, in cartoons. (Ages 9 to 12)
3. TWEAK, by Nic Sheff. A memoir of a teenager’s methamphetamine addiction. (Ages 15 and up)
4. CITY OF ASHES, by Cassandra Clare. A girl must track down her father in a hidden realm of demons; a sequel to “City of Bones.” (Ages 14 and up)
5. THE PENDERWICKS ON GARDAM STREET, by Jeanne Birdsall.  Four sisters intervene in their father’s dating life; a sequel to “The Penderwicks.” (Ages 12 and up)

Children’s Paperback Books

1. MASSIE, by Lisi Harrison. A Westchester girl takes a summer job selling cosmetics; a Clique novel. (Ages 12 and up)
2. BRATFEST AT TIFFANY’S, by Lisi Harrison. Crushes divide the girls on the Pretty Committee; a Clique novel. (Ages 12 and up)
3. CHOSEN, by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast. A young vampire learns who her real school friends are. (Ages 9 to 12)
4. JUST LISTEN, by Sarah Dessen. A girl finally deals with the incident that divided her and her former best friend. (Ages 12 and up)
5. CALIFORNIA DREAMING, by Zoey Dean. As college looms, friends wonder about their futures; an A-List novel. (Ages 15 and up)

Children’s Series Books

1. THE TWILIGHT SERIES, by Stephenie Meyer. Vampires and werewolves in high school. (Ages 12 and up)
2. MAXIMUM RIDE, by James Patterson. Winged children try to save the world. (Ages 10 and up)
3. MAGIC TREE HOUSE, by Mary Pope Osborne. Illustrated by Sal Murdocca. Children travel in time. (Ages 6 to 9)
4. SEPTIMUS HEAP, by Angie Sage.  Lost at birth, a boy fulfills his destiny as a wizard. (Ages 9 and up)
5. DON’T LET THE PIGEON…, written and illustrated by Mo Willems. Children tell a lively bird what he’s not allowed to do. (Ages 2 to 6)

Paperback Trade Fiction

1. THE MEMORY KEEPER’S DAUGHTER, by Kim Edwards. A doctor’s decision to secretly send his newborn daughter, who has Down syndrome, to an institution haunts everyone involved.
2. NINETEEN MINUTES, by Jodi Picoult. The aftermath of a high-school shooting reveals the fault lines in a small New Hampshire town.
3. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, by Sara Gruen. A young man-and an elephant-save a Depression-era circus.
4. THE FRIDAY NIGHT KNITTING CLUB, by Kate Jacobs. A group of women meet weekly at a New York City yarn shop.
5. THE KITE RUNNER, by Khaled Hosseini. An Afghan-American returns to Kabul to learn how a childhood friend has fared.

Paperback Mass-Market Fiction

1. SIMPLE GENIUS, by David Baldacci. Two former Secret Service agents investigate a scientist’s murder while one battles her own demons.
2. THE WOODS, by Harlan Coben.  A prosecutor must confront family secrets when new evidence surfaces about a murder and disappearance at a summer camp 20 years earlier.
3. BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE, by Lee Child.  Jack Reacher must discover who is hunting members of a team of former military investigators.
4. I HEARD THAT SONG BEFORE, by Mary Higgins Clark.  A woman marries a childhood acquaintance suspected of several murders.
5. CREATION IN DEATH, by J. D. Robb. Lt. Eve Dallas pursues the Groom, a killer who disappeared nine years earlier but has now returned; by Nora Roberts, writing pseudonymously.

Paperback Non-Fiction

1. THREE CUPS OF TEA, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. A former climber builds schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
2. EAT, PRAY, LOVE, by Elizabeth Gilbert. A writer’s yearlong journey in search of self takes her to Italy, India and Indonesia.
3. THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, by Barack Obama. The Illinois senator proposes that Americans move beyond their political divisions.
4. JOHN ADAMS, by David McCullough. A biography of the country’s first vice president and second president.
5. DREAMS FROM MY FATHER, by Barack Obama.  The senator on life as the son of a black African father and a white American mother.

Paperback Advice

1. A NEW EARTH, by Eckhart Tolle. A spiritual teacher prescribes letting go of the ego to help end conflict and suffering.
2. THE POWER OF NOW, by Eckhart Tolle. A guide to personal growth and spiritual enlightenment.
3. SKINNY BITCH, by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. Vegan diet advice from the world of modeling.
4. WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING, by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel. Advice for parents-to-be. (†)
5. GO GREEN, LIVE RICH, by David Bach with Hillary Rosner.  Fifty ways to save money while making your life and your finances greener. (†)

Source: The New York Times Best Seller List