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The New York Times Bestseller List
October 19th, 2008

Hardcover Fiction

1. THE LUCKY ONE, by Nicholas Sparks.  A marine returning home sets out to find the woman whose photo he found in Iraq.
2. THE STORY OF EDGAR SAWTELLE, by David Wroblewski. A mute takes refuge with three dogs in the Wisconsin woods after his father’s death.
3. THE PIRATE KING, by R. A. Salvatore.  In Book 2 of the Transitions fantasy series, Drizzt returns to Luskan, a city dominated by dangerous pirates.
4. A MOST WANTED MAN, by John le Carré.Intelligence agencies involved in the war on terror converge in Hamburg when a young Muslim man with mysterious connections shows up.
5. ONE FIFTH AVENUE, by Candace Bushnell.  The worlds of gossip, theater and hedge funds have one address in common.

Hardcover Nonfiction

1. THE SNOWBALL, by Alice Schroeder.  The life of Warren Buffett.
2. HOT, FLAT, AND CROWDED, by Thomas L. Friedman. How a green revolution can renew America, by the New York Times columnist.
3. DEWEY, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter. The kitten left freezing in the returned-book slot of an Iowa public library, and his rise to fame.
4. A BOLD FRESH PIECE OF HUMANITY, by Bill O’Reilly.  The Fox News commentator on his upbringing and career.
5. LETTER TO MY DAUGHTER, by Maya Angelou.  Reminiscences, appreciations and poems from the author of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.”

Paperback Trade Fiction

1. THE SHACK, by William P. Young. A man whose daughter was abducted is invited to an isolated shack, apparently by God.
2. THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, by Sue Monk Kidd.  In South Carolina in 1964, a teenage girl tries to discover the secret to her mother’s past.
3. WORLD WITHOUT END, by Ken Follett. Love and intrigue in Kingsbridge, the medieval English cathedral town at the center of Follett’s “Pillars of the Earth.”
4. THE BLACK DAGGER BROTHERHOOD, by J. R. Ward. An “insider’s guide” to the vampire series, with a new novella.
5. THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO, by Junot Díaz. A nerdy Dominican-­American struggles to escape a family curse.

Paperback Mass-Market Fiction

1. DOUBLE CROSS, by James Patterson.  Alex Cross and his new girlfriend, a police detective, confront a boastful Washington killer.
2. DARK OF THE MOON, by John Sandford.  Virgil Flowers, a character from “Invisible Prey,” investigates three murders in a small Minnesota town.
3. FIRST IMPRESSIONS, by Nora Roberts.  A businessman hoping to escape women is beguiled by his sassy neighbor; a reissue of a 1984 story, along with “Blithe Images,” a story from 1982.
4. MERCURY’S WAR, by Lora Leigh. Ria Rodriguez poses as a clerk to uncover who has been leaking the Sanctuary’s secret information to a pharmaceutical company; Book 16 of the Breeds series.
5. DEAD UNTIL DARK, by Charlaine Harris. Sookie Stackhouse, a psychic cocktail waitress in rural Louisiana, falls in love with a bad-boy vampire.

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 asks Americans to move beyond political divisions.
4. DREAMS FROM MY FATHER, by Barack Obama. The senator on life as the son of a black African father and a white American mother.
5. A LONG WAY GONE, by Ishmael Beah.  A former child soldier from Sierra Leone describes his drug-crazed killing spree and his return to humanity. First Chapter

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. WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON?, by David Jeremiah.  A pastor on what to expect and how to live based on 10 end-of-days prophecies in the Bible.
3. GIADA’S KITCHEN, by Giada De Laurentiis. A collection of 100 Italian recipes with a California twist.
4. GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS 2009, edited by Craig Glenday. Tallest, fastest, youngest, most.
5. THE SECRET, by Rhonda Byrne. The law of attraction as a key to getting what you want.

Paperback Advice

1. THE LOVE DARE, by Stephen Kendrick and Alex Kendrick.  A 40-day challenge for spouses to practice unconditional love.
2. SKINNY BITCH, by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. Vegan diet advice from the world of modeling.
3. WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING, by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel.  Advice for parents-to-be.
4. I CAN HAS CHEEZBURGER?, by Professor Happy­cat and icanhascheezburger.com.  More than 200 “LOLcats” — pictures of cats with funny captions (sample: “im in ur tube, blockin ur internets”) — from the popular Web site.
5. A NEW EARTH, by Eckhart Tolle. A spiritual teacher prescribes letting go of the ego to help end conflict and suffering.

Children’s Picture Books

1. BIG WORDS FOR LITTLE PEOPLE, by Jamie Lee Curtis. Illustrated by Laura Cornell.  A boisterous family improves its vocabulary, and its relationships. (Ages 4 to 8 )
2. GALLOP!, written and illustrated by Rufus Butler Seder.  Animals seem to move when you flip the page. (Ages 4 to 8 )
3. BATS AT THE LIBRARY, written and illustrated by Brian Lies. There’s a lot they can do besides hanging upside down. (Ages 4 to
4. WE THE PEOPLE, by Lynne Cheney. Illustrated by Greg Harlin. The story of the Constitution. (Ages 5 to 10 )
5. TEA FOR RUBY, by Sarah Ferguson. Illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser.  A clumsy girl learns table manners before meeting the “queen.” (Ages 4 to

Children’s Chapter Books

1. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK, by Neil Gaiman. Illustrated by Dave McKean.  To avoid a killer, a boy lives in a cemetery. (Ages 10 and up)
2. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID, written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. The travails of adolescence, in cartoons. (Ages 9 to 12)
3. THE MAZE OF BONES, by Rick Riordan.  A brother and sister hunt for the source of their family’s power; Book 1 of a new series, “The 39 Clues.” (Ages 12 and up)
4. 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)
5. THE WAY WE WORK, by David Macaulay with Richard Walker. Getting to know the human body. (Ages 9 to 12)

Children’s Paperback Books

1. THE BOOK THIEF, by Markus Zusak. A girl saves books from Nazi burning and shares them with a Jewish man in hiding. (Ages 14 and up)
2. THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX, by Kate DiCamillo. Illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering. A mouse, a rat and a girl on a magic trip. (Ages 10 and up)
3. THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY, by Trenton Lee Stewart. Illustrated by Carson Ellis. Gifted kids on a mission. (Ages 9 to 12)
4. SLAM, by Nick Hornby.  A skateboarder gets his high school girlfriend pregnant, and asks: what would Tony Hawk do? (Ages 12 and up)
5. KNUCKLEHEAD, written and illustrated by Jon Scieszka.  A childhood memoir/scrapbook from the popular author. (Ages 9 to 12)

Children’s Series Books

1. THE TWILIGHT SERIES, by Stephenie Meyer. Vampires and werewolves in high school. (Ages 12 and up)
2. INHERITANCE, by Christopher Paolini. A teenager and his dragon learn the secrets of a fantasy world. (Ages 12 and up)
3. HOUSE OF NIGHT, by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast. Vampires in school. (Ages 14 and up)
4. INKHEART, by Cornelia Funke. The characters of a book come to life and ensnare its readers. (Ages 10 and up)
5. IF YOU GIVE . . ., by Laura Numeroff. Illustrated by Felicia Bond.  Fun with cause and effect. (Ages 4 to

Source: The New York Times Best Seller List

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