Maw Books

Maw Books – book reviews, book recommendations, book lists, author interviews and more!

Nothing like being inconsistent these days.  But taking another look at my stats – this is one of my most popular post types.  So I’m giving it another try (again.)

The New York Times Bestseller List
January 24th, 2010

Hardcover Fiction

1. THE HELP, by Kathryn Stockett. A young white woman and two black maids in 1960s ­Mississippi.
2. THE FIRST RULE, by Robert Crais.  Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, set out to clear the reputation of a former military contractor who has been murdered.
3. THE LOST SYMBOL, by Dan Brown.  Robert Langdon among the Masons.
4. THE SWAN THIEVES, by Elizabeth Kostova.  A psychiatrist who treats a man who slashed a canvas in the National Gallery is drawn into the world of French Impressionism; from the author of “The Historian.”
5. THE LAST SONG, by Nicholas Sparks. A 17-year-old girl spends the summer with her divorced father in North Carolina and finds many kinds of love.i

Hardcover Nonfiction

1. GAME CHANGE, by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin.  Behind the scenes at the 2008 election with Barack Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, John and Elizabeth Edwards, John McCain and Sarah Palin.
2. COMMITTED, by Elizabeth Gilbert. The author of “Eat, Pray, Love” wrestles with, and overcomes, her ambivalence about marriage.
3. HAVE A LITTLE FAITH, by Mitch Albom.  A suburban rabbi and a Detroit pastor teach lessons about the comfort of belief.
4. GOING ROGUE, by Sarah Palin.  A memoir by the former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate.
5. STONES INTO SCHOOLS, by Greg Mortenson. Building schools, many of them for girls, in northeast Afghanistan; takes up where “Three Cups of Tea” left off.

Paperback Trade Fiction

1. A RELIABLE WIFE, by Robert Goolrick.  Complications ensue when a wealthy Wisconsin widower in 1907 advertises for a wife.
2. THE LOVELY BONES, by Alice Sebold. (A girl looks down from heaven as she describes the aftermath of her kidnapping and murder.
3. THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, by Stieg Larsson.  A hacker and a journalist investigate the disappearance of a Swedish heiress.
4. DEAR JOHN, by Nicholas Sparks. (An unlikely romance between a soldier and an idealistic young woman is tested after 9/11.
5. TRUE COLORS, by Kristin Hannah.  Two sisters grow up in a small Washington town, betray each other and eventually reconcile.

Paperback Mass-Market Fiction

1. DEAR JOHN, by Nicholas Sparks.  An unlikely romance between a soldier and an idealistic young woman is tested after 9/11.
2. THE LOVELY BONES, by Alice Sebold. A girl looks down from heaven as she describes the aftermath of her kidnapping and murder.
3. THE DEVIL’S PUNCHBOWL, by Greg Iles.  The mayor of Natchez, Miss., pursues a killer who opposes his attempt to clean up riverboat gambling.
4. PLUM SPOOKY, by Janet Evanovich.  The bounty hunter Stephanie Plum hunts an evil genius and his sidekick, who are hiding in New Jersey’s Pine Barrens.
5. STREET GAME, by Christine Feehan. Two GhostWalkers, once lovers, face a common enemy.

Paperback Non-Fiction

1. THE BLIND SIDE, by Michael Lewis.  The evolving business of football, viewed through the rise of the left tackle Michael Oher.
2. THREE CUPS OF TEA, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. A former climber builds schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
3. EAT, PRAY, LOVE, by Elizabeth Gilbert.  A writer’s yearlong journey in search of self takes her to Italy, India and Indonesia.
4. ARE YOU THERE, VODKA? IT’S ME, CHELSEA, by Chelsea Handler.  Humorous personal essays from the comedian.
5. THE GLASS CASTLE, by Jeannette Walls. The author recalls a bizarre childhood during which she and her siblings moved constantly.

Hardcover Advice

1. THE MAYO CLINIC DIET, by the Mayo Clinic staff.  Adopting healthy new habits and breaking unhealthy old ones.
2. THE HAPPINESS PROJECT, by Gretchen Rubin.  A year spent focusing on the things that really matter.
3. YOU: ON A DIET, by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz et al.  Weight-loss tips and recipes; a revised edition.
4. THE FULL PLATE DIET, by Stuart A. Seale, Teresa Sherard and Diana Fleming.  Keeping portions large but calories low with high-fiber eating.
5. MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING, VOL. 1, by Julia Child, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle.  A reissue of the book that started Julia Child’s career.faith.

Paperback Advice

1. FOOD RULES, by Michael Pollan.  A manual for healthy eating, from the author of “The Omnivore’’s Dilemma.”
2. WOMEN AND MONEY, by Suze Orman. The financial guru tailors her financial advice especially for women.
3. FLAT BELLY DIET!, by Liz Vaccariello and Cynthia Sass.  Nutrition advice and workout tips from the editors of Prevention magazine.
4. WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING, by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel.  Advice for parents-to-be.
5. THE LOVE DARE, by Stephen and Alex Kendrick with Lawrence Kimbrough. A 40-day challenge for spouses who want to practice unconditional love

Children’s Picture Books

1. LEGO STAR WARS, by Simon Beecroft.  An annotated visual dictionary. (Ages 7 and up)
2. WADDLE!, written and illustrated by Rufus Butler Seder. Animals in motion, with color. (Ages 4 to
3. LISTEN TO THE WIND: THE STORY OF DR. GREG AND “THREE CUPS OF TEA”, by Greg Mortenson and Susan L. Roth.  A school grows in Pakistan. (Ages 4 to
4. FAMILY HUDDLE, written by Peyton Manning, Eli Manning and Archie Manning. Illustrated by Jim Madsen.  A football family in action.
5. THE LION AND THE MOUSE, by Jerry Pinkney.  A fable of reciprocal kindness, redrawn. (Ages 4 to

Children’s Chapter Books

1. WITCH AND WIZARD, by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. One of each, brother and sister, flex their newfound powers. (Ages 12 and up)
2. CATCHING FIRE, by Suzanne Collins.The protagonist of “The Hunger Games” returns. (Ages 12 and up)
3. THE HUNGER GAMES, by Suzanne Collins. In a dystopian future, a girl fights for survival on live TV. (Ages 12 and up).
4. FALLEN, by Lauren Kate.  Thwarted love among misfits at a boarding school in Savannah, Ga. (Ages 12 and up)
5. BEAUTIFUL CREATURES, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. A secret wrapped in a Southern Gothic novel. (Ages 12 and up)

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. THIRST NO. 2: PHANTOM, EVIL THIRST, CREATURES OF FOREVER, by Christopher Pike. A girl struggles with her dreamed-of transition from undead to mortal. (Ages 14 and up)
3. THREE CUPS OF TEA: YOUNG READERS EDITION, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. A former climber builds schools in Pakistani and Afghan villages. (Ages 9 to 12)
4. THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN, by Sherman Alexie. Illustrated by Ellen Forney.  A young boy leaves his reservation for an all-white school. (Ages 12 and up)
5. L.A. CANDY, by Lauren Conrad.  Excitement in TV land by someone who has been there. (Ages 14 and up)

Children’s Series Books

1. PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS, by Rick Riordan.  Battling mythological monsters. (Ages 9 to 12)
2. THE TWILIGHT SERIES, by Stephenie Meyer. Vampires and werewolves in high school. (Ages 12 and up)
3. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID, written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney.  A boy records the hazards of adolescent life. (Ages 9 to 12)
   
4. HOUSE OF NIGHT, by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast. Vampires in school. (Ages 14 and up)
5. MAGIC TREE HOUSE, by Mary Pope Osborne. Illustrated by Sal Murdocca.  Winged children try to save the world. (Ages 6 to 9)
   

Hardcover Graphic Books

1. THE BOOK OF GENESIS: ILLUSTRATED, by R. Crumb. The legendary artist tackles the first book of the Bible.
2. BATMAN: BATTLE FOR THE COWL, by Tony Daniel. Following the “death” of Batman, the protectors and plunderers of Gotham City fight to see who will control the mantle of the bat.
3. THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ, by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young. Dorothy travels to the land of OZ, graphic novel style.
4. WOLVERINE: OLD MAN LOGAN, by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven.  In a future world where the villains are triumphant, Wolverine has left heroics behind to care for his family. If only Hawkeye and the Hulk gang would accept that.
5. THE STAND: CAPTAIN TRIPS, by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Mike Perkins.  This collected edition reprints the first mini-series devoted to the comic book version of Stephen King’s novel, “The Stand.”.

Paperback Graphic Books

1. WATCHMEN, by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. This epic tale from 1986 signaled a new maturity in comic books.
2. THE ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE: RECORDED ATTACKS, by Max Brooks. If you want to survive a zombie attack, there may be no better way than to see how past cultures have done it.
3. MAUS: A SURVIVOR’S TALE, VOL. 1, by Art Spiegelman. The author tells the story of his father, a Holocaust survivor, in a critically-acclaimed tale where Jewish people are mice and Germans are cats.
4. WALKING DEAD, VOL. 1, by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore.  The gripping story of the human survivors in a world overrun by zombies continues.
5. CHEW, VOL. 1, by John Layman and Rob Guillory.  Talk about taking a bite out of crime! Detective Tony Chu gets psychic impressions from whatever he eats, including corpses. He’s recruited to help solve the strangest cases.

Manga

1. THE YU-GI-OH! GX 4, VOL. 4, by Naoyuki Kageyama and Kazuki Takahashi.  The next generation of Yu-Gi-Oh battle it out at the Duel Academy. But what evil plans are afoot?
2. NARUTO 46, by Masashi Kishimoto.  Naruto’s friends are threatened, the mysteries of Pain deepen and Naruto must fight to protect his village.
3. VAMPIRE KNIGHT, VOL. 8, by Matsuri Hino. Cross Academy has day and evening students, but the latter have a secret: they are vampires.
4. FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, VOL. 22, by Hiromu Arakawa.  Two brothers harmed in a ritual that was half magic/half science seek the legendary Philosopher’s Stone to make things right. But others seek the weapon of alchemy for their own nefarious means.
5. MAXIMUM RIDE, VOL. 2, by James Patterson and NaRae Lee.  Who knew having wings would be such a problem? Max and her gang travel to New York in search of answers about their past.

Source: The New York Times Best Seller List

Hey you! Yes. You! I've noticed that you've stopped by to visit a few times! But I don't know who you are. Why don't you take a moment and introduce yourself. Don't be scared. I try not to bite. I know you're a lurker but I'd love to hear your thoughts about what's been bringing you here. And if you haven't done so already, don't forget to never miss a post by subscribing to my feed or receiving updates by email. Thanks for visiting!