Persuasive Sales

The Female Persuasion, Meg Wolitzer’s first novel for adults since 2013’s The Interestings, lands at #10 in hardcover fiction. Our starred review called it “insightful and resonant,” and it debuts with strong first-week sales compared with the author’s previous books.

(See all of this week's bestselling books.)

How to Live

New books on our hardcover nonfiction list present different models for living. Here’s a sample.

#2 The Rational Bible by Dennis Prager examines the Book of Exodus and calls the Bible “the greatest moral guide ever written.”

#3 Factfulness by Hans Rosling proposes that acknowledging humankind’s progress is the key to solving the problems that still exist.

#8 Make Trouble by Cecile Richards is the Planned Parenthood president’s guide to activism as a tool for change.

#11 Unified by Tim Scott and Trey Gowdy, an African-American senator and a white congressman, respectively, shows how readers can follow their example and bridge differences.

#13 Strength in Stillness by Bob Roth introduces readers to transcendental meditation, a practice favored by unlikely fans including hedge fund manager Ray Dalio.

Rise Up

Kwame Alexander’s Rebound, which our review called “a multilayered coming-of-age story,” debuts at #7 in children’s frontlist fiction. It’s a prequel to his Newbery Medal winner, 2014’s The Crossover, and like its predecessor, it’s a novel in verse.

The YA zombie novel Dread Nation by Justina Ireland, #25 in children’s frontlist fiction, earned a starred review from PW and launches a duology in which children of color in the post–Civil War U.S. are sent to fight the undead. The author was the subject of a recent Vulture profile, “Meet Justina Ireland, YA Twitter’s Leading Warrior.”

New & Notable

True Roots
Kristin Cavallari
#1 Trade Paperback, #1 overall
Cavallari, who got her start on the MTV high school reality series Laguna Beach and has since built an Instagram following that numbers three million, offers a gluten-, dairy-, and sugar-free cookbook.

Varina
Charles Frazier
#11 Hardcover Fiction
The Cold Mountain author’s first novel since 2011’s Nightwoods fictionalizes the life of Varina Howell Davis before and after the death of her husband, Confederate president Jefferson Davis.

Top 10 Overall

Rank Title Author Imprint Units
1 True Roots Kristin Cavallari Rodale 24,917
2 Ready Player One Ernest Cline Broadway 19,017
3 The Right Time Danielle Steel Dell 18,081
4 A Wrinkle in Time Madeleine L’Engle Square Fish 17,852
5 Dog Man and Cat Kid (Dog Man #4) Dav Pilkey Graphix 15,936
6 12 Rules for Life Jordan B. Peterson Random House Canada 15,183
7 I’ve Got My Eyes on You Mary Higgins Clark Simon & Schuster 14,963
8 Killers of the Flower Moon David Grann Vintage 14,892
9 All by Myself, Alone Mary Higgins Clark Pocket 14,792
10 Camino Island John Grisham Dell 14,663

All unit sales per Nielsen BookScan except where noted.