Inaugural Addresses

Titles related to the new administration, and especially the historic election of Vice President Kamala Harris, made strong showings on our lists.

The #4 book in the country, Ambitious Girl by Meena Harris (the vice president’s niece), illustrated by Marissa Valdez, is a “celebration of female ambition,” our review said, in which the words used to criticize a Black female speaker (“too assertive, too persistent, too ambitious, too loud”) are embraced as positives by a brown-skinned girl. Kamala’s Way by Dan Morain debuts at #17 on our hardcover nonfiction list in its second week on sale; though it “doesn’t get far beyond her public persona,” our review said, it’s “a brisk and evenhanded account of Harris’s trailblazing career.”

Older titles written by Kamala Harris include The Truths We Hold, which returns to our trade paper list at #9, and Superheroes Are Everywhere, illustrated by Mechal Renee Roe and #9 on our picture book list.

Elsewhere in picture books, Vashti Harrison’s Little Leaders: Bold Black Women in History moves up eight spots to #15, and Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris, illustrated by Ana Ramírez González, returns at #16.

And the #18 picture book, Champ and Major: First Dogs by Joy McCullough, illus. by Sheyda Abvabi Best, marks the welcome return of pets to the White House.

Coin of the Realm

Debuting at #14 in children’s fiction, Winterkeep continues Kristin Cashore’s Graceling Realm fantasy series, which had seemed to reach a conclusion more than eight years ago with the third book, Bitterblue. The new installment sees the character Bitterblue, queen of the nation of Monsea, working to establish a relationship with the nation of Winterkeep. “In the book, there’s a fuel in Winterkeep that politicians are really divided about,” Cashore told PW in a prepublication interview. “It can do a lot of wonderful things but is also a polluter. My awareness of global warming and the way that we’re treating Earth and using up our resources was on my mind.” To date, the original trilogy has sold more than 675K print copies, and another Graceling Realm book is on the way.

NEW & NOTABLE

BEFORE SHE DISAPPEARED
Lisa Gardner
#4 Hardcover Fiction
“Gardner pulls no punches in this socially conscious standalone,” in which a recovering alcoholic “has found purpose, if not peace, in channeling her addictive personality into finding missing women no one else bothers to search for,” our starred review said.

WE FREE THE STARS
Hafsah Faizal
#17 Children’s Fiction
The conclusion to the YA fantasy duology that began with 2019’s We Hunt the Flame returns readers to a magic-imbued world inspired by ancient Arabian culture and myth.

BUSINESS MADE SIMPLE
Donald Miller
#1 Trade Paperback, #7 overall
Miller, CEO of marketing company StoryBrand, offers 60 daily lessons aimed at helping readers and their teams become what he calls “value-driven professionals.”

Correction: An earlier version of this article misnamed the author of Kamala's Way, Dan Morain.