The nonfiction bestseller rankings are always a good gauge of our nation’s concerns. In recent weeks, those have been books that bemoan the screen addiction of today’s young people (“The Anxious Generation”) and U.S. politics (“All in the Family” and “What This Comedian Said Will Shock You”).
This week our attention turns to the perennial topic of UFOs and the question of whether extraterrestrial life forms have visited Earth.
“Imminent: Inside the Pentagon’s Hunt for UFOs” lands at number 1 this week. The author is Luis Elizondothe former head of the U.S. agency tasked with monitoring and compiling all U.S. government knowledge of visitations from the beyond, or UAPs (unidentified anomalous phenomena), as we now apparently call undocumented aliens from space.
The other major new addition to this week’s list is “The Knowing,” a reconstruction of Canadian history from the perspective of First Nations people. Author Tanya Talagathe journalist who wrote the highly acclaimed “Seven Fallen Feathers” in 2017 is of Anishinaabe and Polish descent. “The Knowing” is ranked No. 7 on major nonfiction lists and No. 2 on the Canadian list.
ORIGINAL FICTION
1. It ends with usColleen Hoover, Atria (96)
2. It starts with usColleen Hoover, Atria (32)
3. Under a different nameJodi Picoult, Random House Canada (1)
4. DaydreamingHannah Grace, Atria (1)
5. What did you do?Shari Lapena, Doubleday Canada (4)
6. The Briar ClubKate Quinn, William Morrow (8)
7. When the world fell silentDonna Jones Alward, One More Chapter (2)
8. The Pumpkin Spice CafeLaurie Gilmore, One More Chapter (1)
9. The HousemaidFreida McFadden, Grand Central (9)
10. That’s why we liedKarin Slaughter, William Morrow (1)
ORIGINAL NON-FICTION BOOKS
1. ImminentLuis Elizondo, William Morrow (1)
2. The fearful generationJonathan Haidt, Penguin Press (22)
3. Weaving Mary grassRobin Wall Kimmerer, Milkweed Editions (146)
4. What’s nextMelissa Fitzgerald, Mary McCormack, Dutton (1)
5. All in the familyFred C. Trump III, gallery (4)
6. What this comedian said will shock youBill Maher, Simon & Schuster (14)
7. The knowledgeTanya Talaga, HarperCollins Canada (1)
8. Love triangleMatt Parker, Riverhead (1)
9. The war we won separatelyNahlah Ayed, Viking (13)
10. On the edgeNate Silver, Penguin Press (1)
CANADIAN FICTION
1. What did you do?Shari Lapena, Doubleday Canada
2. When the world fell silentDonna Jones Alward, Another Chapter
3. This summer will be differentCarley Fortune, Viking
4. Until death do us partLaurie Elizabeth Flynn, Simon & Schuster
5. Fall with meBecka Mack, Simon & Schuster
6. Butcher and BlackbirdBrynne Weaver, Zando
7. Avatar: The Last AirbenderFaith Erin Hicks, Peter Wartman, Dark Horse
8. Leather and LarkBrynne Weaver, Zando
9. Meet me at the lakeCarley Fortune, Viking
10. Body checkElle Kennedy, Harlequin
CANADIAN NON-FICTION
1. Friends, lovers and the big, terrible thingMatthew Perry, Flatiron
2. The knowledgeTanya Talaga, HarperCollins Canada
3. The war we won separatelyNahlah Ayed, Viking
4. Fire weatherJohn Vaillant, Vintage Canada
5. The Widow’s Guide to Dead BastardsJessica Waite, Simon & Schuster
6. Health for allJane Philpott, Signal
7. 21 Things You May Not Know About Indian LawBob Joseph, Indigenous Relations
8. OutsiderBrett Popplewell, Collins
9. Tell the truthMichelle Good, Harper Perennial
10. A history of Canada in ten mapsAdam Shoalts, Penguin Canada
CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS
1. WisteriaAdalyn Grace, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
2. A Good Girl’s Guide to MurderHolly Jackson, Ember
3. The New Girl (#1)Cassandra Calin, Graphic
4. Bluey: Grannies and other storiesPenguin Young Readers
5. PowerlessLauren Roberts, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
6. The wild robotPeter Brown, Little, Brown Books for young readers
7. Dog Man: The Scarlet Coat Change (#12), Dav Pilkey, Graphix
8. RecklessLauren Roberts, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
9. The greatest gameJennifer Lynn Barnes, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
10. Good girl, bad bloodHolly Jackson, Ember
BUSINESS AND PERSONAL FINANCES
1. The 5AM ClubRobin Sharma, HarperCollins Canada
2. TractionGino Wickman, Ben Bella
3. Rich father, poor fatherRobert T. Kiyosaki, Silver
4. Surrounded by idiotsThomas Erikson, St. Martin’s Essentials
5. Dare to take the leadBrené Brown, Random House
6. The frontrunners eat lastSimon Sinek, Portfolio
7. Think againAdam Grant, Penguin
8. The first 90 days (extended)Michael Watkins, Harvard Business Review
9. I will teach you to become richRamit Sethi, worker
10. Influence (extended)Robert B. Cialdini, Harper Business
* Weeks on the list
Bestseller lists are compiled by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited using information from BookNet Canada’s national sales tracking service, BNC SalesData.
