Good Chemistry
Ali Hazelwood has the #3 book in the country with Love on the Brain, her “charming and intelligent sophomore outing,” per our review, which “follows a pair of noted young scientists on their rocky path to love.” Her 2021 debut, The Love Hypothesis, has sold 541K print copies and this week moves up to #8 on our trade paperback list.
Pan(ic)tone
The week’s #1 picture book is Creepy Crayon! written by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Peter Brown, the team behind 2012’s Creepy Carrots! and 2017’s Creepy Pair of Underwear! The duo’s first two books have sold more than 260K print copies apiece. In the latest outing for Jasper Rabbit, the beleaguered bunny is menaced by a know-it-all purple crayon. Harold doesn’t know how good he had it.
Lighting a Fire
The #10 book in the country, Lightlark, launches a YA dark fantasy series by Alex Aster centered on Isla Crown, leader of a cursed realm. “Isla’s courage, determination, and compassion invest readers in her plight,” our review said, “imparting tension and drive.” The author, who published two well-reviewed middle grade novels in 2020 and 2021, has shown some drive of her own: she’d generated significant TikTok buzz for the new novel before selling it, netting her millions of views and a six-figure deal with Abrams. Universal snapped up the film rights in July.
New & Notable
BREAKING HISTORY
Jared Kushner
#1 Hardcover Nonfiction #5 overall
“On these pages, I recount my personal story,” writes Kushner, who worked as a senior adviser in the Trump White House and is the former president’s son-in-law. “I do not detail every action of the president or the administration, of which there are enough to fill volumes.”
BABEL
R.F. Kuang
#1 Hardcover Fiction
“Kuang underwhelms with a didactic, unsubtle take on dark academia and imperialism,” per our review. “Readers will be drawn in by the fascinating, linguistic magic system and righteous stance, but many will come away frustrated.”
