Svetlana Alexievich, the Belarusian journalist who won the 2015 Nobel Prize for Literature, saw four of her books make it onto the nonfiction bestseller list in Sweden in December. Her top-selling book was War’s Unwomanly Face, which features interviews with about 200 women who fought as soldiers in World War II and was #1 in nonfiction at the end of the month.
Books that had been selling well in November continued to top the charts in December in most other major overseas markets. That was good news for authors Delphine de Vigan and Giula Enders, whose books remained #1 in fiction and nonfiction, respectively, in France last month. One nonfiction title that posted a solid rise in rankings in December was Stephane De Groodt’s Jungle Book, which is described by the publisher as a “humorous book that offers explanations for French terms.” It finished December in the second spot on the nonfiction list.
In Italy, Fabio Volo’s novel It’s All Life rose from #3 on the combined list in November to the top spot in December. Volo is the pseudonym of Fabio Bonetti, an Italian actor and radio and television personality, whose books are very popular in his home country, but who has had little luck in cracking the American market.
International Bestsellers
France
| Fiction | Nonfiction | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D’après une histoire vraie Based on a True Story Delphine de Vigan Lattès | Le charme discret de l’intestin The Discreet Charm of the Intestine Giulia Enders Actes Sud |
| 2 | Le livre des Baltimore The Book of Baltimore Joël Dicker Ed. de Fallois | Le livre de la jongle Jungle Book Stéphane De Groodt Plonl |
| 3 | Boussole Compass Mathias Enard Actes Sud | La puissance de la joie The Power of Joy Frédéric Lenoir Fayard |
For the week ended Dec. 27; used by arrangement with Livres Hebdo
Italy
| Combined | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | È tutta vita It’s All Life Fabio Volo Mondadori | 4 | La ragazza del treno The Girl on the Train Paula Hawkins Piemme |
| 2 | Storia di un cane che insegnò a un bambino la fedeltà The Story of a Dog Called Loyal Luis Sepúlveda Guanda | 5 | L’amante giapponese The Japanese Lover Isabel Allende Feltrinelli |
| 3 | Via Crucis Way of the Cross Gianluigi Nuzzi Chiarelettere | 6 | Amore infinito Before Anna Todd Sperling & Kupfer |
For the week ended Dec. 27; used by arrangement with Informazioni Editoriali
Sweden
| Fiction | Nonfiction | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Det som inte dödar oss The Girl in the Spider’s Web David Lagercrantz Norstedts | Kriget har inget kvinnligt ansikte War’s Unwomanly Face Svetlana Alexievich Ersatz |
| 2 | Allt jag inte minns All I Do Not Remember Jonas Hassen Khemiri Albert Bonniers Förlag | Guinness World Records 2016 Guinness World Records 2016 Guinness World Records Bonnier Fakta |
| 3 | Det är något som inte stämmer There Is Something Wrong Martina Haag Piratförlaget | Lär dig leva Learn to Live Mats and Susan Billmark Livskraft |
For the week ended Dec. 23; used by arrangement with Livres Svensk Bokhandel
