Head of the Class

The #8 book in the country is We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins, a back-to-school picture book that our starred review praised for its “sassy dialogue, flawless comic pacing, and faith in the ability of children to learn and grow.” It pubbed in June 2018 and was selling an average of 1,000–2,000 print copies per week. Then, on July 15, it appeared on a Today list of “the 20 best kids’ books to calm back-to-school jitters,” and a week later, it was the subject of a national kindergarten story time promotion with B&N.

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

Charmed, I’m Sure

Baltimore journalist turned crime fiction author Laura Lippman has set her nearly two dozen novels in and around Charm City. Her latest, Lady in the Lake, takes place in the 1960s and “captures the era’s zeitgeist,” our starred review said, “while painting a striking portrait of unapologetic female ambition.” It debuts at #15 in hardcover fiction with plenty of support from the area’s current residents.

‘Yes’ Vote

Ask Again, Yes, Mary Beth Keane’s “thoughtful, compassionate latest,” as our review called it, pubbed at the end of May and returns to our hardcover fiction list at #14 with its best weekly print unit sales to date. Why the jump? On the July 25 episode of The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon announced that viewers had chosen the title as the show’s summer reading pick.

New & Notable

One Good Deed
David Baldacci
#1 Hardcover Fiction, #1 overall
With his latest chart topper, Baldacci introduces WWII veteran Aloysius Archer, out on parole in 1949 after doing time for a crime he didn’t commit.

Star Wars: Thrawn: Treason
Timothy Zahn
#5 Hardcover Fiction, #6 overall
First-week print unit sales for Zahn’s third novel starring Grand Admiral Thrawn, a popular Star Wars Legends character, topped those of the first two entries.

Top 10 Overall

Rank Title Author Imprint Units
1 One Good Deed David Baldacci Grand Central 46,383
2 Where the Crawdads Sing Delia Owens Putnam 43,660
3 The Nickel Boys Colson Whitehead Doubleday 23,908
4 The New Girl Daniel Silva Harper 23,332
5 Educated Tara Westover Random House 20,865
6 Star Wars: Thrawn: Treason Timothy Zahn Del Rey 19,504
7 The Reckoning John Grisham Dell 15,830
8 We Don’t Eat Our Classmates Ryan T. Higgins Disney-Hyperion 15,671
9 Before We Were Yours Lisa Wingate Ballantine 14,349
10 Under Currents Nora Roberts St. Martin’s 13,377

All unit sales per NPD BookScan except where noted.