Bookseller reviews of books on the bestseller list this week
Can a book be cozy, loving, encouraging, compassionate, AND a threat to the brutal and cutthroat consumer capitalism of our era? I present to you Robin Wall Kimmerer’s first book since her surprise mega-bestselling sleeper hit Braiding Sweetgrass. The serviceberry is a bushy, underappreciated fruit tree native to Eastern North America that Kimmerer uses as inspiration to muse broadly on “abundance and reciprocity in the natural world.” The tree embodies the values of gratitude, interconnectedness, and mutual aid. Strikingly, the serviceberry’s broad and generous distribution of its wealth ensures its own flourishing! Let’s all read this small, beautiful, and powerful little book and talk about how we can reimagine modern economic life to be a little more sane and humane!
The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer, (List Price: $20, Scribner, 9781668072240, November 2024)
Reviewed by Josh, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia
In a time where influencers are more prominent now than ever, you will love this novel that goes behind the scenes of a tradwife named Natalie who finds herself thrust from her Instagramable life into an alternate timeline (pun intended) where she does not fully recognize her family or any aspect of her farmlife. Her carefully curated life is uprooted very suddenly, and you will #lol at Natalie’s plight. This debut novel has a lot of heart, humor, and social commentary, and I expect it to be big. Don’t miss out!
Yesteryear by Caro, (List Price: $30, Knopf, 9780593804216, April 2026)
Reviewed by Annastasia Williams, The Bottom in Knoxville, TN
JFC. If we can’t add a new subgenre JUST for Lauren Groff’s signature style — lushly grim and invigoratingly desolate — maybe I’d best acknowledge the teeny new chamber in my book lovin’ heart that Matrix, The Vaster Wilds and now Brawler have come to inhabit. I didn’t think I could handle bleak, but in her capable hands? “Under the Wave” is the best short story I’ve ever read. Within two paragraphs of beginning “The Wind” (and hence the collection), I was *there* and terrified. I haven’t even read the last two stories yet. Stay tuned.
Brawler by Lauren Groff, (List Price: $29, Riverhead Books, 9780593418420, February 2026)
Reviewed by Kat, novel. in Memphis, Tennessee
The Southern Indie Bestseller List, as brought to you by IndieBound and SIBA, for the week ending Sunday, May 10. Based on reporting from the independent booksellers of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance and IndieBound. For an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound.org.
HARDCOVER FICTION
1. The Correspondent
Virginia Evans, Crown, $28.00, 9780593798430
2. Yesteryear (Indies Introduce)
Caro Claire Burke, Knopf, $30.00, 9780593804216
3. The Calamity Club
Kathryn Stockett, Spiegel & Grau, $35.00, 9781954118812
4. The Things We Never Say
Elizabeth Strout, Random House, $29.00, 9798217154746
5. Platform Decay (The Murderbot Diaries #8)
Martha Wells, Tor Books, $24.99, 9781250827005
6. Our Perfect Storm
Carley Fortune, Berkley, $30.00, 9780593953242
7. John of John
Douglas Stuart, Grove Press, $28.00, 9780802167194
8. Kin
Tayari Jones, Knopf, $32.00, 9780525659181
9. Summer State of Mind
Kristy Woodson Harvey, Gallery Books, $29.00, 9781668074886
10. We Burned So Bright
TJ Klune, Tor Books, $25.99, 9781250881236
11. Heart the Lover
Lily King, Grove Press, $28.00, 9780802165176
12. Go Gentle
Maria Semple, G.P. Putnam's Sons, $30.00, 9798217176632
13. The Correspondent: Deluxe Edition
Virginia Evans, Crown, $35.00, 9798217398713
14. Theo of Golden
Allen Levi, Atria Books, $30.00, 9781668236567
15. Between Two Fires
Christopher Buehlman, Tor Nightfire, $29.99, 9781250439208
HARDCOVER NONFICTION
1. Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage
Belle Burden, The Dial Press, $30.00, 9780593733318
2. Famesick: A Memoir
Lena Dunham, Random House, $32.00, 9780593129326
3. London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth
Patrick Radden Keefe, Doubleday, $35.00, 9780385548533
4. Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children
Mac Barnett, Little, Brown and Company, $20.00, 9780316601122
5. True Crime: A Memoir
Patricia Cornwell, Grand Central Publishing, $32.50, 9781538778449
6. The Best Dog in the World: Essays on Love
Alice Hoffman (Ed.), Scribner, $22.00, 9781668209028
7. The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald
John U. Bacon, Liveright, $35.00, 9781324094647
8. Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm
Charlie Mackesy, Penguin Life, $27.00, 9780593994825
9. The Little Frog's Guide to Self-Care: Affirmations, Self-Love and Life Lessons According to the Internet's Beloved Mushroom Frog
Maybell Eequay, Summersdale, $11.99, 9781837991013
10. A World Appears: A Journey into Consciousness
Michael Pollan, Penguin Press, $32.00, 9781984881991
11. Duty, Honor, Country & Life: A Tribute to the American Spirit
Admiral William H. McRaven, Grand Central Publishing, $26.00 , 9781538780947
12. Joyful, Anyway
Kate Bowler, The Dial Press, $30.00, 9780593734193
13. The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can't Stop Talking About
Mel Robbins, Sawyer Robbins, Hay House LLC, $29.99, 9781401971366
14. The Case for America: An Argument on Behalf of Our Nation
Bret Baier, Mariner Books, $30.00, 9780063360808
15. One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This
Omar El Akkad, Knopf, $28.00, 9780593804148
TRADE PAPERBACK FICTION
1. Theo of Golden
Allen Levi, Atria Books, $20.00, 9781668236512
2. Project Hail Mary (Movie Tie-In)
Andy Weir, Ballantine Books, $22.00, 9798217299461
3. Dungeon Crawler Carl
Matt Dinniman, Ace, $20.00, 9780593820254
4. Remarkably Bright Creatures
Shelby Van Pelt, Ecco, $19.99, 9780063204164
5. I Who Have Never Known Men
Jacqueline Harpman, Transit Books, $16.95, 9781945492600
6. The God of the Woods
Liz Moore, Riverhead Books, $19.00, 9780593418925
7. James
Percival Everett, Vintage, $20.00, 9780593686867
8. Beach House Rules
Kristy Woodson Harvey, Gallery Books, $19.00, 9781668074817
9. Red Rising
Pierce Brown, Del Rey, $18.00, 9780345539809
10. The Daisy Chain Flower Shop
Laurie Gilmore, HarperCollins, $18.99, 9780008761479
11. The Lion Women of Tehran
Marjan Kamali, Gallery Books, $18.99, 9781668036594
12. The Road to Tender Hearts
Annie Hartnett, Ballantine Books, $20.00, 9780593873465
13. The Mountains We Call Home
Kim Michele Richardson, Sourcebooks Landmark, $18.99, 9781464239335
14. Fever Beach
Carl Hiaasen, Vintage Crime/Black Lizard, $19.00, 9780593315477
15. Heated Rivalry
Rachel Reid, Carina Press, $18.99, 9781335534637
TRADE PAPERBACK NONFICTION
1. The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War
Erik Larson, Crown, $22.00, 9780385348768
2. All About Love: New Visions
bell hooks, William Morrow Paperbacks, $17.99, 9780060959470
3. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
Robin Wall Kimmerer, Milkweed Editions, $22.00, 9781571313560
4. The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore
Evan Friss, Penguin Books, $20.00, 9780593299944
5. Raising Hare: A Memoir
Chloe Dalton, Vintage, $21.00, 9780593689004
6. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
Bessel van der Kolk M.D., Penguin Books, $19.00, 9780143127741
7. Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service
Michael Lewis (Ed.), Riverhead Books, $19.00, 9798217047826
8. The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness
Morgan Housel, Harriman House, $19.99, 9780857197689
9. On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century
Timothy Snyder, Crown, $14.00, 9780804190114
10. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
Patrick Radden Keefe, Vintage, $22.00, 9780307279286
11. The Beginning Comes After the End: Notes on a World of Change
Rebecca Solnit, Haymarket Books, $16.95, 9798888904510
12. Be Ready When the Luck Happens: A Memoir
Ina Garten, Crown, $22.00, 9780593800027
13. The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession
Michael Finkel, Vintage, $18.00, 9781984898456
14. Memorial Days: A Memoir
Geraldine Brooks, Penguin Books, $19.00, 9780593654002
15. Bubble in the Sun: The Florida Boom of the 1920s and How It Brought on the Great Depression
Christopher Knowlton, Simon & Schuster, $19.99, 9781982128388
MASS MARKET
1. Animal Farm
George Orwell, Signet, $12.00, 9780451526342
2. 1984
George Orwell, Signet, $12.00, 9780451524935
3. The Communist Manifesto
Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Signet, $6.95, 9780451531841
4. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Maya Angelou, Ballantine, $9.99, 9780345514400
5. The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkien, Del Rey, $8.99, 9780345534835
6. The Fellowship of the Ring: The Lord of the Rings: Part One
J.R.R. Tolkien, Del Rey, $8.99, 9780593500484
7. Slaughterhouse-Five
Kurt Vonnegut, Dell, $9.99, 9780440180296
8. A Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin, Random House Worlds, $9.99, 9780553593716
9. The Way of Kings
Brandon Sanderson, Tor, $12.99, 9780765365279
10. Lord of the Flies
William Golding, Penguin, $12.00, 9780399501487
CHILDREN'S ILLUSTRATED.
1. It's My Bird-Day!
Mo Willems, Union Square Kids, $18.99, 9781454999621
2. Oh, the Places You'll Go!
Dr. Seuss, Random House Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780679805274
3. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Eric Carle, World of Eric Carle, $10.99, 9780399226908
4. Where the Wild Things Are
Maurice Sendak, Harper, $21.99, 9780060254926
5. Construction Site: Firefight!
Sherri Duskey Rinker, AG Ford (Illus.), Chronicle Books, $18.99, 9781797226590
6. Goodnight Moon
Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd (Illus.), Harper, $10.99, 9780694003617
7. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?: Stamped Edges Special Edition
Jr. Martin, Bill, Eric Carle (Illus.), Henry Holt and Co. BYR, $10.99, 9781250445506
8. Make Way for Ducklings
Robert McCloskey, Puffin, $10.99, 9780140564341
9. Construction Site: Dad and His Crew Power Through!
Sherri Duskey Rinker, AG Ford (Illus.), Chronicle Books, $12.99, 9781797238500
10. Where's Waldo?
Martin Handford, Candlewick, $8.99, 9781536210651
CHILDREN'S INTEREST
1. The New Girl: First Crush: A Graphic Novel
Cassandra Calin, Graphix, $14.99, 9781338762488
2. Spy School Secret Service the Graphic Novel
Stuart Gibbs, Anjan Sarkar (Illus.), Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $14.99, 9781665956635
3. Change of Plans
Sarah Dessen, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $21.99, 9798347108770
4. Captain Underpants: The First Epic Manga
Dav Pilkey, Motojiro (Illus.), Graphix, $14.99, 9781546151210
5. Odder: The Novel
Katherine Applegate, Charles Santoso (Illus.), Square Fish, $8.99, 9781250423429
6. Unsettling Salad! (Jasper Rabbit's Creepy Tales!)
Aaron Reynolds, Peter Brown (Illus.), Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $13.99, 9781665961110
7. Wombat Waiting
Katherine Applegate, Storytide, $19.99, 9780063221178
8. Impossible Creatures
Katherine Rundell, Ashley Mackenzie (Illus.), Yearling, $11.99, 9780593809891
9. Better Than the Movies
Lynn Painter, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $12.99, 9781534467637
10. Orris and Timble: Star Stories
Kate DiCamillo, Carmen Mok (Illus.), Candlewick, $16.99, 9781536227581
CHILDREN'S SERIES TITLES
1. The Hybrid Prince (Wings of Fire, Book 16)
Tui T. Sutherland, Scholastic Press, $19.99, 9781546129547
2. Mercy Watson to the Rescue
Kate DiCamillo, Chris Van Dusen (Illus.), Candlewick, $6.99, 9780763645045
3. Defending the Swamp Dragon (Dragon Masters #31)
Tracey West, Matt Loveridge (Illus.), Scholastic, $7.99, 9798225003296
4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hot Mess
Jeff Kinney, Harry N. Abrams, $14.99, 9781419766954
5. Dog Man: Big Jim Believes
Dav Pilkey, Graphix, $15.99, 9781546176183
6. Dog Man
Dav Pilkey, Graphix, $12.99, 9781338741032
7. The Wild Robot
Peter Brown, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, $9.99, 9780316581097
8. The Academy VI: Rise of the Scorpions
T.Z. Layton, Sourcebooks Young Readers, $9.99, 9781464268335
9. Big Nate: Code Red!
Lincoln Peirce, Andrews McMeel Publishing, $12.99, 9798881602420
10. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Partypooper
Jeff Kinney, Harry N. Abrams, $15.99, 9781419782695