Welcome to The Bookies' Latest Update!                               January 2017 Issue 1
The Bookies Newsletter
The Bookies Bestsellers of 2016!
These are the books NPR thought we should be reading in 2016--over 300 of them! But here in Colorado, which books were Denverites actually reading? The Bookies Bestseller lists of 2016 will reveal all! We've created more categories this year to help you find your favorites. In this edition of the newsletter, find out which books topped our young adult and adult lists--look out for the next newsletter to discover our bestsellers for kids!

Interested in learning more? Click on a title to see more details of the book on our website. Numbers in brackets show places in last year's chart, with a '+' meaning the book is a new entry in our bestseller list.

The Bookies 2016 Top 10--Young Adult
Lyddie
The influence of school purchasing is evident in our YA list. Our YA bestseller, Lyddie, is a popular choice for local schools and the same is also likely to be true of second placed Dark Water Rising by Marian Hale, about the Galveston storm. School book lists may also influence the sales figures of the other books on the list, particularly given that they are all titles that have been around for a few years--however, from number three on the list onward, they are also books that teens regularly request. The sad death of Terry Pratchett has created an even greater interest in his books, particularly The Wee Free Men at number seven. And Jackaby by William Ritter, new at number eight, is becoming increasingly popular as the series grows.

Dark Water Rising
1. Lyddie Katherine Paterson +
2. Dark Water Rising Marian Hale +
3. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy  Douglas Adams +
4. Stargirl Jerry Spinelli +
5. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children Ransom Riggs +
6. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas John Boyne +
7. The Wee Free Men Terry Pratchett +
8.  Jackaby William Ritter
9.  The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie (11)
10. Divergent Veronica Roth (returns to the charts after a year's absence!)

 
The Bookies 2016 Top 10--Adult
A Man Called Ove
It's clear who the 2016 Writer of the Year was for adult customers of The Bookies! Fredrik Backman takes the honors, with A Man Called Ove appearing in first place and My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry in second in our 2016 Adult Bestsellers list.  

The Life-changing magic of tidying up
Last year's winner, Anthony Doerr's All The Light We Cannot See, has slipped off this year's list, but last year's second-placed The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo continues to engage readers and appears in third. This and A Man Called Ove are the only two books that appeared on last year's list--all the other top sellers are new appearances, although they are not all new books. Fourth place, My Brilliant Friend, for example, has been around for a few years, as has Unbroken in seventh.
 
1.   A Man Called Ove Fredrik Backman (5)
2.   My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell  You She's Sorry Fredrik Backman +
3.  The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up  Marie Kondo (2)
5.  The Soul of an Octopus Sy Montgomery +
6.  The Sympathizer Viet Thanh Nguyen +
7.   Unbroken Laura Hillenbrand
8.   The Big Thirst: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water Charles Fishman +
9.   Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance Angela Duckworth +
10.  Leaving Berlin Joseph Kanon +

Future Bestsellers! New Books in Popular Series!
The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation
The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation
By Shannon Hale, Dean Hale, LeUyen Pham
Candlewick, $14.99
The latest for Princess in Black fans. Battling monsters is exhausting! It's time for Princess Magnolia to take a vacation. And the beach is peaceful and perfect, until she hears a ROAR...! Monsters on vacation?

Don_t Feed the Geckos_
Don't Feed the Geckos!
By Karen English, The Carver Chronicles
Clarion, $5.99
This is just out in paperback and is the third in a series of fun chapter books featuring the African American and Latino characters that attend Carver Elementary. Like the others in the series, this story of Carlos, his geckos and his annoying cousin Bernardo is true to life, packed with realistic experiences and situations that kids will identify with. Well-pitched for second and third grade readers.

Timmy Failure_ The Book You_re Not Supposed to Have
Timmy Failure: The Book You're Not Supposed to Have
By Stephan Pastis
Candlewick, $14.99
The ever-clueless detective, Timmy Failure, is banned from detective work--but how could anybody think that will stop him? Especially with his mother's wedding to Doorman Dave coming up. These books are eccentric and funny--middle grade readers love Timmy and his oddbod group of 'assistants'!

When the Sea Turned to Silver
When the Sea Turned To Silver
By Grace Lin
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, $18.99
More beautifully-written adventures from Grace Lin in this companion book to her Newbery Honor winner Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and Starry River of the Sky. Pinmei's grandmother tells the most wonderful stories to the village, and when she is kidnapped by soldiers of the Emperor, Pinmei is determined to rescue her. But she finds herself confronted by obstacles that seem to come from legend. How can she rescue her grandmother?

Or, try these new series...
The Amateurs
The Amateurs
By Sara Shepherd
Freeform, $17.99
This is the first in a new YA series that comes with a good pedigree--it's written by #1 New York Times best-selling author, Sara Shepherd, author of the Pretty Little Liars series. Seneca is addicted to true crime and she finds a cold-case mystery about a missing girl that she is determined to solve. But the murderer is determined to hide the truth... Lots of twists and turns and a hot romance make this a fun, fast read!

Inspector Flytrap
Inspector Flytrap
By Tom Angleberger
Hachette, $5.95
A fun new series that combines text, illustrations and graphic panels and has lots of appeal for elementary school readers. Inspector Flytrap is a plant--a Venus Flytrap to be exact. But he solves mysteries, with the help on his trusty goat sidekick who has to push the Inspector around on a skateboard. Bizarre and fun!

And finally, one for adults...
The Drowned Boy
The Drowned Boy
By Karin Fossum
Mariner Books, $14.95
Just out in paperback, this is the latest Inspector Sejer mystery from Karin Fossum. The apparently straightforward accidental drowning of a young boy in a pond becomes less straightforward when his lungs are found to be filled, not with pond water, but soapy water.

A New Chair for Storytime
We were very moved when the late Helen Edmondson's family designed and donated a handpainted chair to our preschool story time in her memory. Helen was a literary advocate who loved The Bookies and her family held a short dedication ceremony in the store at the end of last year. The photograph shows Helen's grandchildren with the chair, which features illustrations from one of Helen's favorite books, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Our storyteller, actor Sue Leiser, loves the new chair--and her listeners eagerly gather on the blue mat in front of her. Come and join us at preschool storytime every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. and see our new story area!

Something a Little Different  
Reading lamp
January is the month when we like to spark our brains by reading something outside our usual genres. Here are a few of our reading challenges for this year...the biography reader who will be reading science...the 'serious' book reader who will be trying out humor...the fiction reader who will tackle self-help... All these, and many more! Look out for our February newsletter to find out what we thought of our new genres. And if you would like to join in, ask us to suggest something for you--or take a look at this Pinterest page that details some of the many reading challenges that are around this January.

We're excited to take part in this year's Colorado Council International Reading Association (CCIRA) conference on literacy. Teachers and literacy advocates, we look forward to meeting you and talking books there from February 1-4th! This year's conference will celebrate 50 years of the CCRA with speakers, authors, luncheons and fun events.

Sue Lubeck