New Zealand’s only bestseller chart is a top 10 bestseller list published weekly at Unity Books stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.
AUCKLAND
1 The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin (Canongate, $50)
Opinions differ greatly Good Reading examiners. Some examples are as follows:
About:
“Rick Rubin’s short articles on artists and art were very inspiring. The book was full of such wisdom, and spirituality even though I don’t preach too much—though maybe that’s because I totally believe in everything he wrote.” (Courtney)
“Mef Twyla Tharp Creative Habits and Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower had a son, Rick Rubin The Creative Act it would be that. On the one hand, it contains practical advice and technical knowledge. On the other hand, it often feels like I’m starting a new spiritual practice. It consists of small poems at the end of the chapters, which read like the Earthseed verses that begin each chapter. An analogy. All that being said, Rubin’s views on life and creative work are probably more complicated than I like. However, I found a lot to like in this book.“(Keely)
Against:
“For someone who has art in specific decades and genres, this book was empty and very pretentious. The emotional length of his written instructions was very different from the description of his policy 60 minutes.” (Tomes and Textiles)
“Several good tips for artists but mostly deep fakes. I expected more “(Mariano Avila)
2 Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang (Blue Door, $35)
One of the great fantasy novels of 2023, this book opens with June (white) stealing the notes of her recently deceased friend, Athena (Asian-American) and passing them off as her own. Here is the pithy endorsed by the New York Times review (paywalled): “Yellowface is Kuang’s fifth novel and first non-fiction novel. It’s a breezy and fun read, fun and fun and fun in equal measure; sometimes, it goes over the edge of the ghost story. It’s also the most absurd critique of commercial media I’ve come across in fiction, and to see the brutality, the indifference of a company with so much interest is so satisfying.”
3 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber & Faber, $28)
Pulitzer Prize + Women’s Award winning adaptation of David Copperfield.
4 The Water Covenant by Abraham Verghese (Grove Press, $38)
Verghese based the famous historical novel on his mother’s story. Here’s an excerpt from the publisher’s commentary: “From 1900 to 1977, The Water Treaty is set in Kerala, on South India’s Malabar Coast, and follows three generations of a family struggling with a strange problem: each generation, at least. one person dies from drowning—and in Kerala, water is everywhere. At the turn of the century, a twelve-year-old Kerala girl, grieving the death of her father for a long time, is sent on a boat to her wedding, where will meet her husband of forty years. for the first time. From this unforgettable new beginning, the little girl, and future matriarch, known as Big Ammachi – will see unexpected changes during her amazing life, full of joy and success and difficulties and loss, his faith and his love that endure. .”
5 Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, $37)
Zevin is back!
6 Little Things Like This by Claire Keegan (Faber & Faber, $25)
Hello, our old friend Keegan. Absolutely impressed with this Booker Prize Q&A and this award-winning author reveals how difficult it was to create this precious book:
“Question: There was an 11-year gap between your last novel, Foster, and Small Things Like These. How long did it take you to write Small Things Like These, and what does your writing look like? Do you type or do you write in longhand? Is there a lot of writing, emergencies, long breaks? Is there a lot of research and plotting before you start writing?
A: I don’t like to think about how long it will take to write this book. This story was playing in the back of my mind for a long time, some years, before I started and I passed the time taking notes and trying not to write it. I don’t always like to get into it – and my first drafts are very difficult to write and face. At first, little or nothing works on the emotional level. It seems to me that all good stories are told reluctantly – and to me the author, too, does not want to enter. But not writing is almost always more difficult than writing.”
7 Shards by Bret Easton Ellis (Allen & Unwin, $37)
A new slasher from an old fave. Instead enjoy this quote from your profile Vanity Fair: “When I got into my 40s and 50s, this idea of everything that Bret Easton Ellis is, and everything that his books are, and everything that he does, and everyone that reads it, I have to say, it became secondary to the problem. of pipes. in my house and in my house.”
8 Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov (Weidenfeld & Nicholson, $33)
The mock winner of this year’s International Booker Prize.
9 The Bookbinder of Jericho by Pip Williams (Affirm Press, $38)
Building books in the middle of the war. A sold idea for bibliophiles everywhere!
10 He’s No Man Anymore by Osamu Dazai (New Directions, $29)
CW: mention of suicide. Please read carefully.
A new entry in the list. The book was first published in 1948 (it was first translated from Japanese to English in 1958 and has never been published), one month after the author’s death by suicide. The book is about a man who is unable to maintain a happy face and is told as a series of essays with a prologue and epilogue by an unnamed narrator who is given a pen by a friend, ten years later. it was written.
WELLINGTON
1 Pet by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press, hardback $50, paperback $38)
Wellingtonians feature in Catherine Chidgey’s latest book and rightly so according to Sam Brooks, who said: “Chidgey has proven, time and time again, that he writes fun and is very good. He is doing something different, and building a strong thin line, with Pet. He uses events that can be interesting for the audience – because each of us was sure, to solve a problem in high school, to remove gum on the bottom of the shoe – and instead of using anything familiar, he instead shoots. on canvases that are partly disturbing, partly gay, and very interesting.”
2 Yellowface by Rebecca Kuang (Borough Press, $35)
3 Axeman’s Carnival by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press, $35)
Much to the liking of the book, not least that it confused Ockham this year. Here’s a clip from it Our post-win interview with Chidgey:
“Question: It’s an amazing achievement, what you’ve produced: real animal voices. What kind of research did you do? Have you read any other books about talking animals?
A: I was successful because I believe in the magic of reading anything that matches what I’m writing because I don’t want to copy it. But in terms of research, I did a lot of research on magpie structure and behavior, as well as the history of the introduction and distribution of magpies in New Zealand. “
Want some magpies? Buy this book!
4 Getting Out: The Science and Art of Longevity by Peter Attia & Bill Gifford (Vermillion, $40)
That book about living a long life.
5 It’s ADHD by Chanelle Moriah (Allen & Unwin, $33)
The second book from bestselling author/illustrator Chanelle Moriah (author of I Am Autistic). It’s ADHD is a concise and informative book that puts the science and experience of living with ADHD into a visual format. If anyone in your life has ADHD or thinks they might, then this is the book you need.
6 The Burned Letter by Helene Ritchie (HR Press, $45)
Fascinating story of the Nazi Party. Here is what the publisher said: “During the Nazi Holocaust, Lidi fled from Hitler and the Nazis as a teenager. Forced to leave everyone he loves, he eventually arrives in New Zealand as a Jewish refugee, along with his mother. They are living in their new country, but when they are registered again, they are immediately called ‘enemy aliens’, they are watched by the police, their letters are searched, their lives and their movements are restricted. Five years later in 1945, a few months after the liberation of Auschwitz, Lidi burned a letter she had written to him that told him what had happened to those he loved the most. He hopes that by turning the letter into ashes, his guilt and pain will be gone. But his efforts have been in vain.”
7 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber, $28)
8 China Tightrope: Navigating New Zealand’s Relationship With Global Power by Sam Sachdeva (Allen & Unwin, $37)
With our PM in China right now is a very popular book from local journalist Sam Sachdeva. Toby Manhire recently caught up with Sam on the Gone By Lunchtime podcast. Read more here and listen here.
9 Tangi by Witi Ishmaera (Penguin, $30)
Witi Ihimaera re-wrote his first book, published 50 years ago this year, and re-released it. Author Emma Hislop wrote about this amazing phenomenon, right here.
10 Under the Weather: New Zealand’s Future Predictions by James Renwick (HarperCollins, $40)
Mild winter so far, right? This is a very important book. You can read another section right here, and look for an interview with James, soon.
#Unity #Books #bestseller #chart #week #June
