The week’s bestselling books, Aug. 11
Hardcover fiction
1. James by Percival Everett (Doubleday: $28) An action-packed reimagining of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”
2. All Fours by Miranda July (Riverhead Books: $29) A woman upends her domestic life in this irreverent and tender novel.
3. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (Riverhead Books: $30) Two worlds collide when a teenager vanishes from her Adirondacks summer camp.
4. Liars by Sarah Manguso (Hogarth: $28) An exploration of a marriage that’s falling apart.
5. Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (Random House: $30) A social satire on the wild legacy of trauma and inheritance.
6. The Women by Kristin Hannah (St. Martin’s Press: $30) An intimate portrait of coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided.
7. The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl (Random House: $29) A tale of self-discovery with plenty of food, fashion and art.
8. The Book of Elsewhere by China Mieville and Keanu Reeves (Del Rey: $30) An immortal warrior journeys through an alternative world to understand his immortality.
9. All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker (Crown: $30) Two youths — a one-eyed boy and a beekeeper girl — find friendship and a lifelong bond.
10. Sandwich by Catherine Newman (Harper: $27) A hilarious story of a family summer vacation full of secrets, lunch and learning to let go.
…
Hardcover nonfiction
1. The Creative Act by Rick Rubin (Penguin Press: $32) The music producer’s guidance on how to be a creative person.
2. Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum (Doubleday: $27) A succinct vision of what an autocratic state looks like, not run by one bad man but nefarious, powerful networks.
3. The Friday Afternoon Club by Griffin Dunne (Penguin Press: $30) The actor-director’s memoir of growing up in Hollywood and Manhattan.
4. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt (Penguin Press: $30) An investigation into the collapse of youth mental health.
5. The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson (Crown: $35) An exploration of the pivotal five months between Abraham Lincoln’s election and the start of the Civil War.
6. Atomic Habits by James Clear (Avery: $27) An inspiring and pragmatic roadmap to success.
7. All in the Family by Fred C. Trump III (Gallery Books: $30) A memoir from former President Trump’s nephew.
8. An Unfinished Love Story by Doris Kearns Goodwin (Simon & Schuster: $35) The historian crafts a work of biography, memoir and history.
9. JFK Jr. by RoseMarie Terenzio and Liz McNeil (Gallery Books: $31) The inner-workings of John F. Kennedy Jr. and his legacy.
10. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi (Random House: $27) A neurosurgeon’s memoir after his terminal cancer diagnosis at age 36.
…
Paperback fiction
1. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (Vintage: $19)
2. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas (Bloomsbury: $19)
3. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (Europa Editions: $17)
4. Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez (Forever: $18)
5. This Summer Will Be Different by Carlene Fortune (Berkley: $19)
6. Trust by Hernan Diaz (Riverhead Books: $17)
7. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (Harper Perennial Modern Classics: $18)
8. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas (Bloomsbury Publishing: $19)
9. The Idiot by Elif Batuman (Penguin: $18)
10. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (Vintage: $17)
…
Paperback nonfiction
1. The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan (Knopf: $35)
2. The Art Thief by Michael Finkel (Vintage: $18)
3. All About Love by bell hooks (Morrow: $17)
4. The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi (Metropolitan Books: $20)
5. Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance (Harper: $19)
6. The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz (Amber-Allen: $13)
7. Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton (Harper Perennial: $19)
8. The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (Vintage: $17)
9. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle (New World Library: $17)
10. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk (Penguin: $19)
More to Read
Sign up for our Book Club newsletter
Get the latest news, events and more from the Los Angeles Times Book Club, and help us get L.A. reading and talking.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.