Complete book coverage for Dec. 27, 2009
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Bloomsbury Group’s new Ex Libris line features Wolf Mankowitz’s wondrous ‘A Kid for Two Farthings.’
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Rebecca Skloot, ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’; Elif Batuman, ‘The Possessed’; Sam Lipsyte, ‘The Ask’; Judith Shulevitz, ‘The Sabbath World.’
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Joe Sacco’s “Footnotes in Gaza” is not a sequel to his 1996 book “ Palestine,” although it’s tempting to read it as such.
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Several women tell the strained story of the author’s alter ego, who seems more an absence than a character.
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Fiction Weeks on list1.The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95) The lives of a maid, a cook and a college graduate become intertwined as they change a Mississippi town. 29 2.U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton (Putnam: $27.95) PI Kinsey Millhone investigates the 20-year-old case of the mysterious disappearance of a 4-year-old girl.2 3.Too Much Happiness by Alice Munro (Knopf : $25.95) The short story master explores women and their relationships in 10 new stories. 4 4.The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver (Harper: $26.99) A writer’s escapades encompassing 1930s Mexican artist communities and Cold War America. 65.Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel ( Henry Holt: $27) The rise of Henry VIII’s advisor Thomas Cromwell.76.The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (Doubleday: $25.99) Harvard professor Robert Langdon uses his symbology skills to find a missing Freemason in Washington, D.C. 147.Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days by Jeff Kinney (Amulet: $13.95) Greg desires to spend summer vacation indoors despite his mother’s wishes for outdoor family fun.108.Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown: $19.99) Bella must choose between her lover and a friend, between life and death. 689.I, Alex Cross by James Patterson (Little, Brown: $27.99) Detective Alex Cross infiltrates a secret society while tracking down the killer of a close relative.5 10.Nine Dragons by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown : $27.99) An LAPD detective travels to Hong Kong to solve the murder of a Chinese immigrant. 9 11.Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton (Harper: $27.99) A swashbuckling pirate and his crew attempt to commandeer a Spanish ship carrying a golden treasure.3 12.The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson (Knopf: $25.95) A hacker implicated in two murders must revisit her past to prove her innocence. 18 13.Hollywood Moon by Joseph Wambaugh (Little, Brown: $26.99) The third Hollywood station novel follows the daily lives of cops on the trail of a team of identity thieves.3 14.Under the Dome by Stephen King (Scribner: $35) A ragtag cast of characters fight to survive in their small Maine town inexplicably surrounded by an invisible force field. 5 15.Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls (Scribner: $26) The story of a hard-knock gal who raised horses and survived floods and the Depression. 4Nonfiction 1.Open by Andre Agassi (Knopf: $28.95) The tennis star’s memoir and personal odyssey of a lost childhood, drug use and comebacks.6 2.What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown: $27.99) A collection of the author’s writings of everyday and extraordinary people. 8 3.Stones Into Schools by Greg Mortenson (Viking : $26.95) The author’s continued struggle to establish schools for girls in Afghanistan in this sequel to “Three Cups of Tea.”2 4.Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown: $27.99) An exploration of the background of high achievers. 525.Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom (Hyperion: $23.99) Albom’s observations of a rabbi and a pastor on an eight-year journey of faith. 126.Lit by Mary Karr (Harper: $25.99) The author’s descent into alcoholism and recovery. 57.Guinness World Records 2010 by Guinness World Records (Guinness: $28.95) Bizarre and unfathomable feats from the first decade of the 21st century. 48.Going Rogue by Sarah Palin (HarperCollins: $28.99) A memoir of the 2008 vice presidential nominee and former Alaska governor.49.SuperFreakonomics by Steven D.
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Fiction 1. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson ($14.95) 2.
