The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.
AUCKLAND
1 Understanding Te Tiriti by Roimata Smail (Wai Ako Press, $25)
The little book that made big news.
2 Orbital by Samantha Harvey (Jonathan Cape, $26)
“I wanted to write about our human occupation of low earth orbit for the last quarter of a century – not as sci-fi but as realism. Could I evoke the beauty of that vantage point with the care of a nature writer? Could I write about amazement? Could I pull off a sort of space pastoral? These were the challenges I set myself.” Read more of Samantha Harvey’s interview with The Booker Prizes here.
3 Wind and Truth: The Stormlight Archive Book Five by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz, $40)
Fans have been hanging out for this. No idea what all the fuss is about? Here’s the publisher’s blurb: “The long-awaited explosive climax to the first arc of the Number One New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive. Dalinar Kholin has challenged the evil god Odium to a contest of champions, and the Knights Radiant and the nations of Roshar have a mere ten days to prepare for the worst. The fate of the entire world – and the Cosmere at large – hangs in the balance.”
4 Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $37)
You need to read Reilly on Rooney on The Spinoff, right here.
5 Becoming Tangata Tiriti: Working with Maori, Honouring the Treaty by Avril Bell (Auckland Uni Press, $30)
One of the biggest books of the year, we predict (we’ll see for sure next week when we reveal the biggest sellers of the year).
6 James by Percival Everett (Mantle, $38)
Over 120,000 Good Readers have collectively rated this novel a huge 4.53 stars. Here’s a snippet from Darryl Suite’s thorough review: “I loved this book. As I mentioned before, it took a bit of time for me to feel the full brevity of the story. But then it morphed into something palpable, haunting, and downright unsettling (and there’s a doozy of a revelation waiting for you to discover). The second-half is a heart-pounding experience all the way to its violently cathartic finish.”
7 Atua Wahine: The Ancient Wisdom of Māori Goddesses by Hana Tapiata (Harper Collins, $37)
We’re predicting that come December 25 this book will emerge from wrapping paper up and down the country.
8 Kataraina by Becky Manawatu (Mākaro Press, $37)
The powerful sequel to Auē and one of the best novels of 2024 according to this list.
9 All Fours by Miranda July (Canongate, $37)
The horny menopause novel you didn’t know you needed.
10 Odyssey by Stephen Fry (Michael Joseph, $40)
Will Odysseus ever get back to Ithaca?
WELLINGTON
1 Orbital by Samantha Harvey (Jonathan Cape, $26)
2 Wind and Truth: The Stormlight Archive Book Five by Brandon Sanderson (Gollancz, $40)
3 Understanding Te Tiriti by Roimata Smail (Wai Ako Press, $25)
4 Wild Wellington: Nga Taonga Taiao: A Guide to the Wildlife & Wild Places of Te Whanganui-a-tara by Michael Szabo (Te Papa Press, $45)
If you want to have a peek inside then try this handy link.
5 James by Percival Everett (Mantle, $38)
6 Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Faber, $45 hardback, $37 paperback)
7 New Stories by Owen Marshall (Penguin, $38)
A new collection from one of the best short story writers in the country. Here’s the blurb: “In this latest, stunning collection of short stories by acclaimed writer Owen Marshall, people teeter on the brink of experience. From murder to an affair, to a promotion or a breakdown, the array of vivid characters aren’t always aware of what they encounter, not sure whether they are being given an opportunity, a challenge, a temptation, a lesson, or just another day to get through.
Meanwhile, feelings of fear, lust, curiosity and frustration simmer beneath the surface. Will the people grasp what life throws at them?”
8 All Fours by Miranda July (Canongate, $37)
9 There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak (Viking Penguin, $37)
“There is many a meditation on water throughout the novel, but Zaleekhah’s chapters anchor the author’s preoccupation as we follow the character down fascinating rabbit holes like the lost rivers of London — diverted, destroyed or straight-jacketed in concrete. Some of the novel’s best passages explores this curiosity about the materiality of water and what our species has done with it.” So writes Stephen Markley in the NY Times.
10 The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury, $17)
An exquisitely produced Christmas short story by the author of Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Perfect for the Susanna Clarke fan in your life.