Book Fairs & Bestsellers
Last week two of the school libraries where I work held their annual book fair. An exciting time. I still remember some of the books I picked up at the book fairs of my youth. Shout out to the Hardy Boys, wherever you are.
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While working the register and providing help to parents and students, I enjoyed learning which books kids asked for. The big winners of the week? Both “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” books (and the new Do-It-Yourself Book), Pinkalicious, and Star Wars: Clone Wars. No judgments here, I’m just giving you the facts.
But that’s just where I work. Let’s take a look at the books that are flying off shelves nationwide:
(Click here to view the New York Times lists in their entirety)
Jamie Lee Curtis hits the top spot as celebrity author dislikers let out a collective “B.A.C.A. Off!“. Gallop (100 Scope Notes review) takes the #2 slot as its sequel, “Swing”, is released. “Bats at the Library”, sequel of the solid “Bats at the Beach” comes in at #3. “Tea for Ruby”, a title I’m not familiar with – oh, wait, it’s written by Sarah Furguson (A.K.A. Dutchess of York) – is #5. Add that to Lynne Cheney’s “We the People” and we’ve got a 3 for 5 celebrity author situation on our hands. Man, I need to stick with reporting the IndieBound Bestsellers.
Alright, this is more like it. The well received “Graveyard Book” resides in the top spot. Both Wimpy Kid installments make an appearance. “The 39 Clues” kickoff, “Maze of Bones” hits #3. The very cool “The Way We Work” breaks the top five in its first week of release – good to see.
“The Book Thief” has shown real staying power as it remains in the top spot. “Despereaux” comes in at number two with the movie release looming. “Benedict” hits #3, which is a nice thing thing to have happen to a good book. The big news of this list is Jon Scieszka’s “Knucklehead” coming in at #5 in its first week. I’m reading this one right now, and I couldn’t be more pleased to see it on this list – I’ll be reviewing it soon.
(Top Image: ‘Hanging books‘
www.flickr.com/photos/19614198@N00/2473955087)
Filed under: News
About Travis Jonker
Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.
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I am a bookseller who used to supply and man a lot of private school book fairs. I really enjoyed watching and helping children select their books. I had quite a variety, designed to appeal to everyone from preschool to adult, and I had an extensive backlist, including a lot of nonfiction. There definitely was something for everyone, but I did stay away from most licensed (media character inspired) and books in series such as Goosebumps that were available everywhere. For those, they did not need me.
Observing these book fairs had highs and lows. One of the highs was seeing students eagerly recommending their favorite books to each other. One of the lows was seeing the power struggles that occurred between parent and child when they did not agree on book choices. I can understand a parent objecting to a book that’s not age appropriate or that promotes values a parent is not happy with. But I have seen parents keep a child from buying nonfiction books on science and nature topics in order to make them buy a “real book” – a story. I have shared some of these experiences and some hints for parents who go to their children’s book fairs on my recent blog at http://barbsbooks.wordpress.com/