An Elf, Beasts, among 50 top-selling books Dec. 1-8, 2016

SHARE An Elf, Beasts, among 50 top-selling books Dec. 1-8, 2016
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USA TODAY’s Best-Selling Books list is based on sales last week at independent and chain bookstores, mass merchandisers and online retailers, via hardcover, paperback and e-book during the past week. Sales from each format are combined to determine its rank. The description of a title refers to the version selling the most copies in a particular week (the parenthetical refers to the book’s rank the previous week).

The description of a title and the publisher name refers to the version selling the most copies in a particular week — hardcover (H), paperback (P) and e-book (E).

Key: (F) — Fiction; (NF) — Non-fiction

1. (6) The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition by Carol Aebersold, Chanda Bell. Children: Santa relies on elves to find out who has been naughty and who has been nice (F) CCA and B, $29.95.

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2. (2) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay by J.K. Rowling. British magizoologist Newt Scamander brings his case of magical creatures to New York; movie (F) Arthur A. Levine, $24.99.

3. (4) Double Down: Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney. Youth: Greg Heffley and his friend, Rowley, decide to make a scary movie; 11th in series (F) Amulet Books, $13.95.

4. (21) The Magnolia Story by Chip Gaines, Joanna Gaines. Husband-and-wife team behind popular HGTV show Fixer Upper tells the story of their relationship and home-improvement business (NF) Thomas Nelson, $26.99.

5. (9) Killing the Rising Sun by Bill O’Reilly, Martin Dugard. Subtitle: ”How America Vanquished World War II Japan” (NF) Henry Holt and Co., $30.00.

6. (7) The Whistler by John Grisham. In Florida, lawyer Lacy Stoltz investigates a claim that a corrupt judge has gotten rich through a casino built on Native American land (F) Doubleday, $28.95.

7. (22) Two by Two by Nicholas Sparks. Ad man Russell Green finds himself jobless and a single father to a 6-year-old (F) Grand Central Publishing, $13.99.

8. (15) Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One and Two by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, John Tiffany. Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy try to find their place in Hogwarts the way their fathers, Harry and Draco, did before them; eighth in series (F) Scholastic, $29.99.

9. (5) Cross the Line by James Patterson. The murder of the chief of detectives in Washington draws both Alex Cross and his wife, Bree, into the case (F) Little, Brown, $29.00.

10. (New) Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham. Subtitle: ”From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (And Everything in Between)” (NF) Ballantine, $28.00.

11. (8) Night School by Lee Child. It’s 1996 and Jack Reacher and other operatives are enlisted to prevent a terrorist attack and hunt an unknown American who is demanding $100 million (F) Delacorte, $28.99.

12. (12) The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. Psychological thriller about the disappearance of a young married woman (F) Riverhead, $16.00.

13. (3) No Man’s Land by David Baldacci. Army special agent John Puller investigates the murder of his own mother 30 years earlier; fourth in series (F) Grand Central Publishing, $29.00.

14. (1) Turbo Twenty-Three by Janet Evanovich. Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum works undercover at an ice cream factory to find a killer; 23rd in series (F) Bantam, $28.00.

15. (14) Dork Diaries: Tales of a Not-So-Friendly Frenemy by Rachel Renee Russell. Youth: Nikki Maxwell has to face her arch nemesis MacKenzie Hollister in a school exchange program; 11th in series (F) Aladdin, $13.99.

16. (10) Settle for More by Megyn Kelly. Memoir: Fox News host talks about president-elect Donald Trump, former boss Roger Ailes and how she made it big (NF) Harper, $29.99.

17. (26) A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman. A grumpy man finds his solitary world shattered when a young family moves in next door (F) Washington Square Press, $16.00.

18. (23) Cooking for Jeffrey by Ina Garten. Barefoot Contessa’s collection of recipes most often requested by her husband and friends (NF) Clarkson Potter, $35.00.

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19. (39) Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen. Memoir: Rocker opens up about his career and personal life, including struggle with depression (NF) Simon & Schuster, $32.50.

20. (24) Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance. Subtitle: ”A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis” (NF) Harper, $27.99.

21. (63) Shaken by Tim Tebow. Subtitle: ”Discovering Your True Identity in the Midst of Life’s Storms” (NF) WaterBrook Press, $25.00.

22. (13) Give Please A Chance by Bill O’Reilly, James Patterson. Children: Illustrations from different artistsremind readers of the importance of saying ”please” (NF) Jimmy Patterson, $17.99.

23. (43) First 100 Words by Roger Priddy. Children: 100 everyday words for children to learn and build their vocabulary (NF) Priddy Books, $5.99.

24. (27) Guinness World Records 2017 by Guinness World Records. Record-holding figures and feats from around the world (NF) Guinness World Records, $28.95.

25. (36) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling, art by Jim Kay. Youth: Harry continues to learn magic at Hogwarts; second in series; illustrated version (F) Arthur A. Levine, $39.99.

26. (New) Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis by Anne Rice. Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt battles a strange form that has taken control of his soul; 12th in series (F) Knopf, $28.95.

27. (276) Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty. Aussie frenemies Clementine and Erika must cope after a summer barbecue goes terribly wrong (F) Flatiron Books, $12.99.

28. (18) The Wrong Side of Goodbye by Michael Connelly. L.A. private investigator Harry Bosch is working on two cases: searching for the possible heir of a billionaire, and helping the police on a rape investigation (F) Little, Brown, $29.00.

29. (New) The Flame Bearer by Bernard Cornwell. England’s Uhtred of Bebbanburg is determined to keep his enemies at bay; 10th in series (F) Harper, $14.99.

30. (New) The Whole Town’s Talking by Fannie Flagg. Residents of Elmwood Springs, Mo., become concerned about strange events in the local cemetery (F) Random House, $28.00.

31. (41) Pokemon Deluxe Essential Handbook by Scholastic. Subtitle: ”The Need-to-Know Stats and Facts on Over 700 Pokemon” (F) Scholastic, $11.99.

32. (53) Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae. Children: Gerald the giraffe wants nothing more than to dance; board book (F) Cartwheel Books, $6.99.

33. (19) Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult. Ruth Jefferson, an experienced black nurse, is asked by white supremacists not to touch their newborn baby ??” who goes into distress (F) Ballantine, $28.99.

34. (17) Rush Revere and the Presidency by Rush Limbaugh, Kathryn Adams Limbaugh. Children: Rush Revere takes middle-school students back in time to meet first American presidents (F) Threshold Editions, $19.99.

35. (265) Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris. Jack and Grace are a young, successful married couple, but not everything is right with their relationship (F) St. Martin’s Press, $12.99.

36. (42) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling, art by Jim Kay. Youth: The first book in the series about the boy wizard comes in a new edition with more than 100 illustrations by Jim Kay (F) Arthur A. Levine, $39.99.

37. (29) The Hammer of Thor: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard by Rick Riordan. Youth: Magnus Chase and his friends have to get Thor’s hammer out of enemy hands; second in series (F) Disney-Hyperion, $19.99.

38. (54) Harry Potter: Volumes 1-7 by J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPr??. Youth: Contains entire Harry Potter series (F) Arthur A. Levine, $86.93.

39. (35) Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur. Poetry collection that is divided into four chapters that explore four pains (F) Andrews McMeel Publishing, $14.99.

40. (66) How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss. How every Who in Who-ville almost lost Christmas; movie (F) Random House, $14.00.

41. (47) Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeremy McCarter. A companion volume to the smash Broadway musical about Alexander Hamilton, by the show’s creator and star (NF) Grand Central Publishing, $40.00.

42. (25) Our Revolution by Bernie Sanders. Subtitle: ”A Future to Believe In” (NF) St. Martin’s Press, $27.00.

43. (141) Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline. The story of two women separated by generations but united with a common past (F) William Morrow Paperbacks, $10.99.

44. (46) Little Blue Truck’s Christmas by Alice Schertle. Children: Little Blue Truck delivers Christmas trees to his animal friends (F) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $14.99.

45. (58) Polar Express 30th Anniversary Edition by Chris Van Allsburg. Children: Only believers can hear the bell; won the Caldecott Medal (F) Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, $19.99.

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46. (133) Humans of New York: Stories by Brandon Stanton. Follow-up to original HONY, a collection of photographs and stories that capture the people of New York (NF) St. Martin’s Press, $29.99.

47. (32) Thank You for Being Late by Thomas L. Friedman. Subtitle: ”An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations” (NF) Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $28.00.

48. (New) A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. Trouble and coldness descend on a kingdom where the seasons are out of balance; book one in series (F) Bantam, $7.99.

49. (40) Born a Crime by Trevor Noah. Subtitle: ”Stories From a South African Childhood” (NF) Spiegel & Grau, $28.00.

50. (74) Atlas Obscura by Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, Ella Mortan. Subtitle: ”An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders” (NF) Workman, $35.00.

Contributors include:

Amazon.com, Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble.com, Barnes & Noble Inc., Barnes & Noble e-books, BooksAMillion.com, Books-A-Million, Bookland and Books & Co., Costco, Davis-Kidd Booksellers (Nashville, Memphis), Hudson Booksellers, Joseph-Beth Booksellers (Lexington, Ky.; Cincinnati, Charlotte, Cleveland, Pittsburgh), Kobo, Inc., Powell’s Books (Portland, Ore.), Powells.com, R.J. Julia Booksellers (Madison, Conn.), Schuler Books & Music (Grand Rapids, Okemos, Eastwood, Alpine, Mich.), Sony Reader Store, Target, Tattered Cover Book Store (Denver).

An archive of the book list (dating back to Oc. 28, 1993, when the list began)is available at booklist.usatoday.com.

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