THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW 23THE LYING LIFE OF ADULTS,by Elena Ferrante. Translat-
ed by Ann Goldstein. (Europa, $26.)The author of the
extraordinary Neapolitan quartet returns after five
years to prove her gift is intact. In this novel set in
1990s Naples, an adolescent girl bonds with her
blunt, larger-than-life aunt, who is estranged from
the family. Once again, Ferrante captures the psy-
chology of young people with unflinching honesty.
LIFE OF A KLANSMAN:A Family History in White
Supremacy,by Edward Ball. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux,
$28.)Ball, who for a previous book tracked down
descendants of slaves owned by his father’s side of
the family, here investigates a militantly racist
ancestor on his mother’s side, reminding us that this
ugly family history is also that of our country.
SISTERS IN HATE:American Women on the Front
Lines of White Nationalism,by Seyward Darby.
(Little, Brown, $28.)Darby, a journalist, spent several
years among women drawn to white supremacy.
Her book, a closely observed portrait of three such
women, avoids reductive theories to show the
movement in its disturbing diversity.THE SIRENS OF MARS:Searching for Life on An-
other World,by Sarah Stewart Johnson. (Crown,
$28.99.)Johnson, a Georgetown planetary scientist,
oscillates between a history of Mars science and an
account of her own journey seeking sparks of life in
the immensity. In prose that swirls with lyrical
wonder, she recalls formative moments in her life
and career.
THE SMALLEST LIGHTS IN THE UNIVERSE:A Memoir,
by Sara Seager. (Crown, $28.)Is there life on other
planets? Is there life after the death of a spouse? In
a memoir that manages to be as informative as it is
moving, an astrophysicist who was widowed young,
and whose career has centered on the search for
another Earth, tackles big questions.
THE END OF EVERYTHING:(Astrophysically Speak-
ing),by Katie Mack. (Scribner, $26.)Many books have
been written about the creation of the universe 13.8
billion years ago. But Mack, a theoretical cosmolo-
gist, is interested in how it all ends. She guides us
along a cosmic timeline studded with scientific
esoterica and mystery.FIFTY WORDS FOR RAIN,by Asha Lemmie. (Dutton,
$26.)In Kyoto in 1948, a mother makes her daugh-
ter promise to be obedient and then abandons her
with grandparents she doesn’t know. Lemmie’s
sweeping novel tells the story of how this resource-
ful survivor spends the next 20 years breaking her
promise to her mother again and again.
MEMORIAL DRIVE:A Daughter’s Memoir,by Natasha
Trethewey. (Ecco, $27.99.)At the center of
Trethewey’s memoir is the wrenching story of her
mother’s murder, by her ex-husband, in 1985. But
this haunting elegy by the Pulitzer Prize-winning
poet is also a work of great beauty and tenderness,
an atmospheric evocation of innocence and loss.
MUDDY MATTERHORN:Poems 2009-2019,by
Heather McHugh. (Copper Canyon, paper, $17.)In
creating a kind of word turbulence and refusing any
fixed certainties (“my calling’s / doubt”), McHugh
invites us to question what we think we know.Editors’ Choice/ Staff Picks From the Book Review
The full reviews of these and other recent books
are online: nytimes.com/booksThe New York Times best sellers are compiled and archived by the best-sellers-lists desk of the New York Times news department, and are separate from the editorial, culture, advertising and business sides of The New York Times Company. Rankings
reflect unit sales reported on a confidential basis by vendors offering a wide range of general interest titles published in the United States. ONLINE: For complete lists and a full explanation of our methodology, visit http://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers.
THIS
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(^) THICK AS THIEVES, by Sandra Brown. (Grand Central) Arden Maxwell returns home to 1
uncover the truth about her father’s involvement in a heist that went wrong 20 years ago.
2
(^) SQUEEZE ME, by Carl Hiaasen. (Knopf) A dead dowager, hungry pythons and occupants 1
of the winter White House shake up the Palm Beach charity ball season.
3
(^4) THE VANISHING HALF, by Brit Bennett. (Riverhead) The lives of twin sisters who run away 13
from a Southern Black community at age 16 diverge as one returns and the other takes
on a different racial identity but their fates intertwine.
4
(^2) WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING, by Delia Owens. (Putnam) In a quiet town on the North 103
Carolina coast in 1969, a young woman who survived alone in the marsh becomes a
murder suspect.
5
(^) EMERALD BLAZE, by Ilona Andrews. (Avon) The latest installment in the Hidden Legacy 1
series. Catalina Baylor overcomes heartbreak to team up with Alessandro Sagredo.
6
(^5) THE GUEST LIST, by Lucy Foley. (Morrow) A wedding between a TV star and a magazine 13
publisher on an island off the coast of Ireland turns deadly.
7
(^) SOMEONE TO ROMANCE, by Mary Balogh. (Berkley) The seventh book in the Westcott 1
series. Gabriel Thorne’s intention to wed Lady Jessica Archer misses its mark at first.
8
(^1) ROYAL, by Danielle Steel. (Delacorte) In 1943, the 17-year-old Princess Charlotte 2
assumes a new identity in the country and falls in love.
9
(^8) AMERICAN DIRT, by Jeanine Cummins. (Flatiron) A bookseller flees Mexico for the United 32
States with her son while pursued by the head of a drug cartel.
10
(^6) THEN SHE WAS GONE, by Lisa Jewell. (Atria) Ten years after her daughter disappears, a 9
woman tries to get her life in order but remains haunted by unanswered questions.
1
(^) HIS TRUTH IS MARCHING ON, by Jon Meacham. (Random House) The Pulitzer Prize- 1
winning biographer creates a portrait of Representative John Lewis, the late civil rights
leader and congressman for Georgia’s Fifth Congressional District.
2
(^) HOAX, by Brian Stelter. (One Signal/Atria) The CNN anchor examines the inner workings 1
of Fox News and its relationship with President Trump.
3
(^3) CASTE, by Isabel Wilkerson. (Random House) The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist 4
reveals a rigid hierarchy in America today.
4
(^1) UNTAMED, by Glennon Doyle. (Dial) The activist and public speaker describes her journey 25
of listening to her inner voice.
5
(^2) LIVE FREE OR DIE, by Sean Hannity. (Threshold Editions) The Fox News host offers his 4
assessment on what is at stake in the 2020 election.
6
(^5) TOO MUCH AND NEVER ENOUGH, by Mary L. Trump. (Simon & Schuster) The clinical 7
psychologist gives her assessment of events and patterns inside her family and how they
shaped President Trump.
7
(^7) WHITE FRAGILITY, by Robin DiAngelo. (Beacon Press) Historical and cultural analyses on 23
what causes defensive moves by white people and how this inhibits cross-racial dialogue.
8
(^6) HOW TO BE AN ANTIRACIST, by Ibram X. Kendi. (One World) A primer for creating a more 18
just and equitable society through identifying and opposing racism.
9
(^) BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME, by Ta-Nehisi Coates. (Spiegel & Grau) A meditation on 70
race in America as well as a personal story, framed as a letter to the author’s teenage son.
10
(^12) EDUCATED, by Tara Westover. (Random House) The daughter of survivalists, who is kept 125
out of school, educates herself enough to leave home for university.
Fiction Nonfiction
COMBINED PRINT AND E-BOOK BEST SELLERS
SALES PERIOD OF AUGUST 23-29
Best Sellers
For the complete best-seller lists, visit
nytimes.com/books/best-sellers