Library Best Sellers 2005

It wasn't all The Da Vinci Code in libraries this year. LJ's fiction list shows how responsive librarians are to patron demand. Pop titles pop right away, ride the list up, and most often ride back down to get replaced by the next big thing. But library book clubs and insightful readers' advisory keep many books alive well past their first printings. While John Grisham's The Broker was hot, it barely outpaced not only Dan Brown's Da Vinci but Khaled Hosseini's reading club sensation The Kite Runner. James Patterson ruled this year's borrowed fiction, however, with four titles making the top 20. (The December fiction and nonfiction best circulators are on p. 196.)

Longevity is the name of the game in nonfiction. Word of mouth and topical interest inform the wide range of nonfiction titles that peaked—from celebrity tell-alls and fad diets to serious political works and humor. Many move well in libraries long after bookstores are on to the next season. Two stellar examples are Azar Nafisi's Reading Lolita in Tehran and Lynne Truss's Eats, Shoots & Leaves, both alums of the inaugural best sellers list in June 2004 that thrived well into 2005 in libraries in both paperback and hardcover. Malcolm Gladwell's Blink took the top spot for nonfiction, with 17 turns on the list, many in the top ten. Readers' thirst for more Gladwell brought his 2000 best seller, The Tipping Point, roaring onto the list for eight showings.

1. The Broker John Grisham. Doubleday ISBN 0-385-51045-4. $27.95
2. The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini. Riverhead: Putnam ISBN 1-57322-245-3 $24.95; pap. ISBN 1-59448-000-1. $14.
3. The Da Vinci Code. Dan Brown. Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-50420-9. $24.95.
4. Honeymoon. James Patterson & Maxine Paetro. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-71062-8. $27.95.
5. London Bridges James Patterson Little, Brown ISBN 0-316-71059-8 $27.95.
6. The Mermaid Chair Sue Monk Kidd. Viking ISBN 0-670-03394-4 $24.95.
7. True Believer Nicholas Sparks Warner ISBN 0-446-53243-6 $24.95.
8. Northern Lights. Nora Roberts. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15208-3. $23.95.
9. 4th of July.James Patterson & Maxine Maetro. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-71060-1. $27.95.
10. Trace. Patricia Cornwell. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15219-9. $26.95.
11. The Lifeguard. James Patterson & Andrew Gross. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-05785-1. $26.95.
12. Eleven on Top. Janet Evanovich. St. Martin's. ISBN 0-312-30626-1. $26.95.
13. Echoes. Danielle Steel. Delacorte. ISBN 0-385-33634-9. $27.
14. No Place Like Home. Mary Higgins Clark. S. & S. ISBN 0-7432-6489-4. $25.95.
15. Two Dollar Bill. Stuart Woods. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15251-2. $25.95.
16. “R” Is for Ricochet. Sue Grafton. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15228-8. $26.95.
17. Hour Game. David Baldacci. Warner. ISBN 0-446-53108-1. $26.95.
18. White Hot. Sandra Brown. S. & S. ISBN 0-7432-4553-9. $25.95.
19. Girls in Pants. Ann Brashares. Delacorte. ISBN 0-385-72935-9. $16.95.
20. Impossible. Danielle Steel. Delacorte. ISBN 0-385-33826-0. $27.

1. Blink.Malcolm Gladwell. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-17232-4. $25.95.
2. French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure. Mireille Guiliano. Knopf. ISBN 1-4000-4212-7. $22.
3. Collapse: How Societies Choose To Fail or Succeed. Jared Diamond. Viking. ISBN 0-670-03337-5. $29.95.
4. Your Best Life Now: 7 Steps to Living at Your Full Potential. Joel Osteen. Warner Faith. ISBN 0-446-53275-4. $19.99.
5. My Life. Bill Clinton. Knopf. ISBN 0-375-41457-6. $35.
6. Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books.Azar Nafisi. Random. ISBN 0-375-50490-7. $23.95.
7. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (the Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction. Jon Stewart & others. Warner. ISBN 0-446-53268-1. $24.95.
8. My Life So Far.Jane Fonda. Random. ISBN 0-375-50710-8. $26.95.
9. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. Thomas L. Friedman. Farrar. ISBN 0-374-29288-4. $27.50.
10. The South Beach Diet. Arthur Agatston, M.D. Rodale. ISBN 1-57954-646-3. $24.95.
11. Eats, Shoots & Leaves. Lynne Truss. Gotham. ISBN 1-59420-087-6. $17.50.
12. The 3-Hour Diet: How Low-Carb Diets Make You Fat and Timing Makes You Thin. Jorge Cruise. HarperResource: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-079229-9. $24.95.
13. A Paper Life. Tatum O'Neal. HarperEntertainment: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-054097-4. $24.95.
14. Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything. Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner. Morrow. ISBN 0-06-073132-X. $25.95.
15. The Tipping Point. Malcolm Gladwell. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-31696-2. $24.95.
16. The Perricone Promise: Look Younger, Live Longer in Three Easy Steps. Nicholas Perricone. Warner. ISBN 0-446-50016-X. $27.95.
17. He's Just Not That into You: The No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys. Greg Behrendt & Liz Tuccillo. Simon Spotlight Entertainment. ISBN 0-689-87474-X. $19.95.
18. 1776. David McCullough. S. & S. ISBN 0-7432-2671-2. $32.
19. Bob Greene's Total Body Makeover. Bob Greene. S. & S. ISBN 0-7432-5405-8. $25.
20. When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? George Carlin. Hyperion. ISBN 1-4013-0134-7. $23.95.