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Bedside Table

Farm life stories appeal to urban, rural, liberal, conservative

Justice Marshall
Feb 7th, 2012

Early in this memoir,  Brian Brett divulges that he spent his first 20 years "middle-sexed" due to an undiagnosed glandular disorder. While this facet of his formative experience was undoubtedly painful and challenging, he speaks of it as a gift.

As the book continues to unfold in the context of his most recent 18 years as an organic farmer on Salt Spring Island, his stories reflect this same inherent perspective: challenges in a life well-lived are also full of gifts.

BookNet Canada's November bestseller lists

Anja Konjicanin
Dec 9th, 2011

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Put your favourite reading glasses on – a fresh batch of BookNet Canada's  bestsellers has arrived. They're top drawer:

Top 10 Fiction

"The Next Always" by Nora Roberts
"11/22/63" by Stephen King
"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
"Half-Blood Blues" by Esi Edugyan
"The Litigators" by John Grisham
"Sing You Home" by Jodi Picoult
"Secrets to the Grave" by Tami Hoag
"The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" by Stieg Larsson
"Crescent Dawn" by Clive Cussler
"The Cat's Table" by Michael Ondaatje

Top 10 Non-Fiction

"Steve Jobs" by Walter Isaacson
"Ripley's Believe It or Not! Strikingly True" by Geoff Tibballs
"Guinness Book of World Records 2012" published by Canadian Manda Group
"The Wealthy Barber Returns" by David Chilton
"Cornered" by Ron M. Maclean
"Seriously... I'm Kidding" by Ellen DeGeneres
"Falling Backwards" by Jann Arden
"The Book of Awesome" by Neil Pasricha
"Heaven Is for Real" by Todd Burpo

Top 10 Juvenile

‘Living the Life of your Dreams’ says how you can have it all

Mindy Chapman
Dec 7th, 2011

Marilyn Tam

Living the Life of Your Dreams by Marilyn Tam, a former fortune 500 CEO and former Nike executive, shares insights into a questions that many people ask themselves: how to achieve success, without losing sight of the important things in life? 

In a concise 37 pages, Tam explains how achieving success can be a fulfilling process, rather than a stressful one. 

Born to a traditional Chinese family in Hong Kong, Tam was the sole daughter in a family that prized sons. She endured many hardships and became an inspiring model of success, rising to executive chair positions at Nike, Inc., Reebok, and Aveda Corp. She explains how having purpose and balance in your life is the key to obtaining both success and leisure.

Tam guides us through discovering and harnessing our inner potential, then utilizing it to lead you where you want to go. She calls this "Life’s Compass". While life often throws unpredictable curveballs, Tam advises that people with a strong sense of this compass will always know where they want to go in life. 

BookNet Canada's October bestseller lists

Anja Konjicanin
Nov 4th, 2011

Photo sourced from squidoo.com

Aren't books just great? If you're not going to enter our Black Rock Resort Contest (which we fully believe you should) and can't afford to book even the most affordable of vacations, here's a list of good reads to help you escape the city hubbub and grey weather gloom.

Here are BookNet Canada's bestsellers for October.

Top 10 Fiction

"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
"The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" by Stieg Larsson
"The Cat's Table" by Michael Ondaatje
"Sing You Home" by Jodi Picoult
"The Best of Me" by Nicholas Sparks
"The Impossible Dead" by Ian Rankin
"The Fifth Witness" by Michael Connelly
"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
"Before I Go to Sleep" by S. J. Watson
"Bad Blood" by John Sandford

Top 10 Non-Fiction

"Steve Jobs" by Walter Isaacson
"The Wealthy Barber Returns" by David Chilton

BookNet Canada's August bestseller lists

Staff Reporter
Sep 9th, 2011

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

This fall, everyone is picking up a book, and with good cause: The Vancouver International Writers Festival is coming up in October, so let's all help promote Canadian and international writers. Here are BookNet Canada's bestsellers for August.

Top 10 Fiction

"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
"The Confession" by John Grisham
"The Help Movie Tie-in Edition" by Kathryn Stockett
"Room" by Emma Donoghue
"Private" by James Patterson
"One Day" by David Nicholls
"Safe Haven" by Nicholas Sparks
"Left Neglected" by Lisa Genova
"A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
"The Distant Hours" by Kate Morton

Top 10 Non-Fiction

"A Stolen Life" by Jaycee Dugard
"Heaven Is for Real" by Todd Burpo
"The Book of Awesome" by Neil Pasricha
"The Wealthy Barber Returns" by David Chilton
"Go the F* k to Sleep" by Adam Mansbach
"Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
"Quinoa 365" by Patricia Green
"The 17 Day Diet" by Mike Moreno

BookNet Canada's July bestseller lists

Anja Konjicanin
Aug 11th, 2011

Crack open a good book with BookNet Canada's bestseller lists for July:

Fiction

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin
Room by Emma Donoghue
The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
One Day by David Nicholls
The Postcard Killers by James Patterson
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton 
The Devil Colony by James Rollins

BookNet Canada's bestselling books: May

Anja Konjicanin
Jun 14th, 2011

Photo courtesy of Anja Konjicanin

Scribblers and scrawlers, add these books to your shelves. Here are BookNet Canada's lists of readers' favourite page turners for May. Can you tell which authors are still hanging strong from last month's bestsellers list?
Canadian authors highlighted:

Top 10 Fiction
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris
10th Anniversary by James Patterson
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
Those in Peril by Wilbur Smith
The 9th Judgment by James Patterson
The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel
Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner
Alone in the Classroom by Elizabeth Hay

Top 10 Non-Fiction
From This Moment On by Shania Twain
Does the Noise in My Head Bother You? by Steven Tyler
The Dukan Diet by Pierre Dukan
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Life by Keith Richards
The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha

BookNet Canada's April bestseller lists

Anja Konjicanin
May 5th, 2011

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

A new month brings a new set of popular reads. Here are BookNet Canada's bestseller lists for April. Canadian authors are highlighted.

Top 10 Fiction
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Search by Nora Roberts
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel
The 9th Judgment by James Patterson
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
44 Charles Street by Danielle Steel
The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly
Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Top 10 Non-Fiction
Bossypants by Tina Fey
The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha
The 17 Day Diet by Mike Moreno
Have a Little Faith by Mitch Albom
Heaven Is for Real by Todd Burpo
A New Kind of Monster by Timothy Appleby
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Craft Rubin
The Supercharged Hormone Diet by Natasha Turner

BC Book Prize winners

Press Release
Apr 22nd, 2011

The West Coast Book Prize Society has announced the names of the winners of the 27th annual BC Book Prizes:

ETHEL WILSON FICTION PRIZE Supported by Friesens and Webcom
Gurjinder Basran, Everything Was Good-Bye (Mother Tongue Publishing)

BookNet Canada's March Bestseller Lists

Anja Konjicanin
Apr 18th, 2011

Egyptian boys reading, Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Here are BookNet Canada's bestseller lists for March. Canadian authors are listed in boldface.

Top 10 Fiction
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Private by James Patterson
The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
The Postmistress by Sarah Blake
Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin

Top 10 Non-Fiction
The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha
The 17 Day Diet by Mike Moreno
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Craft Rubin
Quinoa 365 by Patricia Green
Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook by Weight Watchers
A Mountain of Crumbs by Elena Gorokhova
Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz
Little Princes Intl by Conor Grennan
The Supercharged Hormone Diet by Natasha Turner
What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell

Top 10 Juvenile
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

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