Give it up for the superb local books that stared down the big internationals in 2021.
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. Today’s charts cover the whole of 2021, up until the end of Sunday, December 19.
AUCKLAND
1 Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (Faber & Faber, $37)
2 Aroha: Māori Wisdom for a Contented Life Lived in Harmony with our Planet by Hinemoa Elder (Penguin, $30)
3 The Mirror Book by Charlotte Grimshaw (Vintage, $38)
4 Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love by Yotam Ottolenghi and Noor Murad (Ebury Press, $55)
5 Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $33)
6 Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (Simon & Schuster, $35)
7 The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (Canongate, $33)
8 Imagining Decolonisation by Rebecca Kiddle, Biana Elkington, Moana Jackson, Ocean Ripeka Mercier, Mike Ross, Jennie Smeaton and Amanda Thomas (Bridget Williams Books, $15)
9 Auē by Becky Manawatu (Makaro Press, $35)
10 Shifting Grounds: Deep Histories of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland by Lucy Mackintosh (Bridget Williams Books, $60)
AUCKLAND CHILDREN’S
1 In Our Own Backyard by Anne Kayes (Bateman, $22, 13+)
2 Sapiens: A Graphic History, Volume 1, The Birth of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari and David Vandermeulen, and illustrator Daniel Casanave (Jonathon Cape, $48, 11+)
3 The Noisy Board Book by Soledad Bravi (Gecko, $25, 0-3)
4 Big Ideas for Curious Minds: An Introduction to Philosophy by Alain de Botton and Anna Doherty (Affirm Press, $40, 8+)
5 Māui and Other Legends by Peter Gossage (Penguin NZ, $40, 3+)
6 Kuwi & Friends Māori Picture Dictionary by Kat Merewether & Pania Papa (Illustrated Publishing, $35, 3+)
7 Atua: Māori Gods & Heroes by Gavin Bishop (Puffin, $40, all ages)
8 Skunk & Badger by Amy Timberlake & Jon Klassen (Allen & Unwin, $26, 4+)
9 A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos (Text Publishing, $26, 11+)
10 Lizard’s Tale by Weng Wai Chan (Text Publishing $21, 9-13)
WELLINGTON
1 Imagining Decolonisation by Rebecca Kiddle, Bianca Elkington, Moana Jackson, Ocean Ripeka Mercier, Mike Ross, Jennie Smeaton and Amanda Thomas (Bridget Williams Books, $15)
2 Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney (Faber, $33)
3 Aroha: Māori Wisdom for a Contented Life Lived in Harmony with our Planet by Hinemoa Elder (Penguin, $30)
4 Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (Faber & Faber, $37)
5 Shuggie Bain by Stuart Douglas (Picador, $20)
6 Māori Philosophy: Indigenous Thinking From Aotearoa by Georgina Stewart (Bloomsbury, $39)
7 Auē by Becky Manawatu (Mākaro Press, $35)
8 Helen Kelly: Her Life by Rebecca Macfie (Awa Press, $50)
9 Māori Made Easy: For Everyday Learners of the Māori Language by Scotty Morrison (Raupo, $38)
10 The Mirror Book by Charlotte Grimshaw (Vintage, $38)
WELLINGTON CHILDREN’S
1 The Adventures of Mittens: Wellington’s Famous Purr-sonality by Silvio Bruinsma, illustrated by Phoebe Morris (Penguin, $20, 3+)
2 The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charles Macksey (Ebury Press, $40, all ages)
3 Six of Crows #1: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (Hodder, $20, 13+)
4 Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston (St Martin’s Griffin, $33, 16+)
5 Kuwi & Friends Māori Picture Dictionary by Kat Merewether & Pania Papa (Illustrated Publishing, $35, 4+)
6 Atua: Māori Gods & Heroes by Gavin Bishop (Puffin, $40, all ages)
7 They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera (Simon & Schuster, $21, 14+)
8 Mihi by Gavin Bishop (Gecko Press, $18, all ages)
9 These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong (Hodder & Stoughton, $20, 16+)
10 How Do I Feel? A Dictionary of Emotions for Children by Rebekah Lipp & Craig Phillips (Wildling Books, $40, 5+)