The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending October 23

The top 10 sales lists recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.

AUCKLAND

1 Nothing But The Truth by Stuart Grieve KC (Allen & Unwin, $45) 

Number one for the second week in a row, Nothing But The Truth is an insight into some of New Zealand's most fascinating court cases.

2 Dirty Work: The Taxpayers’ Union and New Zealand’s Hard Right by Nicky Hager (Potton & Burton, $35)

Twinning with two, below. Read/listen/watch Toby Manhire's interview with Hager, here.

3 Partita by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber & Faber, $38) 

Kingsolver's majestic follow up to Demon Copperhead.

4 The Starving Bride by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka Press, $38) 

Freshly minted Arts Laureate Catherine Chidgey tackles the age of Ozempic in this new novel set in Blackpool and drawing from a very real carnival attraction. Read Noelle McCarthy's interview with Chidgey, here.

5 In the Room: An Insider's Account of the Jacinda Ardern Government by Andrew Campbell ($38, Allen & Unwin)

Absolutely fascinating insight into the events described int his book can be found here, in Toby Manhire's interview with the author.

6 May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry (Granta, $35)

"I gobbled the book up in a flash," says Jack from Unity Books. Perry's terrific historical novel is the dark horse of this year's Booker Prize shortlist.

7 London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe (Picador UK, $40) 

Can't keep London Falling down for long.

8 East of Eden by John Steinbeck (Penguin Random House, $32) 

And here we have the refreshed interest in the classic American novel behind one of the year's biggest TV hits starring Florence Pugh and Dunedin.

9 Fruit Fly by Josh Silver (Oneworld, $37)

A sensational book destined to be a TV series by A24. Silver just appeared in Wellington this week and effortlessly charmed over 750 secondary school students into reading.

10 Exit Party by Emily St John Mandel (Picador UK, $38)

The latest from a master novelist. Here's the blurb: "2031. America is at war with itself, but for the first time in weeks there is some hope: the Republic of California has been declared, the curfew in Los Angeles is lifted, and everyone in the city is going to a party. Ari, newly released from prison, arrives with her friend Gloria just as a fragile new era begins. But there are people at the party who shouldn't be there. Something is very wrong . . .

Years later, living a different life in Paris, Ari remains haunted by that night. Whatever happened at the party fractured her sense of reality - and may hold the key to a very different world. Exit Party is Emily St. John Mandel's electrifying new novel about freedom and surveillance, art and survival, love and loss in a broken world."

WELLINGTON

1 In the Room: An Insider's Account of the Jacinda Ardern Government by Andrew Campbell ($38, Allen & Unwin)

2 Dirty Work: The Taxpayers’ Union and New Zealand’s Hard Right by Nicky Hager (Potton & Burton, $35)

3 And How Are Things with You? by Mia Farlane (Makaro Press, $40)

"How Are Things With You is frank, intelligent and often very funny, a novel that understands how hard it can be to answer the simplest questions truthfully," says Chris Reed over on NZ Booklovers.

4 Orsola by Linda Martelletti (Copy Press, $32)

A new novel spruiked by Emily Perkins on the cover is one to pay attention to! Here's the blurb: "Orsola is a young girl growing up at the foot of the Italian Alps in the peace following the First World War. She is satisfied with her simple life of tending to her family and roaming mountain meadows to pick alpine daisies.

But as she grows older, the world around her becomes more complicated and the search for her prized flowers becomes a search for something more. By chance, she forms a life-changing friendship with glamorous Claretta, a girl from Milan. A wide-eyed Orsola soon discovers that Claretta’s family is well-connected to fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

As dark clouds gather, Orsola tries to make sense of her changing landscape, from her amiable but oppressive village life to the extravagance and extremes of Claretta’s upper-class circle. She wrestles with her duty to her family, to her country, and ultimately to herself."

5 Cost of Living: Union Politics & Economic Crisis in New Zealand 1975-87 by Ross Webb ($50, Otago University Press)

Also the number one issue for voters in 2026.

6 The Starving Bride by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka Press, $38) 

7 Fruit Fly by Josh Silver (Oneworld, $37)

8 Gloria of Greymouth by Sam Ducker Jones (Te Herenga Waka University Press, $65)

An absolutely gorgeous book inside and out. Sam Brooks reviewed it for The Spinoff – here's a snippet: "The book is a blend of memoir, essay, poetry, photography, and even biography through a certain lens, and tells the story of the first nine months of Duckor-Jones moving to the titular church in Greymouth and turning it into a sculpture, a haven, a refuge, and a home. It’s fitting that the book is a blend of genres and forms, because the church itself is the same. Since Duckor-Jones moved there, Gloria the church has had a presence far beyond Greymouth, becoming a social media – and genuine actual media – sensation. Gloria as a phenomenon is only lightly touched upon by Duckor-Jones, though – this is more about telling the story of Gloria from inside the pink walls, rather than outside of it."

9 Partita by Barbara Kingsolver (Faber & Faber, $38)

10 End Times Fascism: And the Fight for the Living World by Astra Taylor & Naomi Klein (Allen Lane, $40)

A roadmap for the end, and how to end it.