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Australian bestsellers in March: Winton tops fiction, Hamilton number two in nonfiction

Tim Winton’s first novel in five years, The Shepherd’s Hut, was the bestselling fiction title in March, after debuting in 11th spot in early March and remaining in the overall top five for the past four weeks.

Several first-time female novelists have books in the March fiction bestsellers chart, led by Heather Morris’ The Tattooist of Auschwitz in second spot, continuing the book’s run of success after it debuted top of the February bestsellers chart. Dervla McTiernan’s debut crime novel The Ruin is right behind in third spot on the chart. The first instalment in a planned series about an Irish detective, The Ruin went to a reprint a week after its release and has sold rights into the UK, Ireland, Germany and the US. Finally, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, Holly Ringland’s debut which has sold into 19 territories, has climbed into 10th spot, despite only being released in the second half of the month.

Silent Invasion by Clive Hamilton has debuted in the Australian nonfiction bestsellers chart in March in second place. Hamilton’s exploration of the influence of the Chinese Communist Party in Australia was acquired by Hardie Grant after rights were returned to Hamilton from former publisher Allen & Unwin. Scott Pape’s The Barefoot Investor, which has topped the weekly bestseller charts since the start of January, has again taken the top spot.

New titles in the nonfiction chart include a mixture of personal development books, health and wellbeing titles and memoirs: Hillsong Channel president Brian Houston’s memoir There Is More (third); comedian Kitty Flanagan’s Bridge Burning and Other Hobbies (sixth); heart and lung surgeon Nikki Camp’s exploration of the science and mysteries of the human heart, Can You Die of a Broken Heart? (seventh); The CSIRO Low-Carb Diet (Grant Brinkworth & Dr Pennie Tayor, eighth); Canna Campbell’s personal finance guide to ‘mindful saving, active earning and financial wellbeing’, The $1000 Project (ninth); and politician Jacqui Lambie’s memoir Rebel with a Cause.

Australian fiction bestsellers: March

  1. The Shepherd’s Hut (Tim Winton, Hamish Hamilton)
  2. The Tattooist of Auschwitz (Heather Morris, Echo Publishing)
  3. The Ruin (Dervla McTiernan, HarperCollins)
  4. The Family Next Door (Sally Hepworth, Macmillan)
  5. The Dry (Jane Harper, Pan)
  6. Truly Madly Guilty (Liane Moriarty, Pan)
  7. Birthright (Fiona Lowe, HQ Fiction)
  8. The Husband’s Secret (Liane Moriarty, Pan)
  9. Before I Let You Go (Kelly Rimmer, Hachette)
  10. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart (Holly Ringland, HarperCollins)

Australian nonfiction bestsellers: March

  1. The Barefoot Investor (Scott Pape, John Wiley)
  2. Silent Invasion (Clive Hamilton, Hardie Grant)
  3. There Is More (Brian Houston, Vintage)
  4. Lunch Box (Pete Evans, Plum)
  5. Working Class Man (Jimmy Barnes, HarperCollins)
  6. Bridge Burning and Other Hobbies (Kitty Flanagan, Allen & Unwin)
  7. Can You Die of a Broken Heart? (Nikki Stamp, Murdoch)
  8. The CSIRO Low-Carb Diet (Grant Brinkworth & Dr Pennie Taylor, Macmillan)
  9. The $1000 Project (Canna Campbell, Viking)
  10. Rebel with a Cause (Jacqui Lambie, Allen & Unwin)

© Nielsen BookScan 2018
Period covered: 25 February to 31 March 2018
Data supplied by Nielsen BookScan’s book sales monitoring system from 1000 retailers nationwide

 

Category: Bestsellers