Toronto Star bestsellers for Nov. 13, 2024

It’s always reassuring when events in the real world cause an uptick in sales of a book. It seems to signify that their interest in an issue made readers want to delve deeper. That’s good. It confirms an engaged and curious society.
Usually, it’s a cultural event. Obvious example: When “Oppenheimer” was released in theatres last year, “American Prometheus,” the 2005 biography of Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin, was a huge bestseller in Canadian bookstores for several months, then again when the movie swept the 96th Academy Awards.
When Netflix or another big streaming service releases a limited series based on a book, count on that book to experience a robust second life, often eclipsing original sales.
This week brings two examples.
“Who We Are: Four Questions for a Life and a Nation,” by Murray Sinclair, Sara Sinclair and Niigaan Sinclair has enjoyed solid sales since it came out in late September, twice appearing on the new (or original) non-fiction list, then settling onto the Canadian list, which includes both recently published books and reprints.
Then, on Nov. 4, Murray Sinclair — Canadian senator, judge and perhaps best known as chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission — died at 73. The news stories, appreciations and obituaries that have followed have lauded his work on Indigenous issues and his importance as a role model within the Indigenous community.
This week, the book, written with daughter Sara and son Niigaan, returned to the original bestseller list at No. 4. The stories about his consequential life likely prompted a sales bump.
But the book that is perhaps the most unexpected recipient of enhanced sales is Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the 1985 dystopian novel about Gilead, the authoritarian, patriarchal society in which women are denied control of their reproductive rights.
The book made its stand on the Canadian fiction list at No. 3, one week after the U.S. election.
ORIGINAL FICTION
1. The Grey Wolf, Louise Penny, Minotaur (2)*
2. The Striker, Ana Huang, Bloom (3)
3. In Too Deep, Lee Child, Andrew Child, Delacorte (3)
4. Hexed, Emily McIntire, Bloom (1)
5. The Christmas Tree Farm, Laurie Gilmore, One More Chapter (3)
6. Here One Moment, Liane Moriarty, Doubleday Canada (4)
7. Lost and Lassoed, Lyla Sage, Dial (1)
8. The Waiting, Michael Connelly, Little Brown (4)
9. Intermezzo, Sally Rooney, Knopf Canada (7)
10. The Housemaid, Freida McFadden, Grand Central (15)
ORIGINAL NON-FICTION
1. Revenge of the Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, Little, Brown (6)
2. Guinness World Records 2025, Craig Glenday, Guinness World Records (8)
3. Framed, John Grisham, Jim McCloskey, Doubleday (3)
4. Who We Are, Murray Sinclair, Sara Sinclair, Niigaan Sinclair, McClelland & Stewart (3)
5. Home and Away, Mats Sundin, Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster (3)
6. From Here to the Great Unknown, Lisa Marie Presley, Riley Keough, Random House (3)
7. Nexus, Yuval Noah Harari, Signal (8)
8. War, Bob Woodward, Simon & Schuster (4)
9. Brothers, Alex Van Halen, Harper (3)
10. Taylor Swift Style, Sarah Chapelle, Saint Martin’s Griffin (4)
CANADIAN FICTION
1. The Grey Wolf, Louise Penny, Minotaur
2. The Mistletoe Mystery, Nita Prose, Viking 
3. The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood, McClelland & Stewart
4. When the World Fell Silent, Donna Jones Alward, One More Chapter
5. The Defector, Chris Hadfield, Vintage Canada
6. Looking for Jane, Heather Marshall, Simon & Schuster
7. The Holiday Honeymoon Switch, Julia McKay, Viking
8. Butcher and Blackbird, Brynne Weaver, Zando
9. The Bridge Kingdom, Danielle L. Jensen, Del Rey
10. Moon of the Crusted Snow, Waubgeshig Rice, ECW
CANADIAN NON-FICTION
1. Revenge of the Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, Little, Brown
2. Who We Are, Murray Sinclair, Sara Sinclair, Niigaan Sinclair, McClelland & Stewart
3. Home and Away, Mats Sundin, Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster
4. Taylor Swift Style, Sarah Chapelle, Saint Martin’s Griffin
5. Dreamer, Nazem Kadri, Viking
6. This Is Our Life, The Tragically Hip, Genesis
7. Hockey Rants and Raves, Steve “Dangle” Glynn, HarperCollins Canada
8. The Knowing, Tanya Talaga, HarperCollins Canada
9. Reconciling History, Jody Wilson-Raybould, Roshan Danesh, McClelland & Stewart 
10. Laugh More, Debbie Travis, Random House Canada
CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULT
1. Hot Mess (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #19), Jeff Kinney, Abrams
2. A Heart for Christmas, Sophie Jomain, Manon Bucciarelli, Editions et Diffusions Auzou
3. The Wild Robot, Peter Brown, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
4. The Bad Guys in One Last Thing (#20), Aaron Blabey, Scholastic
5. Christmas at Hogwarts, J.K. Rowling, Ziyi Gao, Bloomsbury Children’s
6. A Study in Drowning (collector’s edition), Ava Reid, HarperCollins
7. Karen’s Grandmothers (Baby-Sitters Little Sister #9), D.K. Yingst, Ann M. Martin, Graphix
8. The Wild Robot Escapes, Peter Brown, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
9. Little Blue Truck’s Christmas, Alice Schertle, Jill McElmurry, Clarion
10. Kristy and the Walking Disaster (Baby-Sitters Club #16), Ann M. Martin, Ellen T. Crenshaw, Graphix
SELF-IMPROVEMENT
1. The 48 Laws of Power, Robert Greene, Joost Elffers, Penguin
2. The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk, Penguin
3. The Mountain Is You, Brianna Wiest, Thought Catalog
4. 101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think, Brianna Wiest, Thought Catalog
5. The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz, Janet Mills, Amber-Allen
6. The Courage to Be Disliked, Ichiro Kishimi, Fumitake Koga, Simon & Schuster
7. The Pivot Year, Brianna Wiest, Thought Catalog
8. The Creative Act, Rick Rubin, Penguin
9. Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill, TarcherPerigee
10. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, Mark Manson, Harper
* Weeks on list.