independent press
top 40
bestsellers
The Independent Publishers Caucus proudly presents the Independent Press Top 40 Bestsellers! In partnership with the American Booksellers Association, this new bestseller list identifies the top titles from independent presses as represented at independent bookstores across the US.
fiction
nonfiction
PUBLISHER SPOTLIGHT: VERSO BOOKS
In 2020, Verso Books celebrated fifty years of radical publishing. Founded in 1970 by New Left Review and originally known as New Left Books, Verso took its name from the left-hand page, a fitting symbol for its politics. From the beginning, the press set out to bring bold ideas from philosophy and social theory to English‑language readers. Over the decades, Verso has remained at the forefront of critical debate, publishing voices that challenge capitalism, racism, and patriarchy, grapple with the climate crisis, and imagine new possibilities for social and political change.
fiction
1. Heart the Lover by Lily King
(Grove Press)
2. I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
(Transit Books)
3. Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
(Grove Press)
4. The Odyssey by Homer, Emily Wilson (Transl.)
(Norton)
5. Orbital by Samantha Harvey
(Grove Press)
6. You Better Be Lightning by Andrea Gibson
(Button Poetry)
7. Writers & Lovers by Lily King
(Grove Press)
8. Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser
(Europa Editions)
9. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 1 by Beth Brower
(Rhysdon Press)
10. Foster by Claire Keegan
(Grove Press)
11. Startlement: New and Selected Poems by Ada Limón
(Milkweed Editions)
12. The Overstory by Richard Powers
(Norton)
13. Culpability by Bruce Holsinger
(Spiegel & Grau)
14. The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters
(Catapult)
15. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 2 by Beth Brower
(Rhysdon Press)
16. The Eyes Are the Best Part: Deluxe Limited Edition by Monika Kim
(Erewhon Books)
17. Love & Other Monsters by Emily Franklin
(David R. Godine Publisher)
18. Hungerstone by Kat Dunn
(Zando)
19. My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
(Europa Editions)
20. The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese
(Grove Press)
21. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
(Beacon Press)
22. Just This Once: Deluxe Limited Edition (The Kings #1) by Lena Hendrix
(Kensington)
23. Go as a River by Shelley Read
(Spiegel & Grau)
24. The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions by Larry Mitchell, Ned Asta (Illus.)
(Nightboat Books)
25. A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L. Peck
(Strange Violin Editions)
26. The Way Disabled People Love Each Other by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
(Arsenal Pulp Press)
27. Appalachian Elegy: Poetry and Place (Kentucky Voices) by Bell Hooks
(University Press of Kentucky)
28. Carmilla, Deluxe Edition: The Dark Sapphic Romance that Inspired Dracula by Sheridan Le Fanu
(Pushkin Press)
29. Slow Horses (Deluxe Edition) (Slough House #1) by Mick Herron
(Soho Crime)
30. Three Bags Full (A Sheep Detective Story) by Leonie Swann
(Soho Crime)
31. Rain of Shadows and Endings: Deluxe Special Edition (The Legacy #1) by Melissa K. Roehrich
(Kensington)
32. Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
(Grove Press)
33. The Count of Monte Cristo (Word Cloud Classics) by Alexandre Dumas
(Canterbury Classics)
34. Beartooth by Callan Wink
(Spiegel & Grau)
35. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 3 by Beth Brower
(Rhysdon Press)
36. The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother): A Novel (National Book Award Winner) by Rabih Alameddine
(Grove Press)
37. The Library of Amorlin: Deluxe Limited Edition (The Age of Beasts #1) by Kalyn Josephson
(Erewhon Books)
38. Women of a Promiscuous Nature by Donna Everhart
(Kensington)
39. Devil of the Deep by Falencia Jean-Francois
(Bindery Books)
40. You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World by Ada Limón
(Milkweed Editions)
nonfiction
1. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
(Milkweed Editions)
2. The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon
(Liveright)
3. The Beginning Comes After the End: Notes on a World of Change by Rebecca Solnit
(Haymarket Books)
4. Mutual Aid: New and Expanded Edition: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the Next) by Dean Spade
(Verso)
5. The Glorians: Visitations from the Holy Ordinary by Terry Tempest Williams
(Grove Press)
6. Another Kind of Freedom by Pema Chodron
(Shambhala)
7. I'm Just a Little Guy: How to Escape the Horrors and Get Back to Dillydallying by Charlie James, Paige Tompkins (Illus.)
(Quirk Books)
8. Thirty-Two Words for Field: Lost Words of the Irish Landscape by Manchán Magan
(Chelsea Green)
9. On Democracy by Walt Whitman
(Library of America)
10. Metropolitans: New York Baseball, Class Struggle, and the People's Team by A.M. Gittlitz
(Astra House)
11. Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
(Beacon Press)
12. Guinness World Records 2026 by Guinness World Records
(Guinness World Records)
13. Ursula K. Le Guin's Book of Cats by Ursula K. Le Guin
(Library of America)
14. A Philosophy of Walking by Frédéric Gros, John Howe (Transl.)
(Verso)
15. The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
(Grove Press)
16. The Secret Life of a Cemetery: The Wild Nature and Enchanting Lore of Père-Lachaise by Benoît Gallot, Daniel Casanave (Illus.)
(Greystone Books)
17. Concrete Botany: The Ecology of Plants in the Age of Human Disturbance by Joey Santore
(Cool Springs Press)
18. Forest Euphoria: The Abounding Queerness of Nature by Patricia Ononiwu Kaishian
(Spiegel & Grau)
19. The Company of Owls: A Memoir by Polly Atkin
(Milkweed Editions)
20. Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer
(Oregon State University Press)
21. How to Love (Mindfulness Essentials #3) by Thich Nhat Hanh, Jason DeAntonis (Illus.)
(Parallax Press)
22. Stuff Every Bird Lover Should Know (Stuff You Should Know #32) by Alice Sun
(Quirk Books)
23. On Bullshit: Anniversary Edition by Harry G. Frankfurt
(Princeton University Press)
24. No!: The Art and Activism of Complaining by Sara Ahmed
(Feminist Press)
25. We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution by Jill Lepore
(Liveright)
26. S.P.Q.R.: A History of Ancient Rome by Mary Beard
(Liveright)
27. A Brief History of the World in 47 Borders: Surprising Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps by Jonn Elledge
(The Experiment)
28. Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur
(Lawrence Hill Books)
29. Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis by Kelly Hayes (Ed.)
(AK Press)
30. How to Relax (Mindfulness Essentials #5) by Thich Nhat Hanh
(Parallax Press)
31. Tree Lore: Magic, Myth, and Wisdom from Root to Bough by Dawn Nelson
(Countryman Press)
32. Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the Next) by Dean Spade
(Verso)
33. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
(Liveright)
34. The End of My Life Is Killing Me: The Unexpected Joys of a Cancer Slacker by Annabelle Gurwitch
(Zibby Publishing)
35. Hyperpolitics: Extreme Politicization without Political Consequences by Anton Jäger
(Verso)
36. How to Focus (Mindfulness Essentials #9) by Thich Nhat Hanh, Jason DeAntonis (Illus.)
(Parallax Press)
37. Constitution of the United States by Founding Fathers
(Applewood Books)
38. When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times by Pema Chodron
(Shambhala)
39. How to Listen (Mindfulness Essentials #11) by Thich Nhat Hanh, Jason DeAntonis (Illus.)
(Parallax Press)
40. An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
(Beacon Press)
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