Thursday Themes

Bestseller Spotlight: Only in the PNW

On Wednesdays, the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Bestseller List is published. Every week, we love to see what books have been most popular in independent bookstores around our region. As we peruse the list, we look for something special to showcase. Then we present this weekly feature: Thursday Themes. Did you know that books on our bestseller list marked with an asterisk (*) are not national bestsellers like the rest of the list, but bestsellers specific to our region? What do you think …

May 21, 2026

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May

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2026

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Eager: The Surprising Life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb

Once you read Ben Goldfarb’s Eager you will forever look at landscapes differently. Goldfarb explains the history and impact of beavers, from their role in indigenous cultures to their near-extinction from excess trapping for the fur trade to their remarkable recovery across much of North America. Eager shows us the beaver as not only “Nature’s …

May

19

2026

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Enormous Wings by Laurie Frankel

Laurie Frankel has a way of treating serious issues in a warm and loving way, and of bringing understanding to contentious topics. Maybe this book can open a few yes to the horrors of the Texas (and unfortunately other states’) laws. –Karen Emmerling, Beach Books, Seaside, OR I was instantly drawn to 77-year-old Pepper Mills; …

May

18

2026

Cover of Search for a Mysterious Mushroom, green background with a flowchart diagram illustrated cover

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Search for a Mysterious Mushroom! written by Amy Seto Forrester, illustrated Andy Chou Musser

Choose-your-own-adventures are back! And cooler than ever. Search for a Mysterious Mushroom is the perfect adventure for young readers. This book is packed full of fun facts and amazing art. The ideal book for science lovers or the perfect book to inspire! –Sophie, Hodgepodge Books & Taps, Eugene, OR Learn about the world in very …

May

15

2026

cover of the novel The Radiant Dark by Alexandra Olivia; night sky, dark house with lights lit; dark trees.

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The Radiant Dark by Alexandra Oliva

A gripping multi-generational story that delves into messy relationships, motherhood struggles, inherited trauma, dreams for the future, AND the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence. –Rachel, Brick & Mortar Books, Redmond, WA Explore fiction from Pacific Northwest authors (and novels that expand your horizons in many ways) at Brick & Mortar Books and other independent bookstores.  

May

14

2026

Thursday Themes

Bestseller Spotlight: “There’s a woman on the cover…”

Every Wednesday, the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association publishes the regional bestseller list. On Thursdays, we celebrate Thursday Themes to shine a spotlight on some of the books from the list and give our brains a different way of thinking about books. This week, we’re imaging a customer asking a bookseller about a book they’re interested in. The customer …

May

13

2026

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Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I’ve Cried About: A Memoir by Isabel Klee

Well, let’s start with Isabel Klee’s Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I’ve Cried About: A Memoir. Klee is @SimonSits on the socials, where she regularly tells stories about rescuing dogs. Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I’ve Cried About takes us through the last decade or so of her life in New York City, dealing with—wait for it—rescue dogs, heartbreaking …

May

12

2026

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George Falls Through Time by Ryan Collett

Maybe no one asked for a gayer, funnier, or cozier version of Outlander, but I do not care, dear reader, for George Falls Through Time was exactly what I needed a m4m low drama romantasy to be. Calling it a romantasy may be a stretch as that genre encompasses a certain YA fairytale mystique, however, …

May

11

2026

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The Dilemmas of Working Women: Stories by Fumio Yamamoto, translated by Brian Bergstrom

Yamamoto has deftly created short stories where the title characters are difficult women. Women who have complicated relationships with their families and significant others. They work hard for independence, like the woman who has breast cancer or the middle aged woman working the night shift, and end up taking the blame when things fall apart. …

May

8

2026

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The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister

The atmosphere of the Bog Wife is damp, oppressive, and ever present in the drama surrounding family history, tradition, and obligation with a specter of the supernatural haunting the periphery. The layers of metaphor stack upon each other like the sphagnum moss that layers the bog to become a rich peat. —Obadiah, Sherwood Bookstore, Sherwood, …

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