TheBestseller
Observatory

Best Sellers

Hardcover Nonfiction

Week of September 23, 1990

FictionNonfiction
WeekMonth
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BOOTLEGGER'S BOY
Barry Switzer with Bud Shrake
Cover of BOOTLEGGER'S BOY

BOOTLEGGER'S BOY

by Barry Switzer with Bud Shrake · Morrow

2 wks on list

The controversial football coach recounts his battles with the NCAA as leader of the Oklahoma Sooners, when he was accused of unethical recruitment practices and other violations

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DARKNESS VISIBLE
William Styron
Cover of DARKNESS VISIBLE

DARKNESS VISIBLE

by William Styron · Random House

3 wks on list

A dazzlingly dark novel by the Nobel Laureate. At the height of the London blitz, a naked child steps out of an all-consuming fire. Miraculously saved yet hideously scarred, tormented at school and at work, Matty becomes a wanderer, a seeker after some unknown redemption. Two more lost children await him: twins as exquisite as they are loveless. Toni dabbles in political violence, Sophy in sexual tyranny. As Golding weaves their destinies together, as he draws them toward a final conflagration, his book lights up both the inner and outer darknesses of our time.

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YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND
Deborah Tannen
Cover of YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND

YOU JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND

by Deborah Tannen · Morrow

8 wks on list

Debra Tannen’s You Just Don’t Understand draws upon groundbreaking research by an acclaimed sociolinguist to show that women and men live in different worlds, made of different words. Using lively and entertaining examples of real conversations, Tannen shows why women and men can walk away from the same conversation with completely different impressions of what was said. With a rare combination of scientific insight and delightful writing, Tannen brings gender differences to students in an entertaining and accessible format. A classic in the field of interpersonal relations, this book will forever change the way students think about—and approach—conversations. “[A] refreshing and readable account of the complexities of communication between men and women.”—The New York Times Book Review

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EVERY SPY A PRINCE
Dan Raviv and Yossi Melman
Cover of EVERY SPY A PRINCE

EVERY SPY A PRINCE

by Dan Raviv and Yossi Melman · Jaffe/Houghton Mifflin

7 wks on list

On the New York Times Best Seller list for 12 weeks (August 12-October 28, 1990) “This is a comprehensive history of Israel’s security establishment. The authors celebrate successes like Eichmann’s capture, but far more interestingly, they do not shy away from examining the security services’ failures... the book is riveting because Israel’s early intelligence feats still resonate in today’s world... the book makes valuable reading for anyone interested in Israel’s world-wide plans to deal with matters affecting its security.” — Wall Street Journal “The authors... obviously found enough talkative sources... to provide them with the remarkable case histories they describe here. Even though some of the Israeli operatives sound boastful, the book is not propaganda or disinformation. While it is filled with many examples of how Mossad pulled off major coups, the authors are at pains to point out that the Israelis sometimes goofed... The authors flesh out stories that once made headlines with fresh material. Not all the Israeli intelligence triumphs involved violence. The Israelis managed to outrun the C.I.A. and all of Western Europe’s spy agencies in getting their hands on a copy of Nikita S. Khrushchev’s secret speech in 1956 to a special Communist Party Congress in Moscow that exposed the horrors of the Stalin era... The story of the 1960 capture in Buenos Aires of Adolf Eichmann, the Nazi war criminal, by Mossad and Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security agency, is lovingly re-created. A high point of Israeli intelligence came in 1967, during the Six-Day War, when foreknowledge of enemy positions and abilities paved the way for a rapid victory. The astonishing rescue in 1976 by army commandos of hijacked passengers from Entebbe airport in distant Uganda gained added respect for Israel in the Western world. Against the triumphs, the authors balance these failures: Mossad’s misjudgments in Lebanon, Shin Bet’s killings of Arab terrorists in captivity, and the involvement of Israel in the disarray of Irangate. In addition, double agents were used in Britain and caught there; an American, Jonathan Pollard, was encouraged to spy and sell military secrets to Israel, and faulty intelligence resulted in ‘misleading the Government over the future of the occupied territories, just as a Palestinian uprising was beginning.’... [a] highly revealing book.” — New York Times “Everything you wanted to know about Israel’s spies and secret services — but were afraid to discover. This comprehensive history and analysis of the Israeli intelligence community offers many original insights into the secret psyche of the Jewish State... The book presents new information on some of Israel’s greatest intelligence coups and failures.” — Kirkus “Basing their work on interviews with former operatives and on declassified documents, CBS news correspondent Raviv and Israeli journalist Melman here produced a revealing critical history of the rise and decline of Israel’s vaunted security and intelligence arm.“ — Publishers Weekly “[A] detailed history of Israel’s intelligence agencies.“ — Washington Post “Every Spy a Prince is by far the best book ever published on Israel’s intelligence community, filled with new and fascinating information, skillfully and intelligently written and, above all, bold and judicious in its assessments of the triumphs and failures of one of the most remarkable espionage organizations in the world.” — San Francisco Chronicle “A highly readable, well-organized portrait of the main Israeli intelligence services .. . . Every Spy a Prince is a valuable, balanced addition to the mushrooming literature about the world’s second oldest profession.” — Newsday

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MEN AT WORK
George F. Will

MEN AT WORK

by George F. Will · Macmillan

24 wks on list

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning political commentator and longtime baseball fanatic George F. Will--the #1 bestselling ultimate insider's look at the exacting craft of baseball

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DAVE BARRY TURNS 40
Dave Barry
Cover of DAVE BARRY TURNS 40

DAVE BARRY TURNS 40

by Dave Barry · Crown

17 wks on list

"Just the ticket for the '90s." SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE If you're too young for a nursing home yet too old to be a rock star, if your marriage is as exciting as scraping grass off the lawnmower blades, then this hilarious book by Pulitzer-Prize-winning columnist and author is for you. Put on your protective eyewear and take a probing look inside your increasingly Spam-like body at: The Midlife (Yawn) Marriage; Wise Financial Planning for Irresponsible Scum Such as Yourself; Sex After 40 (or, Sex? After 40?), and other harsh, but amusing realities that leave you laughing, crying and drooling.

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TOM LANDRY
Tom Landry with Gregg Lewis
Cover of TOM LANDRY

TOM LANDRY

by Tom Landry with Gregg Lewis · Zondervan/HarperCollins

5 wks on list

The former coach of the Dallas Cowboys offers a personal look at his philosophy and faith, his management strategies, and his leadership standards, as well as a glimpse of the sports personalities he knows.

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INSIDE JOB
Stephen Pizzo, Mary Fricker and Paul Muolo
Cover of INSIDE JOB

INSIDE JOB

by Stephen Pizzo, Mary Fricker and Paul Muolo · McGraw-Hill

6 wks on list

New York Times Bestseller: A history of the S&L scandal that caused a financial disaster for American taxpayers: "Hard to put down" ( Library Journal). For most of the 20th century, savings and loans were an invaluable thread of the American economy. But in the 1970s, Congress passed sweeping financial deregulation at the insistence of industry insiders that allowed these once quaint and useful institutions to spread their taxpayer-insured assets into new and risky investments. The looser regulations and reduced federal oversight also opened the industry to an army of shady characters, white-collar criminals, and organized crime groups. Less than 10 years later, half the nation's savings and loans were insolvent, leaving the American taxpayer on the hook for a large hunk of the nearly half a trillion dollars that had gone missing. The authors of Inside Job saw signs of danger long before the scandal hit nationwide. Decades after the savings and loan collapse, Inside Job remains a thrilling read and a sobering reminder that our financial institutions are more fragile than they appear.

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A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SENSES
Diane Ackerman
Cover of A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SENSES

A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SENSES

by Diane Ackerman · Random House

8 wks on list

Diane Ackerman's lusciously written grand tour of the realm of the senses includes conversations with an iceberg in Antarctica and a professional nose in New York, along with dissertations on kisses and tattoos, sadistic cuisine and the music played by the planet Earth. “Delightful . . . gives the reader the richest possible feeling of the worlds the senses take in.” —The New York Times

Historical bestseller data sourced from the New York Times Book Review, archived by Hawes Publications.