Books: Bestsellers

Proving that the Booker Prize works, the 1998 winner, Ian McEwan's Amsterdam, goes straight into second place on the fiction list this week, beating the only other newcomer, The Path of Daggers, eighth book in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, into fourth position. On the non-fiction front, the nation is still up there with the birds: David Attenborough's Life of Birds is a broad wing-span away from Delia's down-to-earth advice on how to cook an egg.

Compiled by data supplied by bookshops on sales over seven days ending 1 November 1998. Bookwatch Ltd, 1998

Compiled by Bookwatch on sales over seven days ending 25 October 1998. Bookwatch Ltd, 1998

ORIGINAL FICTION

TITLE AUTHOR/PUBLISHER WEEKLY SALES PRICE

1 (2) Point of Origin Patricia D Cornwell (Little, Brown) 3,205 pounds 16.99

2 (- ) Amsterdam Ian McEwan (Cape) 2,798 pounds 14.99

3 (1) Net Force Tom Clancy (Headline) 2,672 pounds 6.99

4 (-) The Path of Daggers Robert Jordan (Orbit) 2,527 pounds 17.99

5 (4) The Tesseract Alex Garland (Viking) 2,481 pounds 9.99

6 (8) Rainbow Six Tom Clancy (M Joseph) 2,236 pounds 16.99

7 (6) Tara Road Maeve Binchy (Orion) 2,199 pounds 16.99

8 (9) Charlotte Gray Sebastian Faulks (Hutchinson) 2,031 pounds 16.99

9 (3) Archangel Robert Harris (Hutchinson) 1,998 pounds 16.99

10 (5) Field of 13 Dick Francis (M Joseph) 1,951 pounds 6.99

ORIGINAL NON-FICTION

TITLE AUTHOR/PUBLISHER WEEKLY SALES PRICE

1 (1) Delia's How to Cook Delia Smith (BBC) 19,636 pounds 16.99

2 (4) Life of Birds David Attenborough (BBC) 4,758 pounds 18.99

3 (5) Men Are From Mars... John Gray (Thorsons) 3,784 pounds 9.99

4 (3) The Little Book of Calm Paul Wilson (Penguin) 3,484 pounds 1.99

5 (2) Little Book of Feng Sui Lillian Too (Element) 3,406 pounds 1.99

6 (-) The Guv'nor Lenny McLean (Blake) 3,223 pounds 14.99

7 (6) Real Food Nigel Slater (Fourth Estate) 2,993 pounds 18.99

8 (9) Addicted Tony Adams & Ian Ridley (CollinsWillow) 2,515 pounds 16.99

9 (7) Losing My Virginity Richard Branson (Virgin) 2,497 pounds 20

10 (-) Things Can Only Get Better John O'Farrell (Doubleday) 2,249 pounds 9.99