Last week's entry posted without mishap (unlike the week before), so I think I'll keep doing this.

Once again, the explanation: in the publishing business, we often see bestseller lists early. I have in my hands the list for the New York Times Book Review dated May 6th (which goes on sale this weekend as a standalone and will appear in the following week's paper).

The major news this time is that last week's big launch has put J.R.R. Tolkien's The Children of Hurin at #1 on the hardcover fiction list. Also on that list, dropping to #11 in its third week, is Jim Butcher's White Night, the new "Dresden Files" novel (also available in the SFBC omnibus Wizard Under Fire).

On the extended hardcover list, Christopher Buckley's Boomsday is at #25, Kim Harrison's For a Few Demons More ranks at #28, Raymond E. Feist's Into a Dark Realm lurks at #31, and Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box claws out #32.

In paperbacks, Cormac McCarthy's The Road is still holding at #1 -- which means that both #1 fiction slots are held by SFF books, probably for the first time ever. Otherwise, for more genre goodness, we have to drop onto the extended paperback list  for Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five at #17 and Gregory Maguire's unstoppable Wicked at #27.

On the children's lists, Stephenie Meyer's vampire novel New Moon holds #1 on the chapter books list, with Scott Westerfeld's Specials at #5. The paperback list finds Christopher Paolini's Eldest still at #1 and his Eragon at #8, with Meyer's Twilight in between at #6, plus James Patterson's Maximum Ride: School's Out -- Forever at #4, a book about "Harry Potter 7," and two novelizations of fantasy movies (Pirates of the Caribbean and Spider-Man). The series list is also dominated by fantasy, with Rowling's "Harry Potter" books at #1, the "Magic Tree House" series at #2, Angie Sage's "Septimus Heap" in third place, "The Underland Chronicles" at #5, "A Series of Unfortunate Events" at #7, and "d'Lacey's Dragons" at #10.

For those counting at home, that's five genre #1s this week:

1. The Children of Hurin, hardcover fiction
2. The Road, paperback fiction
3. New Moon, children's chapter
4. Eldest, children's paperback
5. "Harry Potter," children's series

A good week, I think!