Fiction

1. “The Appeal,” by John Grisham (Doubleday, $27.95). Political and legal intrigue ensue when a Mississippi court decides against a chemical company accused of dumping toxic waste.

2. “Duma Key,” by Stephen King (Scribner, $28). A Minnesota contractor moves to Florida to recover from an injury and begins to create paintings with mysterious power.

3. “Plum Lucky,” by Janet Evanovich (St. Martinos, $17.95). Stephanie’s mother finds a bag of cash and goes gambling in Atlantic City, pursued by the money’s owner.

4. “Sizzle and Burn,” by Jayne Ann Krentz (Putnam, $24.95). A member of the Arcane Society, dedicated to paranormal research, helps a woman with psychic powers.

5. “A Thousand Splendid Suns,” by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead, $25.95). A friendship between two women in Afghanistan against the backdrop of 30 years of war.

Nonfiction

1. “In Defense of Food,” by Michael Pollan (Penguin Press, $21.95). A manifesto urges us to “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

2. “An Inconvenient Book,” by Glenn Beck and Kevin Balfe (Threshold Editions, $26). The conservative TV and talk-radio host offers his solutions to problems including global warming, poverty and political correctness.

3. “Real Change,” by Newt Gingrich with Vince Haley and Rick Tyler (Regnery, $27.95). How to build a better America, from the former speaker of the House.

4. “Tom Cruise,” by Andrew Morton (St. Martin’s, $25.95). An unauthorized biography of the movie star and Scientology spokesman.

5. “I Am American (and So Can You!),” by Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Allison Silverman et al (Grand Central, $26.99). The wit and wisdom of the mock pundit of Comedy Central’s “Colbert Report.”