Jon Stewart opened his interview with Condoleezza Rice on the Daily Show last night by saying he heard her speak at BEA; “I was very charmed and very upset with you for charming me.”

Looks like she did it again. Her memoir of her early years, Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family, is now at #40 on Amazon sales rankings (Stewart’s book, Earth: The Book, is at #6).

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The book is available in two versions, one for young readers.

Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family Condoleezza Rice Retail Price: $27.00 Hardcover: 352 pages Publisher: Crown Archetype – (2010-10-12) ISBN / EAN: 0307587878 / 9780307587879

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Condoleezza Rice: A Memoir of My Extraordinary, Ordinary Family and Me Condoleezza Rice Retail Price: $16.99 Hardcover: 336 pages Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers – (2010-10-12) ISBN / EAN: 038573879X / 9780385738798

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Random House Audio; CD; Read by the author; 9780307750631 $ 35.00

The former Secretary of State’s memoir about her childhood releases today, with a requisite appearance on the The Today Show this morning and a less predictable matchup with Regis and Kelly. She will also appear on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart tomorrow night.

Several media sources refer to the book as a “memoir for young people.” USA Today‘s interview with Rice today accurately states that is being published simultaneously as both an adult and a young adult book.

Most libraries have ordered just one of the two versions and classified it in adult.

Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family Condoleezza Rice Retail Price: $27.00 Hardcover: 352 pages Publisher: Crown Archetype – (2010-10-12) ISBN / EAN: 0307587878 / 9780307587879

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Condoleezza Rice: A Memoir of My Extraordinary, Ordinary Family and Me Condoleezza Rice Retail Price: $16.99 Hardcover: 336 pages Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers – (2010-10-12) ISBN / EAN: 038573879X / 9780385738798

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Random House Audio; CD; Read by the author; 9780307750631 $ 35.00

What are the odds? While being mugged, you suddenly recognize the knife-wielding attacker as one of your former library patrons.

The odds are greater if you are a prison librarian, as Avi Steinberg recounts in his memoir, Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian, excerpted in this week‘s NYT Magazine.

Steinberg, who worked in a Boston prison, says that inmates’ reading tastes, unsurprisingly, run towards true crime. Coincidentally, the AP backs up that observation today; “Connecticut Prison Inmates Reading True Crime And Other Violent Books.” The article quotes State Sen. John Kissel, R-Enfield, who says he will ask that In Cold Blood and “other true crime or graphically violent books be removed from prison libraries. If the department does not remove the books…he will introduce legislation to force them.”

The American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut said it would oppose any such ban.

Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian Avi Steinberg Retail Price: $26.00 Hardcover: 416 pages Publisher: Nan A. Talese – (2010-10-19) ISBN / EAN: 0385529090 / 9780385529099

Buzz is building for Where Good Ideas Come From by science writer Steven Johnson. The New York Times ran an early review in the Business section, praising Johnson’s storytelling ability in this exploration of innovative environments like the city and the Internet, and how a “series of shared properties and patterns… recur again and again in unusually fertile environments.”

At libraries we checked, current orders are in line with reserves, but this looks like one to watch, since Johnson was also a featured speaker at TED, the elite technology, entertainment and design conference, this summer. And his cool video trailer for the book appears to be going viral.

Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation Steven Johnson Retail Price: $26.95 Hardcover: 336 pages Publisher: Riverhead Hardcover – (2010-10-05) ISBN / EAN: 1594487715 / 9781594487712

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Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow gets a respectful review from critic Janet Maslin in the New York Times, who finds that this biography is justified by new material unearthed from Washington’s papers at the University of Virginia.

At 900-odd densely packed pages, Washington can be arid at times. But it’s also deeply rewarding as a whole…. [and] offers a fresh sense of what a groundbreaking role Washington played, not only in physically embodying his new nation’s leadership but also in interpreting how its newly articulated constitutional principles would be applied.

Entertainment Weekly gives the book an “A-,” adding that Chernow

…makes excellent use of Washington’s own voice — the man’s angry letters are like thunderbolts — and turns constitutional debates and bureaucratic infighting into riveting reading.

Washington: A Life Ron Chernow Retail Price: $40.00 Hardcover: 928 pages Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The – (2010-10-05) ISBN / EAN: 1594202664 / 9781594202667

Notable Nonfiction on Sale Next Week

A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson (Random House) is “a wonderfully meandering journey through history, sociology, science, and more. The thread that connects it all is Bryson’s. . . home, a charming former church rectory in a small English village,” according to bookseller Christopher Rose in the October Indie Next Pick citation. NPR’s Morning Edition will feature the book on October 5, followed by  the New York Times Book Review on October 10. It is also the Amazon Spotlight Selection for the month of Oct.

Is It Just Me or Is It Nuts Out There? by Whoopi Goldberg (Hyperion) finds the actress and co-host of ABC’s The View sharing stories from her own life, when she’s been forced to deal with tough situations in family, marriage, friendship, and business.

Cesar’s Rules by Cesar Millan & Melissa Jo Peltier (Crown) is the bestselling dog trainer’s primer on establishing the rules of the house.

The Dog Who Couldn’t Stop Loving by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson (Harper) considers the far-reaching consequences of the co-evolution of dogs and humans, drawing from recent scientific research.

You: Raising Your Child by Michael F. Roizen & Mehmet C. Oz (Free Press) explores the biology and psychology of raising a child from birth to school age.

Trickle Up Poverty by Michael Savage (Morrow) is the author and conservative talk show host’s attack on President Obama’s agenda and his political tactics.

I’m Not High: (But I’ve Got a Lot of Crazy Stories about Life as a Goat Boy, a Dad, and a Spiritual Warrior) by Jim Breuer (Gotham/Penguin) is a memoir by the comedian and Sirius radio show host best known as “Goat Boy” on Saturday Night Live. He was also featured on the ALTAFF Humor Panel at ALA Annual.

As an FBI hostage negotiator for 30 years, Gary Noesner knows a great deal about stalling for time. He spoke to Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air last night about his book, Stalling for Time. As a result, it jumped up the Amazon sales rankings  to #214, from #5,298.

It arrives with some strong prepub reviews:

PW — “The compelling centerpiece of the book is Noesner’s analysis of ‘what went wrong at Waco’ with the Branch Davidians when negotiation and tactical teams were working at cross purposes. ”

Kirkus — The author effectively provides an intense, immersive narrative, making his real-life experiences read like episodes of a good cop drama. By the end of the book, readers will be impressed by the number of crucial moments in which Noesner has played a significant role—from the Achille Lauro hijacking in 1985 to the Freeman militia standoff in Montana in 1996.

Stalling for Time: My Life as an FBI Hostage Negotiator Gary Noesner Retail Price: $26.00 Hardcover: 240 pages Publisher: Random House – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 1400067251 / 9781400067251

Two titles received significant boosts on Amazon sales rankings as a result of reviews in the new NYT BR.

Dreaming in Chinese moved to# 89 (from# 349 yesterday). Deborah Fallows’ memoir of her three years in China is told through her efforts to learn the Mandarin. The NYT BR review calls it a “…fascinating introduction to a foreign culture.”

The book, which wasn’t reviewed prepub, was featured on NPR’s All Things Considered, was one of “Four Books to Watch in Sept,” in O, The Oprah Magazine and was reviewed in National Geographic Traveler. Some libraries are showing heavy holds.

Dreaming in Chinese: Mandarin Lessons In Life, Love, And Language Deborah Fallows Retail Price: $22.00 Hardcover: 208 pages Publisher: Walker & Company – (2010-08-31) ISBN / EAN: 0802779131 / 9780802779137

The cover review sent To the End of the Land by Israeli writer David Grossman to #35 on Amazon’s rankings. Libraries are showing heavy hold ratios, on light ordering. It also received a strong review in The Boston Globe.

To the End of the Land David Grossman Retail Price: $26.95 Hardcover: 592 pages Publisher: Knopf – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 0307592979 / 9780307592972

We hardly need to tell you that Obama’s Wars by Bob Woodward is the big nonfiction title arriving next week. The embargo has already been broken by the NYT, Politico has already explored how that happened (How Times stole Post‘s Thunder), and the book is #2 on Amazon.

Several memoirs are coming next week that may create their own buzz.

Jenny McCarthy turns from being an autism activist to the crassly funny persona of the best-selling Belly Laughs (Da Capo, 2004), Baby Laughs (Dutton, 2008) and Life Laughs (Dutton, 2006) in her new book, Love, Lust and Faking It. She is scheduled to appear on Oprah on Tuesday.

Love, Lust & Faking It: The Naked Truth About Sex, Lies, and True Romance Jenny Mccarthy Retail Price: $24.99 Hardcover: 256 pages Publisher: Harper – (2010-10-01) ISBN / EAN: 0062012983 / 9780062012982

Marlo Thomas has some laughter of her own to recount in Growing Up Laughing: My Story and the Story of Funny, excerpted in the current issue of People. Booklist calls it “an engaging, highly informative memoir…definitely not the routine show-biz autobiography.”

Growing Up Laughing: My Story and the Story of Funny Marlo Thomas Retail Price: $26.99 Hardcover: 400 pages Publisher: Hyperion – (2010-09-28) ISBN / EAN: 140132391X / 9781401323912

Dogs are an ever-popular publishing theme. This week Steven Kotler’s A Small Furry Prayer: Dog Rescue and the Meaning of Life (Bloomsbury) arrives. Kotler treats dogs with special needs at his Rancho de Chihuahua in New Mexico.

We couldn’t help but notice a striking similarity between the cover for A Small Furry Prayer and a certain other successful book about an entirely different breed of dog.

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A Small Furry Prayer is also on audio from Tantor.

It’s worth watching the book trailer just to see all those chihuahuas hanging out together (click on the image below).

As a result of her appearance on Oprah yesterday, Ingrid Betancourt’s memoir of her six years in captivity in the Colombian jungles, Even Silence Has an End, rose to #5 on Amazon.

You can see why in this series of excerpts from the show on the Oprah site.

Even Silence Has an End: My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle Ingrid Betancourt Retail Price: $29.95 Hardcover: 544 pages Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 1594202656 / 9781594202650

Spanish language edition: No Hay Silencio Que No Termine;  9781616052430; Publisher: Aguilar; 9/21/2010; Pbk $19.99

Ingrid Betancourt, a Colombian politician, survived 6 horrific years held hostage by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Today, she appears on the Oprah show as “The Bravest Mom in the World.”

Her book about her ordeal, Even Silence Has an End, was reviewed in the New York Times on Monday.

Even Silence Has an End: My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle Ingrid Betancourt Retail Price: $29.95 Hardcover: 544 pages Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 1594202656 / 9781594202650

Spanish language edition: No Hay Silencio Que No Termine;  9781616052430; Publisher: Aguilar; 9/21/2010; Pbk $19.99

Reviewers generally don’t step from behind the journalist curtain to reveal their personal enthusiasm for a book. In the current issue of Entertainment Weekly, reviewer Pam Abrams begins her review of Darin Strauss’s Half a Life this way,

I recently went on a trip with a couple of friends, one of whom brought along Half a Life. The book’s slender enough that the three of us devoured it in three days — and beautifully written enough that we spent the rest of the trip discussing it.

Strauss, author of several well-received novels, including Chang and Eng, (Dutton, 2000) and The Real McCoy, (Dutton, 2002) writes in this, his first memoir, about a car accident that killed one of his high school classmates and scarred him for life.

Strauss also appeared on This American Life (359: Life After Death — Act 1, “Guilty as Not Charged,” beginning at 9:40) this week.

Libraries showing holds of 5:1 on light ordering

Half a Life Darin Strauss Retail Price: $22.00 Hardcover: 204 pages Publisher: McSweeney’s – (2010-09-15) ISBN / EAN: 1934781703 / 9781934781708

Barack Obama has often propelled books onto best seller lists. Can Michelle Obama do the same?  The ABC News blog reports that she’s reading The Grace of Silence: On Matters of Race and the Consequence of Silence, a memoir by NPR’s All Things Considered co-host Michele Norris, which goes on sale next week.  Libraries we checked have modest holds on modest orders.

In the book, Norris explores her family’s silence about her father’s shooting by a white policeman in Alabama in 1946, following his return from service in WWII, and rejects the reassuring myth that we live in a “post-racial” America.

Booklist gave it a starred review, calling Norris “a remarkably warm, witty, and spellbinding storyteller, enriching her illuminating family chronicle with profound understanding of the protective grace of silence and the powers unchained when, at last, all that has been unsaid is finally spoken.” PW found the book “eloquent and affecting,” and Kirkus found it “outstanding.”

The Grace of Silence: A Memoir Michele Norris Retail Price: $24.95 Hardcover: 208 pages Publisher: Pantheon – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 0307378764 / 9780307378767

Other Notable Nonfiction on Sale Next Week:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents Earth (The Book): A Visitor’s Guide to the Human Race (Grand Central) satirizes the history and achievements of humanity. Stewart rocked the house at the Book & Author Breakfast at BEA, and his book has been mentioned in many fall previews. His promotional appearances include Bill O’Reilly’s Fox news channel show on Wednesday. You may remember that sparks flew when Stewart appeared on that show for his prevous book.

White House Diary by Jimmy Carter (Farrar, Straus and Giroux) contains sections of the actual diary Carter kept while in office. He will appear on 60 Minutes this coming Sunday, contending that Americans could have had comprehensive health care coverage decades ago if Sen. Edward M. Kennedy hadn’t blocked a plan Carter had proposed during his presidency. The embargoed book was also briefly available on Google Books yesterday morning, before the publisher requested it be taken down, according to the Politico blog.

Even Silence Has an End: My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle by Ingrid Betancourt (Penguin Press) is the French Colombian political leader’s account of her harrowing abduction by the opposition during her presidential campaign. As we reported earlier, the Daily Beast says to “forget Blair or Bush, [Even Silence Has an End] is the memoir of the season.”

Coming out today is a memoir by Nancy G. Brinker, the woman who founded Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which has raised more than a billion dollars for breast-cancer research.  She appeared on Good Morning America yesterday.

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Promise Me: How a Sister’s Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer Nancy G. Brinker Retail Price: $25.99 Hardcover: 368 pages Publisher: Crown Archetype – (2010-09-14) ISBN / EAN: 0307718123 / 9780307718129

This week, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert feature just one author each; both are on tonight.

Colbert  talks with Sam Wilentz and his new book on Bob Dylan; it’s fared much better with the consumer press than it did with the prepub review sources.

Bob Dylan In America Sean Wilentz Retail Price: $28.95 Hardcover: 400 pages Publisher: Doubleday – (2010-09-07) ISBN / EAN: 0385529880 / 9780385529884

Audio; Books on Tape; UNABR; 6 CD’s; 9780307714978; $40

While Stewart sits down with Britain’s former prime minister.

A Journey: My Political Life Tony Blair Retail Price: $35.00 Hardcover: 720 pages Publisher: Knopf – (2010-09-02) ISBN / EAN: 0307269833 / 9780307269836

The Daily Beast says to “forget Blair or Bush, [Even Silence Has an End] is the memoir of the season.” By a French Colombian political leader, it describes “her six unbelievably harrowing years” as a prisoner in the jungle. It has not yet been reviewed prepub. The publisher announced a 100,000 copy first print run.

Also listed are the Daily Beast‘s 19 other “Big Books” of the season, coming out between November and September.

Even Silence Has an End: My Six Years of Captivity in the Colombian Jungle Ingrid Betancourt Retail Price: $29.95 Hardcover: 544 pages Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The – (2010-09-21) ISBN / EAN: 1594202656 / 9781594202650

No Hay Silencio Que No Termine;  9781616052430; Publisher: Aguilar; 9/21/2010; Pbk $19.99

Next week brings three female authors with fresh takes on topical subjects.

Big commercial expectations accompany The Wave: In Pursuit of Rogues, Freaks and Giants of the Ocean, by O magazine editor-in-chief Susan Casey, about rogue waves exacerbated by global warming (the largest was taller than the Empire State Building) and the extreme surfers who chase them. It is listed in USA Today’s fall books roundup. A review is scheduled for the upcoming NYT BR and it will be featured on Good Morning America on Monday, followed by The Daily Show the next evening.

The Wave: In Pursuit of the Rogues, Freaks and Giants of the Ocean Susan Casey Retail Price: $27.95 Hardcover: 352 pages Publisher: Doubleday – (2010-09-14) ISBN / EAN: 0767928849 / 9780767928847

Promise Me: How a Sister’s Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer by Nancy Brinker, is a memoir by the woman who founded Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which has raised more than a billion dollars for breast-cancer research.  Kirkus finds it “touching and inspring.” Library holds are growing, and it has been rising on Amazon too.

Promise Me: How a Sister’s Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer Nancy G. Brinker Retail Price: $25.99 Hardcover: 368 pages Publisher: Crown Archetype – (2010-09-14) ISBN / EAN: 0307718123 / 9780307718129

Big Girls Don’t Cry by Salon.com staff writer Rebecca Traister is a nuanced look back at the election of 2008, arguing that it changed the role of women in national politics. She spoke to librarians earlier in the year at the S&S editors’ Fall books presentation (the next one is Fri., Sept 24 from 9 to 12:30 at the S&S offices in NYC; email Michelle Fadlalla to RSVP or for more information). Traister is thoughtful, dynamic and passionate; sure to be on many talk shows.

PW says that “Traister does a fine job in showing that progress does not proceed in straight lines, and, sometimes, it’s the unlikeliest of individuals who initiate real change.”

Big Girls Don’t Cry: The Election that Changed Everything for American Women Rebecca Traister Retail Price: $26.00 Hardcover: 352 pages Publisher: Free Press – (2010-09-14) ISBN / EAN: 1439150281 / 9781439150283

Other Notable Nonfiction on Sale Next Week

Pinheads & Patriots: Where You Stand in the Age of Obama by Bill O’Reilly (Morrow) is another round of liberal bashing from the Fox News pundit.

Power Thoughts: 12 Strategies to Win the Battle of the Mind by Joyce Meyer (Faithwords) is the TV preacher’s followup to her bestseller Battlefield of the Mind. PW says “critics of Meyer will say she sounds like an infomercial (‘You will see amazing results’). Yet her many fans will continue to appreciate her upbeat attitude and her ability to offer practical tips on the toughest topics.”