BESTSELLERS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST

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*--* 1 The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (Little, Brown: $21.95) 1 19 A murdered girl tells the story of her grieving family, the killer and the detective who hunts him

2 The Little Friend by Donna Tartt (Alfred A. Knopf: $26) A -- 1 12-year-old whose family was torn apart by the murder of her brother sees revenge as her only hope. (Reviewed by Francie Lin, Page 11)

3 Chasing the Dime by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown: 3 2 $25.95) A brilliant chemist is drawn into the search for a young missing prostitute, risking his life and reputation

4 Q Is for Quarry by Sue Grafton (Putnam: $26.95) At the 2 3 end of their police careers, two men enlist the help of Kinsey Millhone to help solve an old murder

5 You Shall Know Our Velocity by Dave Eggers (McSweeney’s: 7 4 $22) A pair of friends take an around-the-world trip, handing out money to strangers

6 Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks (Warner: $22.95) A 14 6 chance meeting on the North Carolina coast propels a man and woman into a short-lived affair that affects their lives for years

7 The Janson Directive by Robert Ludlum (St. Martin’s: 10 2 $27.95) Covert operative and assassin Paul Janson is tapped to rescue a philanthropic billionaire from a terrorist known as the Caliph

8 The Murder Book by Jonathan Kellerman (Ballantine: -- 3 $26.95) Alex Delaware teams up with old pal Milo Sturgis to investigate a killing that has gone unsolved for 20 years

9 Abarat by Clive Barker (Joanna Cotler Books: $24.99) A -- 1 Minnesota girl meets an eight-headed creature who leads her to a mystical forgotten island world

10 I, Richard by Elizabeth George (Bantam: $21.95) Double -- 1 lives, mysterious deaths and sudden twists populate this collection of cosmopolitan crime tales

11 Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott (Riverhead Books: $24.95) A 4 4 recently divorced young mother relies on faith as she confronts her illusions about love and the secrets of her family’s past

12 I Don’t Know How She Does It by Allison Pearson (Alfred 8 3 A. Knopf: $23) A darkly humorous tale of a woman juggling her high-powered career and family life

13 Ignorance by Milan Kundera (HarperCollins: $23.95) Two -- 2 expatriate Czechs returning to Prague for a visit rediscover one another and the depth of emotion that homecoming brings

14 Blessings by Anna Quindlen (Random House: $24.95) A 6 6 foundling left at a reclusive woman’s estate affects the matron and her handyman in ways neither could have imagined

15 Blackwood Farm by Anne Rice (Alfred A. Knopf: $26.95) A -- 1 vampire who inhabits a Southern manse seeks out Lestat to free himself from his ghostly double

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST

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*--* 1 Stupid White Men and Other Sorry Excuses for the State 5 34 of the Nation by Michael Moore (ReganBooks: $24.95) Lampooning the government and more

2 Get With the Program! By Bob Greene (Simon & Schuster: 6 6 $24) Oprah’s personal trainer combines an exercise plan with a look at the emotional connection to eating

3 Leadership by Rudolph W. Giuliani (Miramax: $25.95) The 1 4 former New York City mayor recalls how life’s lessons helped him deal with the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks

4 Sandy Koufax by Jane Leavy (HarperCollins: $23.95) A 3 6 look at the career of the Dodger pitcher, arguably the game’s greatest southpaw, and the social mores he confronted

5 My Losing Season by Pat Conroy (Nan A. Talese/Doubleday: 4 2 $27.95) The sorrows of life with a bullying father and the consolations of playing basketball at a South Carolina military college

6 The One Minute Millionaire by Mark Victor Hansen and -- 1 Robert G. Allen (Harmony Books: $19.95) Affirmations and practical tips on how to help fatten one’s wallet

7 Live From New York by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller 14 3 (Little, Brown: $25.95) A backstage recounting of the comic genius and egos of “Saturday Night Live.”

8 Secrets by Daniel Ellsberg (Viking: $29.95) A memoir of 12 2 Vietnam, the publishing of the Pentagon Papers and Ellsberg’s conversion from Cold War hawk to dove

9 Good to Great by Jim Collins (HarperCollins: $27.50) How 11 15 a great product, a healthy corporate culture and a disciplined work force can propel a company to success

10 Let Freedom Ring by Sean Hannity (ReganBooks: $25.95) A 9 9 star of Fox News’ “Hannity & Colmes” argues that liberal ideas are undermining America’s war on terrorism

11 Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson (Putnam: $19.95) 13 135 The coauthor of “The One-Minute Manager” uses the parable of mice in a maze to discuss managing change

12 Longitudes and Attitudes by Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, 2 8 Straus & Giroux: $26) The New York Times foreign affairs columnist reflects on the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks

13 A Lawyer’s Life by Johnnie Cochran with David Fisher -- 1 (Thomas Dunne/St. Martin’s: $25.95) The lead member of O. J. Simpson’s “Dream Team” recollects four decades in the courtroom

14 The Blank Slate by Steven Pinker (Viking: $27.95) An -- 1 exploration of human nature and how its study is influenced by a society’s morality and its politics

15 Rich Dad’s Prophecy by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. 10 3 Lechter (Warner: $21.95) The authors predict a stock market crash and advise how to prepare for it

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