BESTSELLERS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Harry Potter and the -- 1 Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (Arthur A. Levine /Scholastic: $29.99) A teenage Harry faces a new darkness in his latest adventures.

2 The Historian by Elizabeth 1 6 Kostova (Little, Brown: $25.95) A teenager discovers a medieval book and a stash of letters and sets out on a hunt for the real story of Dracula, a quest close to home.

3 Until I Find You by John 9 2 Irving (Random House: $27.95) Actor Jack Burns retraces the journeys of his childhood and his tattoo-artist mother’s search for his runaway father.

4 Lifeguard by James 8 2 Patterson and Andrew Gross (Little, Brown: $26.95) An art heist gone bad vaults a part-time lifeguard onto the FBI’s most-wanted list.

5 A Long Way Down by Nick 2 6 Hornby (Riverhead: $24.95) A quartet of people who met on a London rooftop as they contemplated suicide form a support group.

6 Snow Flower and the Secret 3 3 Fan by Lisa See (Random House: $21.95) Two women in the cloistered society of 19th century China forge a close friendship that is threatened by misunderstanding.

7 The Mermaid Chair by Sue 4 16 Monk Kidd (Viking: $24.95) A woman who is called home to cope with her troubled mother finds herself drawn to a Benedictine monk on an island off South Carolina.

8 The Starter Wife by Gigi -- 6 Levangie Grazer (Simon & Schuster: $24) The pampered wife of a studio executive finds her world turned upside down after her husband dumps her for a pop princess.

9 Freddy and Fredericka by -- 1 Mark Helprin (Penguin Press: $27.95) An heir to the British throne lacks the charisma that his consort has in spades in this satiric take on royalty.

10 The Da Vinci Code by Dan 5 122 Brown (Doubleday: $24.95) A Louvre curator’s killing leads to clues hidden in Leonardo’s paintings and a secret society with something to hide.

11 Origin in Death by J.D. -- 1 Robb (Putnam: $24.95) Cop Eve Dallas tries to find out who stabbed a famous cosmetic surgeon and his up-and-coming son in a futuristic New York.

12 Eleven on Top by Janet 7 4 Evanovich (St. Martin’s: $26.95) Stephanie Plum tries her hand at factory work, a dry cleaners and fast-food service but soon is drawn back to bounty hunting.

13 Breaking Point by Suzanne -- 1 Brockmann (Ballantine: $21.95) An elite FBI counterterrorism agent must try to rescue the woman he loves when he learns she has been taken hostage.

14 Cross Bones by Kathy -- 1 Reichs (Scribner: $25.95) A forensic anthropologist is called in to decide if a dealer in illicit antiquities died by his own hand or someone else’s.

15 Blinding Light by Paul -- 1 Theroux (Houghton Mifflin: $26) A successful memoirist ponders whether to indulge in a tropical potion that will lift his writer’s block but could cause him to lose his sight.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Freakonomics by Steven D. 2 13 Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (William Morrow: $25.95) An economist deconstructs statistics and uses numbers to help explain human behavior.

2 1776 by David McCullough 1 7 (Simon & Schuster: $32) The historian looks at how the American forces took on the world’s greatest military power in the Revolution’s first battles.

3 The World Is Flat by 5 14 Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $27.50) How technology and the forces of globalization are connecting -- and changing -- the world.

4 Blink by Malcolm Gladwell 3 27 (Little, Brown: $25.95) Gladwell explores why decisions are so often made in an instant and whether we can really trust those first instincts.

5 Natural Cures “They” Don’t 8 4 Want You to Know About by Kevin Trudeau (Alliance Publishing: $29.95) The infomercial mogul touts alternative therapies and supplements.

6 On Bull... by Harry G. 4 18 Frankfurt (Princeton University Press: $9.95) A leading philosopher takes on society’s view of what sometimes seems to be the fine line between truth and lying.

7 You: The Owner’s Manual by 9 11 Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz (HarperResource: $24.95) A wry and witty guide to the inner workings of the human body.

8 The Secret Man by Bob 7 2 Woodward (Simon & Schuster: $23) The reporter tells how “Deep Throat” guided him in uncovering the Nixon White House’s involvement in the Watergate scandal.

9 100 People Who Are 10 2 Screwing Up America by Bernard Goldberg (HarperCollins: $25.95) The author of “Arrogance” indicts celebrity activists, liberal politicians and deep-pocket donors.

10 Confessions of a Video 11 3 Vixen by Karrine Steffans (HarperCollins: $24.95) The troubled background behind the glamorous image of a celebrated music video dancer.

11 Crystal Cove Cottages by -- 1 Karen E. Steen et al (Chronicle Books: $35) A look at a group of historic beach cottages along the Orange County coastline that mixes bohemia and Americana.

12 My Friend Leonard by James 6 4 Frey (Penguin: $24.95) The former cocaine addict’s sequel to “A Million Little Pieces” celebrates the mobster who helped him turn his life around.

13 Your Best Life Now by Joel 12 27 Osteen (Warner Faith: $19.99) Seven steps to improving your life by using faith to develop self-esteem, let go of the past and fulfill your potential.

14 Oh the Glory of It All by 13 8 Sean Wilsey (Penguin: $25.95) A memoir of a young man who rebels against his privileged upbringing and self-absorbed parents.

15 America (The Book): A -- 28 Citizen’s Guide to Democracy Inaction by Jon Stewart et al. (Warner: $24.95) Comedy writers poke fun at U.S. politics and our institutions of democracy.

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