Bestsellers

PAPERBACKS

Fiction

*--* Fiction weeks on list 1. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown (Doubleday: $25.99) Harvard 3 professor Robert Langdon uses his symbology skills to find a missing Freemason in Washington, D.C. 2. Blood’s a Rover by James Ellroy (Knopf : $28.95) A bank 1 heist sets off an escapade through 1960s L.A. encountering the Mob, the FBI and Howard Hughes. 3. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95) The lives 18 of a maid, a cook and a college graduate become intertwined while changing a Mississippi town. 4. An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon (Delacorte Press: 2 $30) A romance blooms during colonial times with consequences centuries later. 5. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic Press: 4 $17.99) The winners of the annual Hunger Games face the consequences of their victory. 6. A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore (Knopf : $25.95) A 4 naive Midwestern college coed takes a job as a nanny for a recently adopted toddler. 7. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown: $19.99) Bella 64 must choose between her lover and a friend, between life and death. 8. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson (Knopf: 10 $25.95) A hacker implicated in two murders must revisit her past to prove her innocence. 9. The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks (Grand Central: $24.99) 4 A brother and sister begrudgingly spend the summer with their estranged pianist father and discover the meaning of unconditional love. 10. The White Queen by Philippa Gregory (Touchstone: $25.99) 7 The wars of the Plantagenets, who ruled England before the Tudors, enmeshed with the mystery of the missing princes in the Tower of London. *--*

*--* Nonfiction 1. True Compass by Edward Kennedy (Twelve: $35) The 2 memoirs of the late Massachusetts statesman. 2. Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer (Doubleday: 3 $27.95) A chronicle of Pat Tillman, the NFL star turned Army ranger whose death in Afghanistan stunned the power structure. 3. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown: $27.99) 44 An exploration of the background of high achievers. 4. Arguing With Idiots by Glenn Beck (Threshold 1 Editions: $29.99) Secrets and facts for winning arguments with small-minded people. 5. Have Little Faith by Mitch Albom (Hyperion: $23.99) 1 Observations of a rabbi and a pastor and their eight-year journey of faith. 6. L.A. Noir by John Buntin (Harmony: $26) Gangster 5 Mickey Cohen and LAPD Chief William Parker battle for control in midcentury Los Angeles. 7. American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson (Harper: 1 $25.99) A memoir of the Scottish comic living the American dream. 8. Official Book Club Selection by Kathy Griffin 3 (Ballantine: $25) The comedian and reality show star’s unplugged and uncensored life. 9. The Case for God by Karen Armstrong (Knopf: $27.95) 1 An examination of the recent decline of the practice of numerous organized religions. 10. Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne (Viking: $25.95) A 1 journal of the former Talking Heads lead singer and avid bicyclist’s trek across major cities around the globe. *--*

1. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson ($14.95)

2. Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout ($14)

3. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery ($15)

4. Say You’re One of Them by Uwem Akpan ($14.99)

5. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows ($14)

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Nonfiction

1. My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud’homme ($15)

2. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell ($14.99)

3. Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher ($13.99)

4. The Official SAT Study Guide, 2nd Edition by the College Board ($21.99)

5. The Family by Jeff Sharlet ($15.99)

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores. --

latimes.com/books

When Mary met Shelley

The Siren’s Call: How Percy and Mary Shelley collaborated on “Frankenstein.” Off the Shelf: Gabrielle Burton follows in the footsteps of Tamsen Donner. Jacket Copy: Richard III and a Tudor smear campaign.