Southern California Rating:FICTION1 FROM THE CORNER OF...

Southern California Rating:

FICTION

1 FROM THE CORNER OF HIS EYE by Dean Koontz (Bantam: $26.95) A boy born on a day of tragedy and terror finds that the events of his life live up to the remarkable circumstances of his birth.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 2

2 THE CONSTANT GARDENER by John le Carre (Scribner: $28) A British diplomat quits his Nairobi home and garden to avenge the murder of his wife, who uncovered multinational misdeeds in Kenya.

Last Week: 2; Weeks on List: 6

3 CODE TO ZERO by Ken Follett (Dutton: $26.95) A man wakes up in a train station in Washington, D.C., in 1958 with no idea who he is or how he got there.

Last Week: 8; Weeks on List: 5

4 SHOPGIRL by Steve Martin (Hyperion: $17.95) A young artist who works days in the glove department at Neiman Marcus falls abruptly in love with a millionaire businessman.

Last Week: 3; Weeks on List: 16

5 SHADOW OF THE HEGEMON by Orson Scott Card (Tor Books: $25.95) In the sixth book of the Ender series, Bean becomes a tactical genius who wins the Earth for the Hegemon.

Last Week: 1; Weeks on List: 2

6 THE FIRST COUNSEL by Brad Meltzer (Warner: $25.95) In love with the president’s daughter, a young White House lawyer uncovers a murder plot that extends to the Oval Office.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

7 LYING AWAKE by Mark Salzman (Alfred A. Knopf: $21) A meditation on spirituality in the life of an Angeleno nun facing a dilemma: Should she have surgery that will cure her of mystical visions?

Last Week: 15; Weeks on List: 16

8 PRODIGAL SUMMER by Barbara Kingsolver (HarperCollins: $26) In southern Appalachia, three stories of human love intersect within a larger tapestry.

Last Week: 4; Weeks on List: 12

9 TWO O’CLOCK, EASTERN WARTIME by John Dunning (Scribner: $26) A writer discovers his talent for radio drama, and solving mysteries, at a small Jersey radio station in World War II.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

10 SOUL MOUNTAIN by Gao Xingjian (HarperCollins: $27) The Nobel Prize winner shares a story of a man’s inner journey and search for freedom in rural China.

Last Week: 10; Weeks on List: 6

11 THE KILL ARTIST by Daniel Silva (Random House: $25.95) A former assassin is brought out of retirement to thwart a plot to destroy Middle East peace negotiations.

Last Week: 11; Weeks on List: 2

12 ROSES ARE RED by James Patterson (Little, Brown: $26.95) Alex Cross battles a cunning murderer, nicknamed “Mastermind,” who orchestrates teams of criminals while hiding in the shadows.

Last Week: 7; Weeks on List: 7

13 THE LAST PRECINCT by Patricia Cornwell (Putnam: $26.95) At Christmastime, Dr. Kay Scarpetta and her staff have not a moment to spare as mangled corpses crowd their morgue.

Last Week: 6; Weeks on List: 7

14 THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY by Michael Chabon (Random House: $26.95) In 1939 Brooklyn, two Jewish cousins, one American, one Czech, collaborate to create a comic book.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 8

15 THE PROMETHEUS DECEPTION by Robert Ludlum (St. Martin’s: $27.95) A spy infiltrates his former shadowy agency in this story of post-Cold War double-crosses and Wall Street conspiracies.

Last Week: 12; Weeks on List: 9

NONFICTION

1 WHO MOVED MY CHEESE? by Spencer Johnson (Putnam: $19.95) This co-author of “The One Minute Manager” uses the parable of mice in a maze to show people how to manage change.

Last Week: 2; Weeks on List: 44

2 DARWIN AWARDS by Wendy Northcutt (Dutton: $16.95) Stupid human tricks: Honoring those who improve our gene pool by eliminating themselves from it.

Last Week: 5; Weeks on List: 6

3 A SHORT GUIDE TO A HAPPY LIFE by Anna Quindlen (Random House: $12.95) The columnist reflects on what it takes to “get a life” by living deeply rather than merely existing.

Last Week: 1; Weeks on List: 10

4 AN HOUR BEFORE DAYLIGHT by Jimmy Carter (Simon & Schuster: $26) Memories of the former president’s boyhood on a Georgia farm. Reviewed by Susan Reynolds, Page 11.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

5 THE CAT WHO COVERED THE WORLD by Christopher S. Wren (Simon & Schuster: $21) The antics of a Siamese cat who traveled with reporter Wren and his family to points around the globe.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

6 PARIS TO THE MOON by Adam Gopnik (Random House: $24.95) A personal homage to years spent in the City of Light by a longtime New Yorker writer.

Last Week: 3; Weeks on List: 12

7 MAESTRO by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster: $25) Portrait of Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who started as a Juilliard-trained sax man and now keeps the U.S. economy in tune.

Last Week: 4; Weeks on List: 8

8 THE O’REILLY FACTOR by Bill O’Reilly (Broadway Books: $23) The TV pundit pontificates on what he finds to be the good, the bad and the completely ridiculous in American life.

Last Week: 10; Weeks on List: 15

9 THE NEW GEOGRAPHY by Joel Kotkin (Random House: $22.95) How the digital revolution is reshaping the American landscape, especially where and how we live and work.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 2

10 TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE by Mitch Albom (Doubleday: $19.95) A sportswriter’s story of the life lessons he received during weekly visits to an older dying friend.

Last Week: 13; Weeks on List: 151

11 NOTHING LIKE IT IN THE WORLD by Stephen Ambrose (Simon & Schuster: $28) The historian looks at the building of the transcontinental railroad and its impact on the growth of the nation.

Last Week: 6; Weeks on List: 21

12 AN INVITATION TO THE WHITE HOUSE by Hillary Rodham Clinton (Simon & Schuster: $35) Upstairs, downstairs with the First Lady, who narrates the fascinating past and present of the White House.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 4

13 UNTIL TODAY! by Iyanla Vanzant (Simon & Schuster: $22) In an effort to help kill old (bad) habits, Vanzant offers 365 daily devotions for spiritual growth and peace of mind.

Last Week: 15; Weeks on List: 2

14 JAZZ by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns (Alfred A. Knopf: $65) A companion book to the PBS series that traces the history of “America’s music” from its infancy in early 20th century New Orleans.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 2

15 VANITY FAIR’S HOLLYWOOD edited by Graydon Carter and David Friend (Viking Studio: $60) Essays, photographs and caricatures portraying the cult of celebrity from 1914 to the present.

Last Week: 9; Weeks on List: 5

PAPERBACKS

FICTION

1 CHOCOLAT by Joanne Harris (Penguin: $12.95) A new chocolate shop arouses French villagers’ desires in the middle of Lent.

2 HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG by Andre Dubus III (Vintage: $14) Two families clash over an auctioned house in this tragic tale.

3 THE BRETHREN by John Grisham (Dell Island: $7.99) A scam by three former judges doing time goes awry.

4 GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING by Tracy Chevalier (Plume: $12) The life of the woman who inspired a famous Vermeer painting.

5 WAITING by Ha Jin (Vintage: $13) A legal loophole allows long-separated lovers to be united.

6 O IS FOR OUTLAW by Sue Grafton (Ballantine: $7.99) New information dredges up old memories for Kinsey.

7 GIRL IN HYACINTH BLUE by Susan Vreeland (Penguin: $12) Eight stories linked by a Dutch master’s painting.

8 THE CAT WHO ROBBED A BANK by Lilian Jackson Braun (Berkley: $6.99) A pair of feline sleuths help solve a purrr-fect murder.

9 THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant (Picador USA: $14) The blossoming of Dinah, Jacob’s only daughter, in Genesis.

10 VOID MOON by Michael Connelly (Warner: $7.99) An ex-con’s in big trouble after ripping off a gambler with mob connections.

PAPERBACKS

NONFICTION

1 RICH KID, SMART KID by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter (Warner: $15.95) Training children to be dollar-wise.

2 GALILEO’S DAUGHTER by Dava S obel (Penguin: $14) The famous astronomer and his daughter, a cloistered nun.

3 RICH DAD, POOR DAD by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter (Techpress: $15.95) Adventures in fiscal parenting.

4 THE DARK SIDE OF THE LIGHT CHASERS by Debbie Ford (Riverhead: $13) How to reclaim your emotional power.

5 THE WORST-CASE SCENARIO SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by Joshua Piven and David Borgenicht (Chronicle: $14.95) S-O-S!

6 OH NO! NOT ANOTHER PROBLEM by Jeanette A. Griver & Michele W. Vodrey (Compsych Systems: $12.95) Solutions for daily life.

7 THE NINE STEPS TO FINANCIAL FREEDOM by Suze Orman (Random House: $13.95) Practical tips for managing money.

8 BEFORE NIGHT FALLS by Reinaldo Arenas (Viking: $12.95) A Cuban writer’s memoir of

political and sexual oppression.

9 TALKING DIRTY WITH THE QUEEN OF CLEAN by Linda Cobb (Pocket: $8.99) Quick, inexpensive housekeeping tips galore.

10 WORLD ALMANAC & BOOK OF FACTS 2001 (World Almanac: $10.95) Includes 2000 Olympics and election coverage.

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Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.