Bestsellers

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction

*--*

*--* 1 Angels & Demons by Dan Brown (Pocket Books: $7.99) A scholar uncovers a vendetta against the Catholic church.

2 The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (Penguin: $14) A teenage girl is haunted by her mother’s death.

3 Life of Pi by Yann Martel (Harvest Books: $14) A boy shares a lifeboat with a tiger on a harrowing trip.

4 Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (Picador: $15) A Greek family embraces the American dream.

5 Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee (Penguin: $13) An outcast professor seeks refuge on a South African farm.

6 Deception Point by Dan Brown (Pocket Books: $7.99) A president’s reelection rests on an object buried in the Arctic.

7 Mystic River by Dennis Lehane (HarperTorch: $7.99) A girl’s murder causes three friends to confront their pasts.

8 Prey by Michael Crichton (Avon: $7.99) Self-replicating nanobots escape the laboratory and threaten their creators’ lives.

9 Child of My Heart by Alice McDermott (Picador: $13) A 15-year-old girl’s summer as baby-sitter to the rich on Long Island.

10 The Human Stain by Philip Roth (Vintage: $14.95) Sex and scandal surround an aging faculty dean.

*--*

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction

*--*

*--* 1 Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution by Robert C. Atkins (Quill: $13.95) Shed pounds with a low-carb diet.

2 Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter (Techpress: $15.95) Fiscal parenting.

3 Weapons and Warfare by Chris Smith (Houghton Mifflin: $18.95) Battles of the “Lord of the Rings” film trilogy.

4 Portrait of a Killer by Patricia Cornwell (Berkley: $7.99) The author enlists forensic technology to hunt Jack the Ripper.

5 100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know by American Heritage (Houghton Mifflin: $4.95).

6 From Bush to Bush by Don Novello (Simon & Schuster: $10.95) The comic’s letters to political celebrities.

7 Step Across This Line by Salman Rushdie (Modern Library: $15.95) Essays and opinion pieces.

8 Showdown by Larry Elder (Griffin: $14.95) The radio host protests governmental red tape and the loss of freedom.

9 Common Nonsense by Andy Rooney (PublicAffairs: $15) Reflections of the 60 Minutes commentator.

10 My New Fighting Technique Is Unstoppable by David Rees (Riverhead: $10) Freewheeling comic art.

*--*