BESTSELLERS

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

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*--* 1 The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (Doubleday: $24.95) A 4 80 Louvre curator’s killing leads to clues hidden in Leonardo’s paintings and a secret society with something to hide.

2 Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke 1 5 (Bloomsbury: $27.95) A reclusive magician teams with a risk-taking younger man to delve into England’s magical past.

3 Trace by Patricia Cornwell (Putnam: $26.95) Medical 2 4 examiner Kay Scarpetta is called back to Richmond, Va., to help her former colleagues determine what killed a 14-year-old girl.

4 The Plot Against America by Philip Roth (Houghton -- 1 Mifflin: $26) Charles Lindbergh becomes president in 1940, setting the country on a course of isolationism and nationwide pogroms.

5 The Dark Tower VII by Stephen King (Donald M. Grant: $35) -- 1 Roland and his ka-tet near their goal, the Dark Tower, but the gunslingers face mutants, vampires and the fearsome Crimson King.

6 Are You Afraid of the Dark? by Sidney Sheldon (William 3 2 Morrow: $25.95) Two widows try to find out who killed their husbands and wants them dead too.

7 Nights of Rain and Stars by Maeve Binchy (Dutton: $25.95) -- 1 Tragedy strikes a small village on a Greek island, forever changing the world of the travelers and local residents who call it home.

8 The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom 7 53 (Hyperion: $19.95) An amusement park maintenance man faces his life, death and afterlife in this three-part parable.

9 California Girl by T. Jefferson Parker (William Morrow: -- 1 $24.95) Three brothers try to find a killer who left a young girl’s body behind an Orange County fruit-packing plant.

10 The Inner Circle by T.C. Boyle (Viking: $25.95) An 5 3 assistant to zoology professor Alfred Kinsey becomes immersed in an inner circle of researchers participating in sexual experiments.

11 The Falls by Joyce Carol Oates (Ecco: $26.95) A 12 2 newlywed’s jump over Niagara Falls casts a shadow over two generations in a tale of greed, corruption and tragedy.

12 The System of the World by Neal Stephenson (William -- 1 Morrow: $27.95) A counterfeiter tries to corrupt Britain’s new monetary system in 1714.

13 Tijuana Straits by Kem Nunn (Scribner: $25) A washed-up 9 5 surfer gets the chance to help a fellow soul on the run from danger in the no-man’s-land along the Mexican border.

14 The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason 8 20 (Dial: $24) Four Princeton roommates use clues from a 15th century manuscript to find a buried Roman treasure.

15 The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Penguin: 10 10 $24.95) In postwar Barcelona, the son of a bookstore owner tries to unearth the story of a long-dead novelist.

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

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*--* 1 America (The Book): A Citizen’s Guide to Democracy 12 2 Inaction by Jon Stewart et al (Warner: $24.95) Comedy writers poke fun at U.S. politics and our institutions of democracy.

2 The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty by Kitty 1 2 Kelley (Doubleday: $29.95) A critical look at an insular, powerful dynasty that has spawned two presidents, two governors and a senator.

3 He’s Just Not That Into You by Greg Behrendt and Liz 14 2 Tuccillo (Simon Spotlight Entertainment: $19.95) The no-excuses guide to help women understand guys and get on with their lives.

4 Family First by Phil McGraw (Free Press: $26) A 5 2 day-by-day guide to raising cooperative, caring and competent children through effective parenting and putting family first.

5 Confessions of an Heiress by Paris Hilton (Fireside: $22) 3 4 The do’s and don’ts of beauty, fashion, etiquette -- and life in general -- from the hotel-chain heiress, model and current it-girl.

6 Unfit for Command by John E. O’Neill and Jerome R. Corsi 2 7 (Regnery: $27.95) Vietnam vets accuse presidential nominee John F. Kerry of misdeeds regarding his wartime service.

7 Coast of Dreams by Kevin Starr (Knopf: $35) Riots, -- 1 recession, political upheaval and a trial of the century tarnish the golden promise of California from 1990 to 2003.

8 The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren (Zondervan: 9 82 $19.99) How the “God ordained” principles of worship, community, discipleship, ministry and evangelism bring fulfillment.

9 Chain of Command by Seymour M. Hersh (HarperCollins: 4 2 $25.95) The investigative reporter traces the nation’s path from Sept. 11 to abuse at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison.

10 In the Shadow of No Towers by Art Spiegelman (Pantheon: 7 3 $19.95) In cartoon format, a chain-smoking Manhattan pessimist is convinced that the world ended with the Sept. 11 attacks.

11 The Fourth Power by Gary Hart (Oxford: $22) The former -- 1 Colorado senator says hallowed American ideals should guide U.S. policy and global strategy.

12 How to Remodel a Man by W. Bruce Cameron (St. Martin’s -- 1 Press: $19.95) For anyone determined to change male behavior, a man offers step-by-step advice on how men think.

13 How to Be Lovely by Melissa Hellstern (Dutton: $17.95) A -- 2 behind-the-scenes look at the real Audrey Hepburn -- actress, muse, mother and humanitarian -- through her own words and wisdom.

14 Skywriting by Jane Pauley (Random House: $25.95) The TV -- 4 newsmagazine’s golden girl explores the ups and downs of a remarkable career, her roots in the heartland and how she redefined herself at midlife.

15 Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (Gotham: $17.50) A 8 24 British novelist and journalist offers her zero-tolerance approach to bad punctuation, drawn from her pioneering BBC series.

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