BESTSELLERS / PAPERBACKS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction

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*--* 1 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead: $14) A writer returns to Kabul to rescue the son of a childhood friend.

2 The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Penguin: $15) A quest for the truth about a Spanish novelist.

3 Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (Vintage: $12) An autistic teen seeks out a killer.

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

5 Angels & Demons by Dan Brown (Pocket Books: $7.99) A scholar uncovers a vendetta against the Roman Catholic Church.

6 The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (Del Rey: $7.99) A hapless traveler creates galactic havoc.

7 Hidden Prey by John Sandford (Berkley: $7.99) A detective teams with a Russian cop to investigate a murder.

8 R Is for Ricochet by Sue Grafton (Berkley: $7.99) A rich man hires Kinsey Millhone to keep his parolee daughter clean.

9 Just One Look by Harlan Coben (Signet: $7.99) A housewife enlists a mobster to find her missing husband.

10 Bergdorf Blondes by Plum Sykes (Miramax: $13.95) Park Avenue princesses search for love and riches.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction

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*--* 1 The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell (Back Bay: $14.95) How fads, trends and ideas behave like viruses in a society.

2 The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene (Penguin: $17) Distilling the actions that can increase and decrease power.

3 The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (Vintage: $14.95) A serial killer haunts the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.

4 Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter (TechPress/Warner: $15.95) Fiscal parenting.

5 Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond (W.W. Norton: $16.95) A scientist’s take on Europe’s rise to dominance.

6 Leap of Faith by Queen Noor (Miramax Books: $13.95) A former Princeton co-ed becomes Jordanian royalty.

7 Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi (Random House: $13.95) A professor keeps literature alive for her students.

8 1,000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia Schultz (Workman: $18.95) Trotting the globe.

9 What’s the Matter With Kansas? by Thomas Frank (Owl Books: $14) How conservatives won America’s heartland.

10 Truth & Beauty: A Friendship by Ann Patchett (Perennial: $13.95) Reflections on friendship and devotion.

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Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.