BESTSELLERS

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 The Ruins by Scott Smith -- 1 (Knopf: $24.95) Four American friends in Cancun who agree to help a German tourist find his missing brother end up in a Mexican jungle a la TV’s “Lost.”

2 Literacy and Longing in 1 9 L.A. by Jennifer Kaufman and Karen Mack (Delacorte: $22) A book-obsessed divorcee stalks her movie-mogul ex-husband until she meets a literature major.

3 Suite Francaise by Irene 5 14 Nemirovsky (Knopf: $25) Two novellas from a writer killed at Auschwitz on the exodus from Paris ahead of the Germans’ arrival and on life in a farming village under occupation.

4 Pegasus Descending by -- 1 James Lee Burke (Simon & Schuster: $26) Sober and newly married, Det. Dave Robicheaux tries to solve the 25-year-old armored-car heist that caused his partner’s death.

5 The Devil and Miss Prym by 9 3 Paulo Coelho (HarperCollins: $24.95) A former arms dealer comes to a village with a proposal: wealth for all if one of its residents is murdered within the week.

6 Phantom by Terry Goodkind -- 1 (Tor Books: $29.95) In the 10th book in the “Sword of Truth” series, Kahlan Amnell seeks her true identity in a war-torn world she has the power to destroy.

7 Angels Fall by Nora 3 2 Roberts (Putnam: $25.95) A woman who has moved to a small town in Wyoming after surviving a brutal crime becomes the sole witness to a murder.

8 Talk Talk by T.C. Boyle 2 3 (Viking: $25.95) A deaf woman is accused of numerous felonies; her boyfriend tries to find the real criminal, who has stolen her identity.

9 Terrorist by John Updike -- 6 (Knopf: $24.95) An Irish Egyptian American teen in a dying New Jersey town becomes enthralled with a radical cleric who preaches from a storefront mosque.

10 Can’t Wait to Get to 4 3 Heaven by Fannie Flagg (Random House: $25.95) When adversity hits Elmwood Springs, Mo., townsfolk discover happiness and renewed faith in helping each other.

11 Break No Bones by Kathy 8 2 Reichs (Scribner: $25.95) A forensic anthropologist leading an excavation of an ancient burial site finds some remains that aren’t historic.

12 The Chinatown Death Cloud -- 1 Peril by Paul Malmont (Simon & Schuster: $24) Competing 1930s pulp fiction writers try to solve real-life mysteries, including the death of H.P. Lovecraft.

13 Twelve Sharp by Janet 6 5 Evanovich (St. Martin’s: $26.95) Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum tries to find a crazed killer with the help of a mysterious man accused of kidnapping his own child.

14 Blue Screen by Robert B. 15 5 Parker (Putnam: $24.95) Boston P.I. Sunny Randall teams with pal Jesse Stone, police chief of Paradise, Mass., to investigate the killing of an action movie star’s sister.

15 The Janissary Tree by -- 1 Jason Goodwin (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $25) Yashim Togalu, a eunuch in the sultan’s court, scours 19th century Istanbul to find a jewel thief and killer.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Marley & Me by John Grogan 4 36 (William Morrow: $21.95) A columnist recalls how Marley, an incorrigible Labrador retriever, flunked obedience school, terrorized a pet sitter and won over his family.

2 Conservatives Without 1 2 Conscience by John W. Dean (Viking: $25.95) The former Watergate figure argues that the conservative movement has become riddled with authoritarianism.

3 Heat by Bill Buford 6 8 (Knopf: $25.95) The journalist chronicles his time as a “kitchen slave” to TV chef Mario Batali and reveals the secrets of a three-star restaurant and Italian cooking.

4 The One Percent Doctrine 2 5 by Ron Suskind (Simon & Schuster: $27) How the analyses of U.S. counter-terrorism experts were exaggerated or dismissed to justify going to war with Iraq.

5 The World Is Flat by 7 66 Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $30) How technology and globalization are changing the world and the training that is needed to compete.

6 Laurel Canyon by Michael 3 9 Walker (Faber & Faber: $25) A look at the ‘60s rock bands and artists whose creativity flowered in Laurel Canyon, then a sylvan enclave above Sunset Boulevard.

7 Cesar’s Way by Cesar 9 16 Millan with Melissa Jo Peltier (Harmony: $24.95) The “Dog Whisperer” of TV gives tips on understanding and correcting common canine behavior problems.

8 Godless by Ann Coulter -- 6 (Crown Forum: $27.95) The conservative commentator contends that liberalism has many of the attributes of a religion, and she argues against the certainty of evolution.

9 The Man Who Heard Voices -- 1 by Michael Bamberger (Gotham: $27.50) How filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan rejected critics and gambled on his vision to make his new movie, “Lady in the Water.”

10 So I’ve Heard by Alan Rich -- 1 (Amadeus Press: $24.95) A collection of reviews and essays by LA Weekly’s veteran music critic on artists ranging from Leonard Bernstein to John Cage.

11 Freakonomics by Steven D. 11 57 Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (William Morrow: $25.95) An economist deconstructs statistics and uses numbers to help explain human behavior.

12 The Long Tail by Chris 14 2 Anderson (Hyperion: 24.95) How technological advances have shattered the old paradigms on marketing and opened up new opportunities for niche selling.

13 Mayflower by Nathaniel 5 11 Philbrick (Viking: $29.95) The story of devout English Christians landing in the New World and the natives they meet as they found Plymouth Colony.

14 The Alphabet of Manliness -- 1 by Maddox (Hyperion: 24.95) The creator of the website “The Best Page in the Universe” offers advice on manly behavior and all things masculine.

15 Dispatches From the Edge 10 9 by Anderson Cooper (HarperCollins: $24.95) Gloria Vanderbilt’s telegenic son recounts personal tragedies as well as the wars and disasters he’s covered for CNN.

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Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.