BESTSELLERS

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 The Castle in the Forest 8 2 by Norman Mailer (Random House: $27.95) Imagining Adolf Hitler as a boy, a power-hungry child born of incest who is guided by a devil to relish evil and mass slaughter.

2 Dust by Martha Grimes 14 3 (Viking: $25.95) Scotland Yard’s Richard Jury discovers that a wealthy bachelor’s murder in a seedy London hotel has its roots amid Britain’s World War II code breakers.

3 You Suck: A Love Story by 2 3 Christopher Moore (William Morrow: $21.95) A couple of San Francisco vampires enjoy the nightlife as they evade a wacky crowd of pursuers.

4 For One More Day by Mitch 4 19 Albom (Hyperion: $21.95) An alcoholic tries suicide and encounters his mother’s ghost, who tells him about her life and sacrifices as a single parent.

5 The Alexandria Link by -- 1 Steve Berry (Ballantine: $25.95) Evildoers snatch the son of a rare-book seller hoping he will reveal information regarding the legendary lost library in Egypt.

6 Sacred Games by Vikram -- 2 Chandra (HarperCollins: $27.95) A Sikh Mumbai policeman confronts India’s most sought-after gangster in this sweeping tale.

7 House of Meetings by 1 3 Martin Amis (Alfred A. Knopf: $23) A former inmate of Stalin’s gulag recounts his horrific experiences and the love triangle that bloomed there.

8 The Terror by Dan Simmons -- 2 (Little, Brown: $25.99) The saga of the doomed 19th century Franklin expedition through the Canadian Arctic retold with a kick of fantastical horror.

9 Plum Lovin’ by Janet 6 4 Evanovich (St. Martin’s: $16.95) A New Jersey bail bond agent hooks up with a former heartthrob as she chases a relationship coach wanted for robbery.

10 Travels in the Scriptorium -- 1 by Paul Auster (Henry Holt: $22) A man who can’t recall his own name spends a day being questioned about a series of horrific crimes.

11 Hollywood Station by 7 11 Joseph Wambaugh (Little, Brown: $24.99) Cops stationed in a Hollywood of meth tweakers and hustlers try to solve a jewelry heist and a security guard’s murder.

12 Him Her Him Again the End 9 2 of Him by Patricia Marx (Scribner: $24) A writer for a TV comedy show renews an affair with the Cambridge University student who jilted her and is now married.

13 Hannibal Rising by Thomas -- 7 Harris (Delacorte Press: $27.95) Hannibal Lecter is rescued from a Soviet orphanage by his uncle, but the boy is haunted by demons.

14 Next by Michael Crichton 13 9 (HarperCollins: $27.95) A cancer survivor, his daughter and grandson are the targets of unscrupulous genetic researchers determined to harvest disease-fighting cells for profit.

15 Suite Francaise by Irene 3 38 Nemirovsky (Knopf: $25) Two novellas by a writer killed at Auschwitz about the exodus from Paris ahead of the Germans’ arrival and on life in a farming village under occupation.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 The Audacity of Hope by 1 16 Barack Obama (Crown: $25) The U.S. senator from Illinois argues that his Democratic Party and the GOP must forgo partisanship to reclaim the American dream.

2 The Secret by Rhonda Byrne 4 8 (Beyond Words: $23.95) The book promises the distillation of a life-transforming “secret” gathered from oral tradition, literature, religion and philosophy.

3 I Feel Bad About My Neck 2 27 by Nora Ephron (Knopf: $19.95) The screenwriter ruminates on the effects of gravity and menopause, and reconciling herself to life among the post-bikini set.

4 The Proper Care and 6 5 Feeding of Marriage by Laura Schlessinger (HarperCollins: $25.95) How women should fulfill their role as homemaker, helpmate and sex partner.

5 Palestine: Peace Not 3 11 Apartheid by Jimmy Carter (Simon & Schuster: $27) The former president writes that Palestinians must recognize Israel, and Israel must honor its peace commitments.

6 Supreme Conflict by Jan 7 2 Crawford Greenburg (Penguin: $27.95) The ABC News reporter details the inner workings of the U.S. Supreme Court since Antonin Scalia’s arrival in 1986.

7 About Alice by Calvin 11 4 Trillin (Random House: $14.95) The writer expands his New Yorker magazine essay about his late wife to paint a revealing portrait of marriage, family and coping with loss.

8 Catching the Big Fish by 5 5 David Lynch (Tarcher: $19.95) The filmmaker details how Transcendental Meditation has allowed him to dive within, “catch” ideas and develop his creativity.

9 Prime Green by Robert 8 4 Stone (Ecco: $25.95) The author of “Dog Soldiers” recalls his life in the ‘60s with psychedelic guru Ken Kesey and his pals, hallucinogens and the culture wars.

10 The God Delusion by -- 16 Richard Dawkins (Houghton Mifflin: $27) The biologist criticizes religion for intolerance, rejecting scientific truth and threatening nonbelievers with eternal damnation.

11 A Practical Handbook for -- 1 the Boyfriend by Felicity Huffman and Patricia Wolff (Hyperion: $22.95) How to make your girlfriend happy without losing your man-ness.

12 Eat, Pray, Love by -- 27 Elizabeth Gilbert (Viking: $24.95) After deciding that marriage and motherhood aren’t for her, the author embarks on a journey of self-discovery in Italy, India and Indonesia.

13 The Intellectual 10 4 Devotional by David Kidder and Noah Oppenheim (Rodale: $22.50) How to complete your education and roam confidently through the cultured classes in 365 short lessons.

14 Power, Faith and Fantasy -- 1 by Michael B. Oren (W.W. Norton: $35) Tracing the long history of U.S. involvement in the politics and peoples of the Middle East.

15 Born on a Blue Day by -- 1 Daniel Tammet (Free Press: $24) The autobiography of an autistic savant with amazing mathematical and language abilities and an aversion to noise and the absence of routine.

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