BESTSELLERS

PAPERBACKS

1. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett ($24.95)

2. The Gathering by Anne Enright ($14)

Fiction

3. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen ($13.95)

4. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini ($15)

5. Atonement by Ian McEwan ($14.95)

Nonfiction

1. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert ($15)

2. A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle ($14)

3. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

($15)

4. The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama ($14.95)

5. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby

($12.95)

*--* Fiction -- weeks on list 1. The Appeal by John Grisham (Doubleday: 1 $27.95) A billionaire enlists political help to kill a $41-million jury award over toxic waste dumping. 2. Duma Key by Stephen King (Scribner: $28) A 2 man takes up painting as therapy, only to discover his canvases have an uncontrollable power over him. 3. The Reserve by Russell Banks (HarperCollins: 1 $24.94) Romance among the elite and troubled in the Adirondacks of the 1930s. 4. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks 5 (Viking: $25.95) A rare-books expert traces the history of a priceless Jewish tome to 15th century Spain. 5. The Senator’s Wife by Sue Miller (Knopf: 4 $24.95) A bride learns from a politician’s long-suffering spouse. 6. A Version of the Truth by Jennifer Kaufman 6 and Karen Mack (Delacorte: $24) A Topanga Canyon woman falls in love with her boss. 7. Beautiful Children by Charles Bock (Random 1 House: $25) A comic book illustrator and his stripper wife search Las Vegas for their 12-year-old son. 8. Three Shirt Deal by Stephen J. Cannell (St. 3 Martin’s: $24.95) Shane Scully tries to save a convict whose murder confession was coerced. 9. Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich (St. Martin’s: 4 $17.95) Stephanie Plum’s latest caper involves a big bag of money, plus-size modeling and a case of hives. 10. Blasphemy by Douglas Preston (Forge: $25.95) 4 Scientists at the world’s largest supercollider uncover secrets to the world’s future and past. *--*

*--* Nonfiction -- weeks on list 1. In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan 5 (Penguin Press: $21.95) A look at dietary sacred cows. 2. The Dangerous Book for Boys by Conn and 37 Hal Iggulden (HarperCollins: $24.95) Learn how to tie knots, find true north and other skills. 3. Born Standing Up by Steve Martin 11 (Scribner: $25) The comedian reflects on the evolution of his art. 4. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne (Beyond Words: 58 $23.95) Life’s secrets distilled from oral tradition, literature, religion and philosophy. 5. Tom Cruise by Andrew Morton (St. Martin’s: 3 $25.95) An unauthorized biography on the movie megastar. 6. The Daring Book for Girls by Andrea J. 14 Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz (HarperCollins: $24.95) A girls’ handbook of must-have knowledge and skills. 7. Become a Better You by Joel Osteen (Free 11 Press: $25) Change through prayer and good habits. 8. The Mind of the Market by Michael Shermer 1 (Times Books: $26) How evolution has shaped our capitalist, consumer-oriented economy. 9. Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks (Knopf: $26) 12 The medical storyteller explores the link between music and its myriad effects on the human brain. 10. I Am America by Stephen Colbert (Grand 17 Central: $26.99) “The Colbert Report” star expounds on the forces destroying the country. *--*

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.