BESTSELLERS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Harry Potter and the -- 1 Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (Arthur A. Levine /Scholastic: $29.99) A teenage Harry faces a new darkness in his latest adventures.

2 The Historian by Elizabeth 1 6 Kostova (Little, Brown: $25.95) A teenager discovers a medieval book and a stash of letters and sets out on a hunt for the real story of Dracula, a quest close to home.

3 Until I Find You by John 9 2 Irving (Random House: $27.95) Actor Jack Burns retraces the journeys of his childhood and his tattoo-artist mother’s search for his runaway father.

4 Lifeguard by James 8 2 Patterson and Andrew Gross (Little, Brown: $26.95) An art heist gone bad vaults a part-time lifeguard onto the FBI’s most-wanted list.

5 A Long Way Down by Nick 2 6 Hornby (Riverhead: $24.95) A quartet of people who met on a London rooftop as they contemplated suicide form a support group.

6 Snow Flower and the Secret 3 3 Fan by Lisa See (Random House: $21.95) Two women in the cloistered society of 19th century China forge a close friendship that is threatened by misunderstanding.

7 The Mermaid Chair by Sue 4 16 Monk Kidd (Viking: $24.95) A woman who is called home to cope with her troubled mother finds herself drawn to a Benedictine monk on an island off South Carolina.

8 The Starter Wife by Gigi -- 6 Levangie Grazer (Simon & Schuster: $24) The pampered wife of a studio executive finds her world turned upside down after her husband dumps her for a pop princess.

9 Freddy and Fredericka by -- 1 Mark Helprin (Penguin Press: $27.95) An heir to the British throne lacks the charisma that his consort has in spades in this satiric take on royalty.

10 The Da Vinci Code by Dan 5 122 Brown (Doubleday: $24.95) A Louvre curator’s killing leads to clues hidden in Leonardo’s paintings and a secret society with something to hide.

11 Origin in Death by J.D. -- 1 Robb (Putnam: $24.95) Cop Eve Dallas tries to find out who stabbed a famous cosmetic surgeon and his up-and-coming son in a futuristic New York.

12 Eleven on Top by Janet 7 4 Evanovich (St. Martin’s: $26.95) Stephanie Plum tries her hand at factory work, a dry cleaners and fast-food service but soon is drawn back to bounty hunting.

13 Breaking Point by Suzanne -- 1 Brockmann (Ballantine: $21.95) An elite FBI counterterrorism agent must try to rescue the woman he loves when he learns she has been taken hostage.

14 Cross Bones by Kathy -- 1 Reichs (Scribner: $25.95) A forensic anthropologist is called in to decide if a dealer in illicit antiquities died by his own hand or someone else’s.

15 Blinding Light by Paul -- 1 Theroux (Houghton Mifflin: $26) A successful memoirist ponders whether to indulge in a tropical potion that will lift his writer’s block but could cause him to lose his sight.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Freakonomics by Steven D. 2 13 Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (William Morrow: $25.95) An economist deconstructs statistics and uses numbers to help explain human behavior.

2 1776 by David McCullough 1 7 (Simon & Schuster: $32) The historian looks at how the American forces took on the world’s greatest military power in the Revolution’s first battles.

3 The World Is Flat by 5 14 Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $27.50) How technology and the forces of globalization are connecting -- and changing -- the world.

4 Blink by Malcolm Gladwell 3 27 (Little, Brown: $25.95) Gladwell explores why decisions are so often made in an instant and whether we can really trust those first instincts.

5 Natural Cures “They� Don’t 8 4 Want You to Know About by Kevin Trudeau (Alliance Publishing: $29.95) The infomercial mogul touts alternative therapies and supplements.

6 On Bull... by Harry G. 4 18 Frankfurt (Princeton University Press: $9.95) A leading philosopher takes on society’s view of what sometimes seems to be the fine line between truth and lying.

7 You: The Owner’s Manual by 9 11 Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz (HarperResource: $24.95) A wry and witty guide to the inner workings of the human body.

8 The Secret Man by Bob 7 2 Woodward (Simon & Schuster: $23) The reporter tells how “Deep Throat� guided him in uncovering the Nixon White House’s involvement in the Watergate scandal.

9 100 People Who Are 10 2 Screwing Up America by Bernard Goldberg (HarperCollins: $25.95) The author of “Arrogance� indicts celebrity activists, liberal politicians and deep-pocket donors.

10 Confessions of a Video 11 3 Vixen by Karrine Steffans (HarperCollins: $24.95) The troubled background behind the glamorous image of a celebrated music video dancer.

11 Crystal Cove Cottages by -- 1 Karen E. Steen et al (Chronicle Books: $35) A look at a group of historic beach cottages along the Orange County coastline that mixes bohemia and Americana.

12 My Friend Leonard by James 6 4 Frey (Penguin: $24.95) The former cocaine addict’s sequel to “A Million Little Pieces� celebrates the mobster who helped him turn his life around.

13 Your Best Life Now by Joel 12 27 Osteen (Warner Faith: $19.99) Seven steps to improving your life by using faith to develop self-esteem, let go of the past and fulfill your potential.

14 Oh the Glory of It All by 13 8 Sean Wilsey (Penguin: $25.95) A memoir of a young man who rebels against his privileged upbringing and self-absorbed parents.

15 America (The Book): A -- 28 Citizen’s Guide to Democracy Inaction by Jon Stewart et al. (Warner: $24.95) Comedy writers poke fun at U.S. politics and our institutions of democracy.

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