BESTSELLERS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 The Husband by Dean Koontz -- 1 (Bantam: $27) A gardener has 60 hours to raise $2 million to free his wife and in the process finds himself dealing with killers and a child pornographer.

2 Beach Road by James 8 5 Patterson and Peter de Jonge (Little, Brown: $27.95) Three young men are shot to death on a billionaire’s basketball court, and suspicion falls on a star high school player.

3 Everyman by Philip Roth 2 7 (Houghton Mifflin: $24) A self-centered New Jersey adman with a lifelong obsession that his death is imminent reflects on what he’s missed.

4 The Foreign Correspondent -- 1 by Alan Furst (Random House: $24.95) A journalist in Paris finds himself drawn into the activities of the Italian resistance on the eve of World War II.

5 Literacy and Longing in 14 2 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.

6 The Book of the Dead by -- 1 Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (Warner: $25.95) A psychotic killer who has ground a museum’s gem exhibit to dust now interferes with an Egyptian tomb restoration.

7 The Cold Moon by Jeffery -- 1 Deaver (Simon & Schuster: $26) Quadriplegic criminologist Lincoln Rhyme and his partner Amelia Sachs hunt for the Watchmaker, a sadistic serial killer.

8 The Poe Shadow by Matthew -- 1 Pearl (Random House: $24.95) A lawyer goes to Paris in search of clues to discover how Edgar Allan Poe ended up dead in a Baltimore hospital.

9 At Risk by Patricia 6 2 Cornwell (Putnam: $21.95) A Massachusetts district attorney wants to use DNA technology in a new crime initiative to burnish her bid for governor, but violence throws her a curve.

10 There Will Never Be 11 3 Another You by Carolyn See (Random House: $24.95) A UCLA dermatologist suspects biological terrorism or an experiment gone awry when cats turn up dead.

11 The Hard Way by Lee Child 3 3 (Delacorte: $25) Former military policeman Jack Reacher helps an ex-Special Forces officer track down his kidnapped daughter and trophy wife.

12 Suite Francaise by Irene 4 6 Nemirovsky (Knopf: $25) A posthumous novel about the Jewish exodus from Paris to a German-occupied village, penned by a celebrated writer killed at Auschwitz.

13 Dead Watch by John 5 3 Sandford (Putnam: $26.95) A White House political advisor investigates the murder of an ex-senator who vanished after denouncing a rival, the leader of a volunteer militia.

14 Absurdistan by Gary 9 5 Shteyngart (Random House: $24.95) A melancholy Russian raised in America tries to get back into the country after attending his father’s funeral in St. Petersburg.

15 Water for Elephants by -- 1 Sara Gruen (Algonquin: $23.95) A nursing-home patient recalls his life and loves as a penniless college student who drops out to join the circus in the 1930s.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction LAST WEEK WEEKS ON LIST 1 Dispatches From the Edge 1 2 by Anderson Cooper (HarperCollins: $24.95) The telegenic son of heiress Gloria Vanderbilt recounts personal tragedies and covering wars and disasters for CNN.

2 Wisdom of Our Fathers by 4 2 Tim Russert (Random House: $22.95) The “Meet the Press” host shares stories from sons and daughters who responded to his filial memoir, “Big Russ and Me.”

3 Marley & Me by John Grogan 2 29 (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.

4 Cesar’s Way by Cesar 3 9 Millan with Melissa Jo Peltier (Harmony: $24.95) The TV show host gives tips on understanding and correcting common canine behavior problems.

5 House of War by James -- 1 Carroll (Houghton Mifflin: $30) A general’s son examines U.S. military power from Hiroshima to Baghdad and argues that civilian oversight is a myth.

6 Mayflower by Nathaniel 10 4 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.

7 The Year of Magical 9 35 Thinking by Joan Didion (Knopf: $23.95) The author explores the nature of grief and survival in the months after her writer-husband’s sudden death.

8 Heat by Bill Buford -- 1 (Knopf: $25.95) The journalist chronicles his time as a “kitchen slave” to renowned chef Mario Batali and reveals the secrets of a three-star restaurant.

9 Eat, Pray, Love by 8 7 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.

10 Freakonomics by Steven D. 15 52 Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (William Morrow: $25.95) An economist deconstructs statistics and uses numbers to help explain human behavior.

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

12 My Life in France by Julia 11 3 Child with Alex Prud’homme (Knopf: $25.95) The late chef’s memoir of her formative years in France, her studies at the Cordon Bleu and the best Parisian restaurants.

13 The World Is Flat by 5 59 Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $30) How technology and globalization are changing the world and what training is needed to compete.

14 Doing Nothing by Tom Lutz -- 1 (Farrar, Straus & Giroux: $25) A history of loafers, slackers, bums and spongers in America, including Thoreau, Dreiser, Kerouac and Anna Nicole Smith.

15 2012: The Return of -- 1 Quetzalcoatl by Daniel Pinchbeck (Tarcher: $26.95) An exploration of a Maya myth that the return of the plumed serpent will mark the end of the world.

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