Southern California Rating:FICTION1 OFF KECK ROAD ...

Southern California Rating:

FICTION

1 OFF KECK ROAD by Mona Simpson (Alfred A. Knopf: $19) A novella about a tight-knit group of people coming of age and then growing old together in Green Bay, Wis.

Last Week: 9; Weeks on List: 2

2 SHOPGIRL by Steve Martin (Hyperion: $17.95) A young artist who works days in the glove department at Neiman Marcus falls abruptly in love with a millionaire businessman.

Last Week: 1; Weeks on List: 10

3 THE SITUE STORIES by Frances Khirallah Noble (Syracuse University Press: $22.95) Eleven interconnected short stories form a drama about an extended Arabic family in America.

Last Week: 4; Weeks on List: 4

4 PRODIGAL SUMMER by Barbara Kingsolver (HarperCollins: $26) In southern Appalachia, three stories of human love intersect within a larger tapestry.

Last Week: 5; Weeks on List: 6

5 ROSES ARE RED by James Patterson (Little, Brown: $26.95) Alex Cross battles a cunning bank robber, nicknamed “Mastermind,” who orchestrates teams of criminals while hiding in the shadows.

Last Week: 2; Weeks on List: 2

6 LYING AWAKE by Mark Salzman (Alfred A. Knopf: $21) A meditation on spirituality in the life of an Angeleno nun facing a dilemma: Should she have surgery that will cure her of mystical visions?

Last Week: 7; Weeks on List: 10

7 THE LAST CITY ROOM by Al Martinez (St. Martin’s: $22.95) A novel by the L.A. Times columnist tells the story of the decline of a San Francisco newspaper during the turbulent ‘60s.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 3

8 THE BLIND ASSASSIN by Margaret Atwood (Nan A. Talese/Doubleday: $26) A narrative tour de force of self-deceit and revenge that joins the lives of two sisters with an unpublished sci-fi novel.

Last Week: 6; Weeks on List: 12

9 DROWNING RUTH by Christina Schwarz (Doubleday: $23.95) In early 20th century Wisconsin, a family is torn apart by a tragic death and the secrets that follow.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 7

10 THE MARK by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins (Tyndale House: $22.99) The antichrist has taken over, branding his followers and causing mayhem in the latest in the “Left Behind” series.

Last Week: 11; Weeks on List: 3

11 MERRICK by Anne Rice (Alfred A. Knopf: $26.95) The haunting tale of a New Orleans witch delves into voodoo and returns to the characters of “Interview with the Vampire.”

Last Week: 8; Weeks on List: 4

12 WINTER’S HEART by Richard Jordan (Tor Books: $29.95) The “Wheel of Time” saga rolls on, as doomed hero Rand rallies the forces of magic against evil legions.

Last Week: 15; Weeks on List: 3

13 THE PROMETHEUS DECEPTION by Robert Ludlum (St. Martin’s: $27.95) A spy infiltrates his former shadowy agency in this story of post-Cold War double-crosses and Wall Street conspiracies.

Last Week: 12; Weeks on List: 4

14 DECK THE HALLS by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark (Simon & Schuster: $18) Two famous sleuths meet in a dentist’s office and team up to solve a kidnapping.

Last Week: 10; Weeks on List: 3

15 THE LAST PRECINCT by Patricia Cornwell (Putnam: $26.95) At Christmastime, Dr. Kay Scarpetta and her staff have not a moment to spare as mangled corpses crowd their morgue.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 3

NONFICTION

1 NOTHING LIKE IT IN THE WORLD by Stephen Ambrose (Simon & Schuster: $28) The historian looks at the building of the transcontinental railroad and its impact on the growth of the nation.

Last Week: 11; Weeks on List: 15

2 PARIS TO THE MOON by Adam Gopnik (Random House: $24.95) A personal homage to years spent in the City of Light by a longtime New Yorker writer.

Last Week: 5; Weeks on List: 6

3 WHO MOVED MY CHEESE? by Spencer Johnson (Putnam: $19.95) This coauthor of “The One Minute Manager” uses the parable of mice in a maze to show people how to manage change.

Last Week: 13; Weeks on List: 39

4 MAESTRO by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster: $25) Portrait of Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who started as a Juilliard-trained sax man and now keeps the U.S. economy in tune.

Last Week: 7; Weeks on List: 3

5 THE BEATLES ANTHOLOGY by The Beatles (Chronicle Books: $60) Previously unreleased photos, memorabilia and reminiscences that should make any Fab Four fan want to twist and shout.

Last Week: 8; Weeks on List: 9

6 THE O’REILLY FACTOR by Bill O’Reilly (Broadway Books: $23) The TV pundit pontificates on what he finds to be the good, the bad and the completely ridiculous in American life.

Last Week: 14; Weeks on List: 9

7 THE GREATEST GENERATION by Tom Brokaw (Random House: $24.95) TV anchor tells the stories of the generation that came of age during the Depression and World War II.

Last Week: 12; Weeks on List: 68

8 AN INVITATION TO THE WHITE HOUSE by Hillary Rodham Clinton (Simon & Schuster: $35) Upstairs, downstairs with the First Lady, who narrates the fascinating past and present of the White House.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

9 OUR VIETNAM by A.J. Langguth (Simon & Schuster: $35) An former war correspondent tells the story of the Vietnam War from both the American and Vietnamese perspectives.

Last Week: 2; Weeks on List: 3

10 A SHORT GUIDE TO A HAPPY LIFE by Anna Quindlen (Random House: $12.95) The columnist reflects on what it takes to “get a life” by living deeply rather than merely existing.

Last Week: 3; Weeks on List: 4

11 TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE by Mitch Albom (Doubleday: $19.95) A sportswriter’s story of the life lessons he received during weekly visits to an older dying friend.

Last Week: 10; Weeks on List: 146

12 A LIFE IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY by Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. (Houghton Mifflin: $28.95) The first volume of the historian’s memoirs parallels his development with America’s from 1917 to 1950.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 1

13 FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS by James Bradley with Ron Powers (Bantam: $24.95) A son pieces together the history of his father, who helped raise the American flag at Iwo Jima.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 19

14 JOE DIMAGGIO by Richard Ben Cramer (Simon & Schuster: $28) A biography seeks to capture the allegedly selfish, resentful private life of an American icon clad in Yankee pinstripes.

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 5

15 ON WRITING by Stephen King (Scribner: $25) Autobiography of the writer’s formative years, from his misbehaving youth to a janitorial stint that led to the idea for “Carrie.”

Last Week: --; Weeks on List: 5

PAPERBACKS

FICTION

1 HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG by Andre Dubus III (Vintage: $14) Two families clash over an auctioned house in this tragic tale.

2 THE LION’S GAME by Nelson DeMille (Warner: $7.99) A New York cop and an FBI agent join forces to find a terrorist.

3 TIMELINE by Michael Crichton (Ballantine: $7.99) Investigators time-travel to 14th century France.

4 INTERPRETER OF MALADIES by Jhumpa Lahiri (Mariner: $12) Indian customs color the lives of people coping with loss.

5 GIRL IN HYACINTH BLUE by Susan Vreeland (Penguin: $12) Eight stories linked by a Dutch master’s painting.

6 PLAINSONG by Kent Haruf (Vintage: $13) Lives intersect in a small Colorado cattle town.

7 FALSE MEMORY by Dean Koontz (Bantam: $7.99) A shadowy figure uses mind control to affect the lives of four people.

8 WAITING by Ha Jin (Vintage: $13) A legal loophole allows long-separated lovers to be united.

9 MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN by Jonathan Lethem (Vintage: $13) A detective with Tourette’s syndrome hunts for a killer.

10 ABDUCTION by Robin Cook (Berkley: $7.99) Marine scientists find a paradise of super beings in an undersea volcano.

PAPERBACKS

NONFICTION

1 THE WORST-CASE SCENARIO SURVIVAL HANDBOOK by Joshua Piven and David Borgenicht (Chronicle: $14.95) S-O-S!

2 GALILEO’S DAUGHTER by Dava Sobel (Penguin: $14) The famous astronomer and his daughter, a cloistered nun.

3 TALKING DIRTY WITH THE QUEEN OF CLEAN by Linda Cobb (Pocket: $8.99) Quick, inexpensive housekeeping tips galore.

4 RICH DAD, POOR DAD by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter (Techpress: $15.95) Adventures in fiscal parenting.

5 THE DARK SIDE OF THE LIGHT CHASERS by Debbie Ford (Riverhead: $13) Facing unhealthful impulses and living an authentic life.

6 LOST AND FOUND by Elizabeth Pomeroy (Many Moons Press: $16.95) The many landmarks of the San Gabriel Valley.

7 OLD FARMER’S ALMANAC 2001 by Robert B. Thomas (Villard: $5.95) Forecasts, tides and everything else ‘twixt earth and sky.

8 THE SEAT OF THE SOUL by Gary Zukav (Fireside: $13) Teaching readers to rethink the mind-body connection.

9 WORLD ALMANAC & BOOK OF FACTS 2001 (World Almanac: $10.95) Includes 2000 Olympics and election coverage.

10 THE PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN by Simon Winchester (HarperPerennial: $13) A madman with a flair for words.

*

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.