BESTSELLERS

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction

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*--* 1 Atonement by Ian McEwan (Anchor: $14) A haunting novel of guilt and redemption in World War II England

2 Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf (Harvest Books: $12) A day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway and her London coterie

3 The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd (Penguin: $14) A teenage girl is haunted by her mother’s death

4 Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie (Anchor: $10) Literary light in a communist village

5 City of Bones by Michael Connelly (Warner: $7.99) Det. Harry Bosch investigates a 20-year-old murder of a child

6 Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (HarperPaperbacks: $13.95) Opera mingles with mayhem in South America

7 The Hours by Michael Cunningham (Picador: $13) Three women linked across time by Virginia Woolf’s “Mrs. Dalloway.”

8 The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith (Anchor: $11.95) Botswana’s female private eye

9 Shopaholic Ties the Knot by Sophie Kinsella (Delta: $10.95) A bride-to-be faces the wedding wishes of two mothers

10 Body of Lies by Iris Johansen (Bantam: $7.50) A forensic sculptor becomes entangled in a web of deadly greed

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction

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*--* 1 Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand (Ballantine: $15) How a thoroughbred horse went from also-ran to sports icon

2 Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution by Robert C. Atkins (Quill: $13.95) How a low-carb diet helps shed pounds

3 Dreaming War by Gore Vidal (Thunder’s Mouth: $11.95) Arguing that greed, not justice, underlies Bush’s focus on Iraq

4 The Best Democracy Money Can Buy by Greg Palast (Plume: $14) A BBC reporter argues against globalization

5 Not for Tourists: Guide to Los Angeles 2003 (Happy Mazza Media LLC: $19.95) The City of Angels, up close

6 The Hard Questions by Susan Piver (Jeremy P. Tarcher: $10) Queries for couples to get to know each other better

7 Power and Terror by Noam Chomsky (Seven Stories Press: $11.95) Alternatives to militarism and violence

8 What to Expect When You’re Expecting by Heidi E. Murkoff et al. (Workman: $13.95) Pregnancy explained

9 Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter (Techpress: $15.95) Fiscal parenting

10 8 Minutes in the Morning by Jorge Cruise (HarperResource: $14.95) Strength training to lose weight

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