BESTSELLERS / PAPERBACKS

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction 1 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead: $14) A writer returns to Kabul to rescue the son of a childhood friend.

2 Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (Vintage: $14.95) The life and loves of a teahouse entertainer.

3 Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx (Scribner: $9.95) A pair of cowboys in love face a harsh world.

4 The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (HarperSanFrancisco: $13) An Andalusian shepherd boy searches for treasure in Egypt.

5 Wicked by Gregory Maguire (ReganBooks: $15) The Wicked Witch of the West tells her side of the story.

6 The Broker by John Grisham (Dell: $7.99) A jailed lawyer helps the CIA protect satellite technology.

7 Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld (Random House: $13.95) An Indiana teen on scholarship tries to fit in at a Massachusetts prep school.

8 Runaway by Alice Munro (Vintage: $14.95) Stories of the surprises, betrayals and limits of love.

9 The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Penguin: $15) A quest for the truth about a Spanish novelist.

10 State of Fear by Michael Crichton (Avon: $7.99) Nefarious environmentalists and manufactured threats of global warming.

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*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction 1 A Million Little Pieces by James Frey (Anchor: $14.95) A memoir of addiction, rehabilitation and 12-step treatment.

2 Why Do Men Have Nipples? by Mark Leyner and Billy Goldberg (Three Rivers Press: $12.95) What’s up, doc?

3 1,000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia Schultz (Workman: $18.95) Trotting the globe.

4 Chronicles by Bob Dylan (Simon & Schuster: $14) The songwriter reflects on his life and creativity.

5 Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris (Back Bay: $8.95) The humorist recalls Christmas holiday memories.

6 In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (Vintage: $14) The masterful writer’s account of a Kansas family’s brutal murder.

7 Su Doku for Dummies by Andrew Heron and Edmund James (Wiley: $9.99) Puzzle-solving hints and 240 puzzles.

8 Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond (W.W. Norton: $16.95) A scientist’s take on Europe’s rise to dominance.

9 The Book of Sudoku, No. 1 by Michael Mepham (Overlook: $9.95) An introduction to the numbers puzzle.

10 Sudoku Easy by Will Shortz (St. Martin’s Griffin: $6.95) Vol. 1 of the popular puzzle book.

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