BESTSELLERS / PAPERBACKS

Rankings are based on a Times poll of Southland bookstores.

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Fiction 1 The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards (Penguin: $14) A father hides the birth of a twin from his wife.

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

3 The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai (Grove: $14) A retired judge is caught up in Nepal’s independence movement.

4 Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan (Ballantine: $14.95) Burma Road tourists make darkly humorous missteps.

5 The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri (Mariner: $14) A Bengali couple and their son try to find their way in America.

6 Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (Back Bay: $13.99) A private detective tackles three crime cases in and around London.

7 Labyrinth by Kate Mosse (Berkley: $15) An archeologist uncovers a 13th century quest for the Holy Grail.

8 The History of Love by Nicole Krauss (W.W. Norton: $13.95) A writer escapes the Nazis but loses his beloved.

9 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead: $14) A writer returns to Kabul to rescue the son of a childhood friend.

10 In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant (Random House: $13.95) A dwarf and a courtesan flee to Venice.

*--*

*--* SO. CAL. RATING Nonfiction 1 The Measure of a Man by Sidney Poitier (HarperSanFrancisco: $14.95) The actor on his values.

2 Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Penguin: $15) A journey of self-discovery in Italy, India and Indonesia.

3 The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (Vintage: $13.95) A meditation on grief and survival.

4 The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls (Scribner: $14) A memoir of breaking away from dysfunctional parents.

5 Dreams From My Father by Barack Obama (Three Rivers: $14.95) The senator traces his mixed-race heritage.

6 The Freedom Writers Diary with Erin Gruwell (Broadway: $13.95) Long Beach teens write about their lives.

7 The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz (Amber-Allen: $12.95) A code of conduct based on Toltec wisdom.

8 Night by Elie Wiesel (Hill & Wang: $9) A teenager’s harrowing year spent in four concentration camps.

9 A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle (Plume: $14) How transcending ego can end conflict and suffering.

10 Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter (TechPress/Warner: $16.95) Fiscal parenting.

*--*