LA Times bestsellers: Books hit the beach

The L.A. Times bestseller list gets darkly beachy this week with the entry of "Point Dume" by Katie Arnoldi. The book, which is at No. 9 on our hardcover fiction list, is about crime and drugs in the Malibu community. Arnoldi isn't the only one with a new SoCal novel -- Chuck Palahniuk's "Tell-All" riffs on classic Hollywood -- it's at No. 6. The complete list appears after the jump.

Hardcover Fiction Bestsellers

Fiction		Weeks on list
1.	The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95). The lives of a maid, cook and college graduate intertwine.	52
2.	Innocent by Scott Turow (Grand Central: $27.99). Rusty Sabich and Tommy Molto return to the courtroom after the mysterious death of Rusty's wife.	2
3.	Dead in the Family by Charlaine Harris (Ace: $25.95). Sookie Stackhouse copes with loss and paranormal politics.	2
4.	The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan (Hyperion: $17.99). Siblings battle Egyptian gods to uncover family secrets and find their Egyptologist father.	2
5.	The Double Comfort Safari Club by Alexander McCall Smith (Pantheon: $24.95). Multiple adventures await sleuth Precious Ramotswe.	4
6.	Tell-All by Chuck Palahniuk (Doubleday: $24.95). A washed-up actress looking for a comeback embarks on a love affair with a gold-digging suitor.	1
7.	Fever Dream by Douglas Preston (Grand Central: $26.99). Special Agent Pendergast delves into his wife's mysterious and tragic death.	2
8.	The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (Disney Hyperion: $17.99). Percy Jackson and his army of demigods battle the Lord of Time.	23
9.	Point Dume by Katie Arnoldi (Overlook: $24.95). Surf culture and marijuana farming collide in Malibu.	1
10.	Island Beneath the Sea by Isabel Allende (HarperCollins: $26.99). Crises confront a slave girl and plantation owner in the Caribbean in the 1700s.	2
11.	Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes (Atlantic Monthly: $24.95). The ravages of the Vietnam War as told by an ambitious young soldier.	8
12.	The 9th Judgment by James Patterson (Little, Brown: $27.99). Lindsay Boxer calls on the Women’s Murder Club to catch two elusive criminals.	3
13.	61 Hours by Lee Child (Delacorte: $28). Roving ex-military cop Jack Reacher helps a small South Dakota town deal with sinister forces.	1
14.	Heart of the Matter by Emily Giffin (St. Martin's Press: $26.99). A pediatric plastic surgeon is tempted by a patient’s mother.	1
15.	Private Life by Jane Smiley (Knopf: $26.95). A woman is trapped in a marriage to an eccentric astronomer in early 20th century San Francisco.	1
16.	Storm Prey by John Sandford (Putnam: $27.95). Agent Lucas Davenport’s surgeon wife is a key witness in a botched robbery case.	1
17.	Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson (Random House: $25). An English widower fights to keep greedy relatives from selling a valuable family heirloom.	5
18.	Burned by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (St. Martin's/Griffin: $17.99). Teen drama reigns in this supernatural fantasy.	4
19.	The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall (W. W. Norton: $26.95). A polygamist with four wives and 28 children struggles to keep his family together.	1
20.	This Body of Death by Elizabeth George (Harper: $28.99). Still mourning the loss of his wife and unborn child, an inspector returns to Scotland Yard.	4

Hardcover Nonfiction Bestsellers
1.	Women, Food and God by Geneen Roth (Scribner: $24). The connection between eating and core beliefs that brings fulfillment.	7
2.	War by Sebastian Junger (Twelve: $26.99). The author's account of a year embedded with a U.S. Army platoon in Afghanistan.	1
3.	Spoken From the Heart by Laura Bush (Scribner: $30). The former first lady's memoir of growing up in western Texas and life in the White House.	2
4.	The Big Short by Michael Lewis (W.W. Norton: $27.95). How the U.S. economy was driven to collapse by the bond and real estate markets.	10
5.	... My Dad Says by Justin Halpern (HarperCollins: $15.99). A son's compilation of his elderly father's ramblings and observations.	2
6.	The Bedwetter by Sarah Silverman (Harper: $25.99). The stand-up comic known for her salty humor shares her life story.	4
7.	Tattoos on the Heart by Gregory Boyle (Free Press: $25). A Jesuit priest recounts working with L.A. youth through his gang intervention program.	8
8.	The Wimpy Kid Movie Diary by Jeff Kinney (Amulet: $14.95). Behind the scenes during the making of the movie.	10
9.	Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler (Grand Central: $25.99). Essays and amusing tales from the comic's personal life.	5
10.	The Men Who Would Be King by Nicole Laporte (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt: $28). The rise and fall of DreamWorks Studios.	2
11.	Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown: $27.99). An exploration of the background of high achievers.	66
12.	The Last Stand by Nathaniel Philbrick (Viking: $30). Col. Custer, Sitting Bull and the battle of Little Big Horn.	1
13.	Theatre by David Mamet (Faber & Faber: $22). The playwright offers his distinctive views on acting and directing.	1
14.	Always an Angel by Tim Salmon (Triumph: $19.95). The California Angel recalls his struggles, challenges and triumphant World Series Championship.
15.	When I Stop Talking, You’ll Know I’m Dead by Jerry Weintraub (Twelve: $25.99). Memoir of the legendary Hollywood producer and manager.	3
16.	Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre (Harmony: $25.99). A true account of a how a fictional story and a dead body fooled the Nazis in WWII.	1
17.	You Are Here by Thich Nhat Hanh (Shambhala: $19.95). Buddhist techniques and practices for finding happiness by living in the moment.	3
18.	An Actor and a Gentleman by Louis Gossett Jr. (Wiley:$26.95). The award-winning actor looks back at his 50-year career in film, TV and theater.	1
19.	She Ain’t Heavy, She’s My Mother by Bryan Batt (Harmony: $24). The “Mad Men” actor’s story of the South, show biz and a mother’s love.	1
20.	Satiristas by Paul Provenza & Dan Dion (It Books: $29.99). A collection of comics’ satirical views on politics, culture and society.   Paperbacks: Fiction 1. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson ($14.95) 2. The Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson ($15.95) 3. Little Bee by Chris Cleave ($14) 4. Tinkers by Paul Harding ($14.95) 5. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese ($15.95) 6. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann ($15) 7. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho ($13.95) 8. The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan ($7.99) 9. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan ($7.99) 10. A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick ($14.95) 11. Savor the Moment by Nora Roberts ($16) 12. Shanghai Girls by Lisa See ($15) 13. South of Broad by Pat Conroy ($16) 14. The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan ($7.99) 15. The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan ($7.99) Paperbacks: Non-Fiction 1. Food Rules by Michael Pollan ($7.99) 2. Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin ($15) 3. The Black Swan by Nassim Taleb ($17) 4. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert ($15) 5. You're Not The Boss of Me by Betsy Brown Braun ($15.99) 6. For You, Mom. Finally by Ruth Reichl ($13) 7. The Lost City of Z by David Grann ($15.95) 8. L.A. Noir by John Buntin ($16) 9. Just Tell Me What to Say by Betsy Brown Braun ($15.99) 10. You're a Horrible Person, But I Like You by The Believer ($13.95) 11. Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner ($15.99) 12. Blink by Malcolm Gladwell ($15.99) 13. Crazy for the Storm by Norman Ollestad ($14.99) 14. Julie & Julia by Julie Powell ($7.99) 15. Secret Stairs by Charles Fleming ($16.95) Rankings are based on a weekly poll of Southern California bookstores.

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Comments

[Born in East L.A.]

What a wonderful selection of titles to choose from. Alas, they will all have to wait. I just received my copy of The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest! Thank you Stieg Larsson for Lisbeth Salander.