Parents struggle on this week’s L.A. Times bestseller list

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Heavy-duty plots that feed into parents’ deep fears drive two new novels onto the L.A. Times bestseller list this week.

Holding steady at No. 3 is Anne Lamott’s “Imperfect Birds.” The author’s seventh novel finds affluent Bay Area parents Elizabeth and James struggling with their 17-year-old daughter Rosie, a seemingly perfect honors student and athlete who has headed down a destructive path of drug use. Lamott, who has acknowledged incorporating her personal life into her fiction, has spoken freely of her own troubles with addiction. Our reviewer Sam Dunn wrote, “What drives this novel is how Elizabeth and James confront -- or don’t -- the paradox of the Rosie they love with the Rosie they want to strangle.”

“Every Last One” (No. 11) by Newsweek columnist Anna Quindlen is a tale of a close-knit family torn apart by depression and violence. The cover art alone may send pangs into a mother’s heart.

On the nonfiction list, Kitty Kelley’s unauthorized biography “Oprah” (No. 4) has been beaten by “13 Bankers” (No. 3) by Simon Johnson and James Kwak. Johnson and Kwak examine the causes of the recent financial crisis and subsequent bailout while stating their case for a nationalization of banks, apparently striking a stronger chord with readers than gossip about Oprah’s real daddy.

Top Five Hardcover Fiction Bestsellers

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95) The lives of a maid, a cook and a college graduate intertwine in a Mississippi town. Weeks on the list: 48

2. Solar by Ian McEwan (Nan A. Talese: $26.95) A physicist tries to reinvigorate his career (at a colleague’s expense) and save the world. Weeks on the list: 3

3. Imperfect Birds by Anne Lamott (Riverhead: $25.95) Fraught parents send their teenage daughter to a wilderness rehab program. Weeks on the list: 2

4. Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel (Spiegel & Grau: $24) A Holocaust fable starring a donkey and her monkey companion. Weeks on the list: 1

5.The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (Disney Hyperion: $17.99) Percy Jackson and his army of demigods battle to stop the Lord of Time. Weeks on the list: 19

Top Five Hardcover Nonfiction Bestsellers

1.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. Weeks on the list: 6

2. Bridge by David Remnick (Knopf: $29.95) The New Yorker editor’s telling of the evolution of President Obama reaching back to his fatherless childhood. Weeks on the list: 2

3. 13 Bankers by Simon Johnson and James Kwak (Pantheon: $26.95) A case for nationalization of banks resulting from the financial crisis and subsequent bailout. Weeks on the list: 1

4. Oprah by Kitty Kelley (Crown: $30) A probing account behind the queen of all media’s empire and personal life. Weeks on the list: 1
5. Women Food and God by Geneen Roth (Scribner: $24) The connection between eating and core beliefs that brings fulfillment. Weeks on the list: 3

See the complete bestseller lists after the jump.

HARDCOVER FICTION BESTSELLERS FOR MAY 2, 2010

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Putnam: $24.95) The lives of a maid, a cook and a college graduate intertwine in a Mississippi town. Weeks on the list: 48

2. Solar by Ian McEwan (Nan A. Talese: $26.95) A physicist tries to reinvigorate his career (at a colleague’s expense) and save the world. Weeks on the list: 3

3. Imperfect Birds by Anne Lamott (Riverhead: $25.95) Fraught parents send their teenage daughter to a wilderness rehab program. Weeks on the list: 2

4. Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel (Spiegel & Grau: $24) A Holocaust fable starring a donkey and her monkey companion. Weeks on the list: 1

5.The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (Disney Hyperion: $17.99) Percy Jackson and his army of demigods battle to stop the Lord of Time. Weeks on the list: 19

6. Changes by Jim Butcher (Roc: $25.95) Wizard detective Harry Dresden must save his daughter from becoming a human sacrifice. Weeks on the list: 2

7. Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes (Atlantic Monthly: $24.95) The ravages of the Vietnam War told from the perspective of an ambitious young soldier. Weeks on the list: 3

8. Bite Me by Christopher Moore (William Morrow: $23.99) A San Francisco goth girl and her boyfriend battle a ravenous vampyre cat. Weeks on the list: 4

9. 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. Weeks on the list: 3

10. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (Amulet: $12.95) The adventures of Greg Heffley, a wise-cracking kid trying to survive middle school. Weeks on the list: 10

11. Every Last One by Anna Quindlen (Random House: $26) A violent act rips a family apart leaving a mother struggling to cope. Weeks on the list: 1

12. The Shadow of Your Smile by Mary Higgins Clark (Simon & Schuster: $25.99) An inheritance is threatened by the revelation of a love child between a nun & famous doctor. Weeks on the list: 1

13. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith (Grand Central: $21.99) The ax-wielding president seeks vengeance for the death of his mother. Weeks on the list: 7

14. Angelology by Danielle Trussoni (Viking: $27.95) A nun races to find a secret artifact before the evil Nephilim, a race of fallen angels, find it.Weeks on the list: 4

15. Caught by Harlan Coben (Dutton: $27.95) The search for a missing high school student stirs a reporter into action. Weeks on the list: 5

HARDCOVER NONFICTION BESTSELLERS FOR MAY 2, 2010

1.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. Weeks on the list: 6

2. Bridge by David Remnick (Knopf: $29.95) The New Yorker editor’s telling of the evolution of President Obama reaching back to his fatherless childhood. Weeks on the list: 2

3. 13 Bankers by Simon Johnson and James Kwak (Pantheon: $26.95) A case for nationalization of banks resulting from the financial crisis and subsequent bailout. Weeks on the list: 1

4. Oprah by Kitty Kelley (Crown: $30) A probing account behind the queen of all media’s empire and personal life. Weeks on the list: 1

5. Women Food and God by Geneen Roth (Scribner: $24) The connection between eating and core beliefs that brings fulfillment. Weeks on the list: 3

6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Movie Diary by Jeff Kinney (Amulet: $14.95) Behind the scenes during the making of the movie. Weeks on the list: 6

7.Tattoos on the Heart by Gregory Boyle (Free Press: $25) Jesuit priest Boyle recounts working with troubled L.A. youth through his gang intervention program, Homeboy Industries. Weeks on the list: 4

8. Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang by Chelsea Handler (Grand Central: $25.99) Essays and amusing tales from the comic’s personal life. Weeks on the list: 6

9. This Time Together by Carol Burnett (Harmony: $25) The comedienne’s humorous look back at her career and life in showbiz. Weeks on the list: 1

10. Just Kids by Patti Smith (Ecco: $27) The singer’s early days and relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe. Weeks on the list: 13

11. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown: $27.99) An exploration of the background of high achievers. Weeks on the list: 65

12. 2010 Take Back America by Dick Morris and Eileen Mcgann (Harper: $26.99) A conservative battle plan to take control of congress in the upcoming election. Weeks on the list: 1

13. Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert (Viking: $26.95) After circumstances cause her to wed, the author tackles her fears of marriage by delving into the institution’s history. Weeks on the list: 12

14. Why I Fight by B.J. Penn (William Morrow: $25.99) The Ultimate fighting champ tells his story. Weeks on the list: 1

15. No Apology by Mitt Romney (St. Martin’s: $25.99) The former governor of Massachusetts offers solutions for America to reassert its global strength. Weeks on the list: 3

-- Liesl Bradner

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