Washington Area Bestsellers

	Paperback
	Fiction
1	THE KITE RUNNER (Riverhead, $14). By Khaled Hosseini An Afghan immigrant returns to his Taliban-ruled country in the hope of atoning for a childhood betrayal.	21
2	THE NARROWS (Warner, $7.99). By Michael Connelly The killer "the Poet" strikes again, and a close friend of Harry Bosch is the latest victim.	1
3	THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME (Vintage, $12). By Mark Haddon. An autistic boy digs into a poodle's death, unearthing some family secrets.	39
4	THE LAST JUROR (Dell, $7.99). By John Grisham The scion of a small town's wealthy and corrupt clan vows revenge on the jury that convicted him of murder.	10
5	THE CALHOUNS: SUZANNA AND MEGAN (Silhouette, $7.99). By Nora Roberts. Romance novellas featuring one Calhoun sister and a Calhoun sister-in-law.	1
6	BLOWOUT (Jove, $7.99). By Catherine Coulter The grisly murder of a Supreme Court justice spurs FBI agents Dillon Savich and Lacey Sherlock to action.	1
7	ANGELS & DEMONS (Pocket Star, $7.99) By Dan Brown. The Illuminati, a secret cabal, threatens the Vatican at the outset of a papal conclave.	59
8	THE ZERO GAME (Warner Vision, $7.99) By Brad Meltzer. Wagering on the outcome of pending legislation turns deadly for two Capitol Hill staffers.	5
9	THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE (Harvest, $14) By Audrey Niffenegger. A man fated to be whisked back and forth through time manages to find true love.	7
10	3RD DEGREE (Warner, $7.99). By James Patterson & Andrew Gross. Terrorist acts jolt San Francisco, compelling the Women's Murder Club to investigate.	9
	Nonfiction/General
1	READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN (Random House, $13.95) By Azar Nafisi. A professor recalls her clandestine Western literature discussion groups for women students.	56
2	THE TIPPING POINT: HOW LITTLE THINGS CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE (Back Bay, $14.95) By Malcolm Gladwell. A look at fads and their origins.	9
3	DREAMS FROM MY FATHER (Three Rivers, $13.95) By Barack Obama. A memoir of a challenging, often lonely youth by the freshman senator from Illinois.	27
4	GUNS, GERMS, AND STEEL (Norton, $16.95) By Jared Diamond. The impact of geography and the environment on the rise of civilization.	12
5	THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY (Vintage, $14.95) By Erik Larson. Serial killer Henry Holmes preys on Chicago residents amid the bustle of the 1893 World's Fair.	52
6	BAD CAT: 244 NOT-SO-PRETTY KITTIES AND CATS GONE BAD (Workman, $9.95). By Jim Edgar Candid photos of felines acting up and acting out.	2
7	DON'T THINK OF AN ELEPHANT: KNOW YOUR VALUES AND FRAME THE DEBATE (Chelsea Green, $10) By George Lakoff. A playbook for progressive activists.	12
8	RUNNING WITH SCISSORS (Picador USA, $14) By Augusten Burroughs. A coming-of-age memoir chock-full of hilarious and downright disturbing moments.	13
9	THE FABRIC OF THE COSMOS: SPACE, TIME, AND THE TEXTURE OF REALITY (Vintage, $15.95) By Brian Greene. From Newton to string theory.	3
10	A SHORT HISTORY OF NEARLY EVERYTHING (Broadway, $15.95). By Bill Bryson. A quirky, popular guide to science's grandest achievements.	22
	Hardcover
	Fiction
1	HONEYMOON (Little, Brown, $27.95) By James Patterson & Howard Roughan. An FBI agent suspects the alluring fiancée in a wealthy banker's death.	2
2	PREP (Random House, $21.95). By Curtis Sittenfeld An Indiana teen enrolls at one of Boston's most exclusive private schools, heightening her already anxious state.	4
3	THE BROKER (Doubleday, $27.95). By John Grisham The CIA finagles the release of an attorney from federal prison to gain access to a satellite surveillance system.	7
4	PRINCE OF FIRE (Putnam, $25.95). By Daniel Silva Art restorer and reluctant Mossad agent Gabriel Allon is recalled to Israel when his cover is compromised.	1
5	THE DA VINCI CODE (Doubleday, $24.95) By Dan Brown. Ciphers and riddles impede a symbologist's quest for the Holy Grail and a killer's identity.	59
6	STATE OF FEAR (HarperCollins, $27.95) By Michael Crichton. Eco-terrorists plot to create "natural disasters" in an effort to further their radical agenda.	11
7	THE FIVE PEOPLE YOU MEET IN HEAVEN (Hyperion, $19.95). By Mitch Albom. A parable illustrating the importance of life's smallest acts.	58
8	AFTERBURN (Atria, $24.95). By Zane Yardley, a D.C. chiropractor pining away for his local bank teller, Rayne, finally marshals the courage to ask her out.	7
9	SURVIVOR IN DEATH (Putnam, $23.95). By J.D. Robb Eve Dallas, a cop in mid-21st-century NYC, faces a murder in which the only witness is a 10-year-old girl.	4
10	THE DA VINCI CODE: SPECIAL ILLUSTRATED EDITION (Doubleday, $35). By Dan Brown. Hundreds of photos and images supplement the art and cryptology thriller.	12
	Nonfiction/General
1	BLINK: THE POWER OF THINKING WITHOUT THINKING (Little, Brown, $25.95). By Malcolm Gladwell The complex psychology behind our snap decisions.	7
2	COLLAPSE: HOW SOCIETIES CHOOSE TO FAIL OR SUCCEED (Viking, $29.95). By Jared Diamond The fatal consequences of ecological mismanagement.	9
3	DISNEYWAR (Simon & Schuster, $29.95) By James B. Stewart. The Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter tells of civil war inside the Magic Kingdom.	2
4	AMERICA (THE BOOK): A CITIZEN'S GUIDE TO DEMOCRACY INACTION (Warner, $24.95) By Jon Stewart & the Daily Show. Humor meets history.	21
5	GOD'S POLITICS: WHY THE RIGHT GETS IT WRONG AND THE LEFT DOESN'T GET IT (HarperSanFrancisco, $24.95). By Jim Wallis	6
6	JUICED: WILD TIMES, RAMPANT 'ROIDS, SMASH HITS, AND HOW BASEBALL GOT BIG (ReganBooks, $25.95). By Jose Canseco. Steroid use?	2
7	MEN IN BLACK: HOW THE SUPREME COURT IS DESTROYING AMERICA (Regnery, $27.95) By Mark R. Levin. Taking issue with "judicial activism."	3
8	HIS EXCELLENCY: GEORGE WASHINGTON (Knopf, $26.95). By Joseph J. Ellis. A biography of the statesman from British army soldier to U.S. president.	14
9	THE CASE FOR DEMOCRACY: THE POWER OF FREEDOM TO OVERCOME TYRANNY & TERROR (PublicAffairs, $26.95). By Natan Sharansky et al.	4
10	CONFESSIONS OF AN ECONOMIC HIT MAN (Berrett-Koehler, $24.95). By John Perkins. Charges of financial malfeasance at the expense of developing nations.	2

Rankings reflect sales for the week ended February 27, 2005. The charts may not be reproduced without permission from Nielsen BookScan. Copyright © 2005 by Nielsen BookScan. (Right-hand column of italicized numbers reflects weeks on this list, which premiered in Book World on Jan. 11, 2004. The advice/miscellaneous list below reflects sales from 1/31/05 to 2/27/05.)