Washington Area Bestsellers

	Paperback
	Fiction
1	THE BROKER(Dell, $7.99). By John Grisham The CIA finagles the release of an attorney from federal prison to gain access to a satellite surveillance system.	3
2	RED LILY(Jove, $7.99). By Nora Roberts The ghost of the Harper bride becomes malevolent when the current Harper scion finds a new paramour.	2
3	MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA(Vintage, $14.95) By Arthur Golden.The celebrated geisha, Sayuri, relates her rise to fame and fortune in 1930s imperial Japan.	5
4	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.	62
5	STATE OF FEAR(Avon, $7.99). By Michael Crichton Eco-terrorists plot to create "natural disasters" in an effort to further their radical agenda.	7
6	GOING HOME(Silhouette, $7.99). By Nora Roberts Three novellas reprinted in a new omnibus: "Unfinished Business," "Island of Flowers" and "Mind Over Matter."	2
7	WICKED: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE WICKED WITCH OF THE WEST(Regan, $15). By Gregory Maguire This riff on the "Oz" tales features a misunderstood witch.	17
8	WHITEOUT(Signet, $7.99). By Ken Follett The debt-ridden son of a pharmaceutical company's founder burgles the lab, with unforeseen consequences.	7
9	PREP(Random House, $13.95). By Curtis Sittenfeld An Indiana teen enrolls at one of Boston's most exclusive private schools, heightening her already anxious state.	1
10	VANISHING ACTS(Washington Square, $14) By Jodi Picoult.A young woman confronts the painful reality that she was kidnapped as a child by her own father.	3
	Nonfiction/General
1	A MILLION LITTLE PIECES(Anchor, $14.95) By James Frey.A former screenwriter and drug dealer chronicles his addiction and recovery.	12
2	WHY DO MEN HAVE NIPPLES?(Three Rivers, $12.95) By Mark Leyner and Billy Goldberg.Audacious questions to ask your doctor after that third cocktail.	18
3	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.	50
4	SEE NO EVIL: THE TRUE STORY OF A GROUND SOLDIER IN THE CIA'S WAR ON TERRORISM (Three Rivers, $14). By Robert Baer.A bungling agency.	1
5	HIS EXCELLENCY: GEORGE WASHINGTON (Vintage, $15). By Joseph J. Ellis.A biography of the statesman from British army soldier to U.S. president.	5
6	IN COLD BLOOD(Vintage, $14). By Truman Capote Its melding of crime reportage and a novel's structure made this account of a 1959 Kansas murder an instant classic.	8
7	GUNS, GERMS, AND STEEL(Norton, $16.95) By Jared Diamond.The impact of geography and the environment on the course of civilization.	52
8	THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY(Vintage, $14.95) By Erik Larson.Serial killer H.H. Holmes preys on Chicago residents amid the bustle of the 1893 World's Fair.	93
9	BAD CAT: 244 NOT-SO-PRETTY KITTIES AND CATS GONE BAD(Workman, $9.99). By Jim Edgar Candid photos of felines acting up and acting out.	34
10	BAD DOG: 278 OUTSPOKEN, INDECENT, AND OVERDRESSED DOGS(Workman, $9.95) By R.D. Rosen, Harry Prichett and Rob Battles	5
	Hardcover
	Fiction
1	S IS FOR SILENCE(Putnam, $26.95). By Sue Grafton P.I. Kinsey Millhone looks into the case of Violet Sullivan, an impetuous mother who vanished 34 years earlier.	1
2	MARY, MARY(Little, Brown, $27.95) By James Patterson.Hollywood's A-list stars look to Alex Cross to protect them from a vicious serial killer.	4
3	THE CAMEL CLUB(Warner, $26.95). By David Baldacci A band of zealous conspiracy theorists stumbles across intrigue after witnessing a murder on Roosevelt Island.	7
4	THE LIGHTHOUSE(Knopf, $25.95). By P.D. James Commander Dalgliesh is dispatched to Combe Island, an isolated retreat for the well-to-do, where murder is afoot.	3
5	PREDATOR(Putnam, $26.95). By Patricia Cornwell Forensic examiner Kay Scarpetta, now based in Florida, is stymied by a series of bizarre slayings and thorny clues.	7
6	LIGHT FROM HEAVEN(Viking, $26.95). By Jan Karon Father Tim endeavors to revitalize a long-neglected mountain church in the Mitford Years series' swan song.	5
7	AT FIRST SIGHT(Warner, $24.95). By Nicholas Sparks Jeremy Marsh and Lexie Darnell, last seen in Sparks's "True Believer," are coping with the stress of engagement.	7
8	FOREVER ODD(Bantam, $27). By Dean Koontz Odd Thomas, who can see the dead, is "asked" for help by the ghost of his father's best friend, recently murdered.	2
9	THE MARCH(Random House, $25.95) By E.L. Doctorow.Gen. Tecumseh Sherman's slash and burn through Georgia and the Carolinas in the Civil War.	6
10	CHRIST THE LORD: OUT OF EGYPT(Knopf, $25.95) By Anne Rice.The Holy Family's trek back to Nazareth from Egypt, narrated by a 7-year-old Jesus.	6
	Nonfiction/General
1	TEACHER MAN: A MEMOIR(Scribner, $26) By Frank McCourt.The author of "Angela's Ashes" recounts his tenure in the NYC public school system.	4
2	THE WORLD IS FLAT: A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY(FSG, $27.50) By Thomas L. Friedman.Globalism's colossal impact.	36
3	TEAM OF RIVALS: THE POLITICAL GENIUS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN(Simon & Schuster, $35) By Doris Kearns Goodwin.Presidential finesse.	7
4	OUR ENDANGERED VALUES: AMERICA'S MORAL CRISIS(Simon & Schuster, $25). By Jimmy Carter Cautioning against religious fundamentalism's influence.	6
5	1776(Simon & Schuster, $32). By David McCullough Military campaigns and personal narratives tell the story of the first full year of the American Revolution.	24
6	THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING(Knopf, $23.95) By Joan Didion.A memoir of grief and mourning; winner of the 2005 National Book Award for nonfiction.	10
7	FREAKONOMICS: A ROGUE ECONOMIST EXPLORES THE HIDDEN SIDE OF EVERYTHING(Morrow, $25.95) By Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner	35
8	THE COMPLETE CALVIN AND HOBBES (Andrews McMeel, $150). By Bill Watterson.The cartoon strip in its entirety from its first syndication in 1985.	8
9	MARLEY & ME: LIFE AND LOVE WITH THE WORLD'S WORST DOG(Morrow, $21.95) By John Grogan.For the love of an unruly Labrador.	1
10	AMAZING PEACE: A CHRISTMAS POEM (Random House, $9.95). By Maya Angelou.Read at the lighting of the National Christmas Tree, Dec. 1, 2005.	1

Rankings reflect sales for the week ended December 11, 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. Advice, reference and self-help books appear on a separate, monthly list.)