The Los Angeles Times Bestseller Lists for August 1, 2010

Topping the fiction list this week is The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson. It is the final book of the Millennium Trilogy. The first two books are The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played With Fire.
The Library just received the first movie in the trilogy -- Roger Ebert says: "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a compelling thriller to begin with, but it adds the rare quality of having a heroine more fascinating than the story. She's a 24-year-old goth girl named Lisbeth Salander....... [Note: it is in Swedish with English subtitles ... but well worth it.]

The Help by Kathryn Stockett has been on the bestseller list for 60 weeks now. It is a story about how the Southern lives of a maid, cook and college graduate intertwine.

There are several titles that are new to the list this week:

• Faithful Place by Tana French (An Irish undercover cop investigates the discovery of an old girlfriend's body.)
• The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke (Detective Dave Robicheaux investigates a serial killer and his daughter's dangerous new boyfriend.)
• Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner (A mother and her daughters find comfort after an affair.)
• The Obama Diaries by Laura Ingraham (A satirical look at fictional diaries of the Obamas.)
• The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva (Murder and a stolen Rembrandt portrait.)
• The Beaufort Diaries by T. Cooper (A polar bear tries to survive the Hollywood rat race with help from Leonardo DiCaprio.)
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The non-fiction bestseller list is an eclectic mix of titles -- here is a sampling:

• Medium Raw by Anthony Bourdain (A gastronome's journey for foodies everywhere.)
• Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert (The author tackles her fears of marriage by delving into the institution's history.)
• Women, Food and God by Geneen Roth (How the connection between eating and core beliefs brings fulfillment.)

The complete list of the Los Angeles Times fiction and nonfiction bestsellers can be found here.