Books National best sellers: Week ending Sept. 26. Contra Costa Times. Fiction 1. The Lost Symbol," by Dan Brown 2. An Echo in the Bone," by Diana Gabaldon 3. The Last Song," by Nicholas Sparks 4. The Help," by Kathryn Stockett 5. Hothouse Orchid," by Stuart Woods 6. South of Broad," by Pat Conroy 7. Alex Cross's Trial," by James Patterson and Richard DiLallo 8. The Year of the Flood," by Margaret Atwood 9. Spartan Gold," by Clive Cussler 10. Hardball," by Sara Paretsky Nonfiction 1. Arguing with Idiots," by Glenn Beck 2. True Compass," by Edward M. Kennedy 3. High on Arrival," by Mackenzie Phillips 4. American on Purpose," by Craig Ferguson 5. Where Men Win Glory," by Jon Krakauer 6. Official Book Club Selection," by Kathy Griffin 7. The Greatest Show on Earth," by Richard Dawkins 8. Outliers," by Malcolm Gladwell 9. Mastering the Art of French Cooking," by Julia Child et al. 10. Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man," by Steve Harvey - Publishers Weekly . Northern California bestsellers, week ending Sept. 27. Contra Costa Times. Fiction 1. The Lost Symbol," by Dan Brown 2. An Echo in the Bone," by Diana Gabaldon 3. The Girl Who Played With Fire," by Stieg Larsson 4. The Help," by Kathryn Stockett 5. A Gate at the Stairs," by Lorrie Moore 6. The Year of the Flood," by Margaret Atwood 7. Blood's A Rover," by James Ellroy 8. Homer & Langley," by E.L. Doctorow 9. South of Broad," by Pat Conroy 10. The Last Song," by Nicholas Sparks Nonfiction 1. True Compass," by Edward M. Kennedy 2. The Case for God," by Karen Armstrong 3. Nurtureshock," by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman 4. Where Men Win Glory," by Jon Krakauer 5. Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I," by Julia Child, et al. 6. Outliers," by Malcolm Gladwell 7. The Healing of America," by T.R. Reid 8. American on Purpose," by Craig Ferguson 9. Bicycle Diaries," by David Byrne 10. The Greatest Show on Earth," by Richard Dawkins Trade paperback fiction 1. The Elegance of the Hedgehog," by Muriel Barbery 2. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," by Stieg Larsson 3. Olive Kitteridge," by Elizabeth Strout 4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society," by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows 5. The Art of Racing in the Rain," by Garth Stein 6. Say You're One of Them," by Uwem Akpan 7. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle," by David Wroblewski 8. The Time Traveler's Wife," by Audrey Niffenegger 9. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies," by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen 10. Unaccustomed Earth," by Jhumpa Lahiri Trade paperback nonfiction 1. My Life in France," by Julia Child 2. Three Cups of Tea," by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin 3. My Stroke of Insight," by Jill Bolte Taylor 4. San Francisco Bay Area Restaurants 2010," by Zagat 5. Alex & Me," by Irene M. Pepperberg 6. In Defense of Food," by Michael Pollan 7. The Omnivore's Dilemma," by Michael Pollan 8. Blink," by Malcolm Gladwell 9. Wishful Drinking," by Carrie Fisher 10. Freakonomics," by Steven D. Levitt -- Northern California Independent Booksellers online To find out what the rest of the country is reading, go to ContraCostaTimes.com or InsideBayArea.com . . To unsubscribe from this list, send a blank Email to bookshare-discuss-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Put the word 'unsubscribe' by itself in the Subject line. To get a list of available commands, put the word 'help' by itself in the subject line.