Best Sellers

Mid-March, Ashley Smith was held captive by the alleged "Atlanta Killer." Ironically she was able to read passages from her favorite book, The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren to gain her freedom and his trust. Since then the book has been once again a number one seller. Warren has written a groundbreaking profession on the meaning of life. The book answers the most basic questions everyone faces - "Why am I here?" "What is my purpose?" This book was created to help readers understand God's plan for their lives. Warren enables readers to see the big picture of life, what it's all about and how to get on the path God planned for them. Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Cali. More than 205,000 pastors and church leaders from over 125 countries have attended "Purpose Driven" seminars. He is a very well-known pastor and has reached more people than he ever thought possible.

A book that seems to contradict The Purpose Driven Life also catches many people's attention, The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown. Although this book has received negative reviews from the Christian, Jewish and Italian communities it seems to bring about a new light to those who only see the surface meaning of painting, pictures and architecture. This fictional "thriller" suggests a marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdelene that produced a royal bloodline in France. While it focuses on this topic, The Da Vinci Code brings about many more claims about Christianity's historic origins. Believed to be both a prankster and a genius Leonardo da Vinci is widely believed to have many hidden messages within much of his work. Many believe "Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper" contain secrets waiting to be decoded. It was in 1996, Dan Brown began code-breaking, he's written four books and in 2004 all were on the New York Times bestseller list during the same week. The Da Vinci Code became number one with its first week out. Brown was recently named one of the World's 100 Most Influential People by TIME magazine.

Dr. Arthur Agatston is a cardiologist based in south Florida. Several years ago he developed a diet for his overweight patients. Thanks to his patients' excellent results, Dr. Agatston soon became very popular in the Miami area. But just as soon as The South Beach Diet hit the shelves Agatston became well-known nationwide. His weight loss advice focuses on a healthy balance of "the good" carbohydrates and fats. He says decreasing the "bad" ones will help you metabolize what you eat better and will improve your insulin resistance, leading to weight loss. It's divided into three phases - each with specific meal plans and recipes. This book became a nationwide hit for everyone trying to lose weight. It still remains to be the number one diet book.

Nighttime is My Time by Mary Higgins Clark hit the shelf and soon became a top-seller in the mystery section. Clark builds suspense with the story of Jean Sheridan, a college dean attending her 20th high school reunion. She feels uneasy about attending due to the random group of people who all went different directions in life. To add to Jean's uneasy feeling she received an anonymous fax referring to her daughter - who she put up for adoption over 20 years ago. At the reunion, a detective obsessed with an unsolved murder of a young woman approached her. At first Jean is oblivious to his real intentions, but soon realizes that he's out to kill the women who teased and humiliated him in high school - with Jean being his last victim. Clark is of Irish decent and believes she is a "natural storyteller." She has been "chairman of the International Crime Congress, named president of Mystery Writers of America and was elected on the Board of Directors of the Mystery Writers of America. With over 100 books published Clark continues with her passion.

Though the aforementioned books were the best sellers of the past year, there are other books which are deemed worthy of mentioning. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal and The Lovely Bones: The Novel round off some of the years more popular books from all different genres.

A break from school, for some students, will provide a great opportunity to catch up on some reading and maybe go out and read some of the new, exciting books of the summer that are not of the text-book variety.