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THE LATEST FROM ALTA

Don't miss this week's upcoming events and new stories.

ansel adams, rows of barracks at the manzanar ware relocation center in owens valley california, chiura obata, untitled, topaz water tower with sunset, topaz relocation center, utah

How Yosemite Brought Two Artists Together—and Internment Tore Them Apart

Chiura Obata and Ansel Adams met as artists drawn to the same peaks—but their views of the West soon diverged.

a man sits on the rooftop of a sinking house in the middle of a vast blue lake, his body hunched in reflection. above, two eyes watch from the clouds.

Fiction: ‘Former Colleagues, Nothing More’

books, 2025 december releases

9 New Books for December

roasted turkey legs served with garnish and sides

Ask a Californian: Home (?) for the Holidays

lisa see, on gold mountain

Excerpt: ‘On Gold Mountain’

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roasted turkey legs served with garnish and sides
GLUTEN-FREE THANKSGIVING?

Ask a Californian: Home (?) for the Holidays

Our Golden State experts tackle your questions about hot November, party etiquette, and the most Californian of Thanksgiving quandaries.

alta, issue 33, cover, art and architecture
CURRENT ISSUE

Issue 33: Art & Architecture

Alta Journal celebrates the impulse to create, build—and rebuild in our 33rd issue.

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ada limon, matthew zapruder, startlement
NOVEMBER'S CALIFORNIA BOOK CLUB

Event Recap: Ada Limón’s ‘Startlement: New and Selected Poems’

Author Ada Limón, special guest Matthew Zapruder, and host John Freeman gathered to discuss Startlement: New and Selected Poems, the California Book Club’s November selection.

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FUNNY BUSINESS

altatude, issue 33, cartoon, heather murphy

Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #8 Issue 33

altatude, issue 33, cartoon, kate isenberg

Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #9 Issue 33

altatude, issue 33, cartoon, nick downes

Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #3 Issue 33

altatude, issue 33, cartoon, tyson cole

Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #5 Issue 33

Latest from the California Book Club

Join the West Coast literary conversation every month.

ada limon, matthew zapruder, startlement
The New Canon

Announcement of Special Guest

In this newsletter, we introduce Matthew Zapruder as the special guest to discuss Startlement: New and Selected Poems with Ada Limón and John Freeman at this week’s California Book Club gathering.

ada limon

Moving the “I” Aside

ada limon, startlement

Circuit of Relation

ada limon, startlement, colorful text displaying various words related to nature and philosophy

The Rule of Names

tosh berman, greg sarris, janet fitch

Announcing the Winter 2026 Books

THE MONDAY BOOK REVIEW

Sign-up for our weekly book review email.

the pelican child, joy williams

Time and Tide

In The Pelican Child, Joy Williams offers 12 takes on the weirdness of the world.

lightbreakers, aja gabel

The Physics of Grief: Aja Gabel’s ‘Lightbreakers’

susan straight, sacrament

Nurses and Lowriders

we survived the night by julian brave noisecat, book review

Coyote’s Descendants

joyride by susan orlean, book review

Golden Run

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playwright philip kan gotanda stands center stage with outstretched arms inside an empty theater, smiling in a dark jacket and scarf.
CURTAIN CALL

How Philip Kan Gotanda Found His Stage

Philip Kan Gotanda heads toward retirement and carries on the legacy of East West Players.

EVENTS

Alta Live hosts interviews with magazine contributors, subjects, and California luminaries.

alta live a california family in the swedish wilderness

Alta Live: A California Family in the Swedish Wilderness

rose b. simpson sits on a rolling stool in front of her partially restored 1964 buick riviera in a new mexico auto garage, wearing work pants and kneepads.
LOWRIDERS

At the Wheel and Over the Hood

Rose B. Simpson’s mixed-media sculptures offer an exuberant blending of ancestral and contemporary culture.

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THE WEEKLY ALTA NEWSLETTER

New stories from California and the West sent to your inbox every Thursday.

lucky penny

The Penny Saved My Life

As the coin fades out, David L. Ulin reflects on its invaluable magic.

train dreams movie review, john freeman

‘Train Dreams’ Review

last west: roadsongs for dorothea lange, valerie fachman

A Poetic Portrait of Dorothea Lange

the lost bus, mcconaughey, america ferrera, paradise california, climate change, wildfire

‘The Lost Bus’ Review

ice raids, resistance, groceries, los angeles

Grocery List for Resistance

anais nin, husbands, illustrations
FROM THE ARCHIVES

Anaïs Nin’s Decade-Long Adventure in Bicoastal Bigamy

The chronicler of desire and sexual adventures was surprisingly domestic—if you ignore her bigamy.

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Alta Live: Past Events

Alta Live hosts interviews with magazine contributors, subjects, and California luminaries.

alta live ishmael reed in conversation with will hearst

Alta Live: Ishmael Reed in Conversation with Will Hearst

The writer discusses his book Blind Persistence: The History of the Before Columbus Foundation.

alta live the art of snacking with hilary campbell

Alta Live: Art of Snacking with Hilary Campbell

alta live: road trip down highway 89

Alta Live: Road Trip Down Highway 89

ask a californian, stacey grenrock woods, gustavo arellano

Alta Live: Ask a Californian

greyhounds, racing

Alta Live: Rescuing the West Coast’s Greyhounds

The Latest

the pelican child, joy williams

Time and Tide

altatude, issue 33, cartoon, kendra allenby

Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #10 Issue 33

the uncool by cameron crowe, hamnet by maggie o’farrell, and the mighty red by louise erdrich

California Bestsellers List (November 20, 2025)

lucky penny

The Penny Saved My Life

ada limon, matthew zapruder, startlement

Announcement of Special Guest

ada limon

Moving the “I” Aside

lightbreakers, aja gabel

The Physics of Grief: Aja Gabel’s ‘Lightbreakers’

books, california bestsellers, the correspondent by virginia evans, how about now by kate baer, meditations for mortals by oliver burkeman

California Bestsellers List (November 13, 2025)

train dreams movie review, john freeman

‘Train Dreams’ Review

ada limon, startlement

Circuit of Relation

susan straight, sacrament

Nurses and Lowriders

books, california bestsellers, twice by mitch albom giuffre, the god of the woods by liz moore, the black wolf by louise penny

California Bestsellers List (November 6, 2025)