THE LATEST FROM ALTA
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BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Issue 34: California Sounds
A look inside Alta Journal’s Issue 34.
6 min
Alta Journal ’s California Bestsellers List (February 5, 2026)
This week’s bestselling titles include Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy, Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell, and The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins and Sawyer Robbins.
Five Unforgettable Grateful Dead Sit-Ins That Shaped Their California Sound
From Joan Baez to Carlos Santana, these iconic guest appearances reveal how the Dead’s California shows became incubators for creative reinvention.
Latest from the California Book Club
Join the West Coast literary conversation every month.
THE MONDAY BOOK REVIEW
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Sunshine Pop: When the Sun Goes Down
A doomed debut at the Rendezvous Ballroom didn’t stop the Beach Boys. Instead, it helped launch sunshine pop—a California sound full of shimmer, shadows, and ambition.
Gansta Rap: 5 Essential Tracks
Jeff Weiss spotlights five landmark tracks—from Ice-T to Kendrick Lamar—that showcase the evolution, innovation, and lyricism of gangsta rap.
Mystic Folk: The Ghost in the Guitar
THE WEEKLY ALTA NEWSLETTER
New stories from California and the West sent to your inbox every Thursday.
Marion Davies on Her Own Terms
A new biography of the famous actress reveals her to be far more than the mistress of William Randolph Hearst.
The Latest
California Bestsellers List (February 12, 2026)
5 min
Dope, Wood, and Speed
6 min
Announcing the Spring 2026 Books
6 min
Twisted Intersection
Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #8 Issue 34
California Bestsellers List (February 5, 2026)
‘Praise’
2 min
‘The Flowers’
2 min
‘Mecca’
2 min
“Endings Are Seldom Pretty”
7 min
Yearning for Stories
8 min