THE LATEST FROM ALTA
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ISSUE 34
The Vegans Bought a Cattle Ranch
After building a plant-based-restaurant empire, the brood behind Café Gratitude has bet on meat—and MAHA ideals.
25 min
21 Essential Campus Novels and Academic Satires
August marks the start of another school year in California. Dive into novels that turn classrooms, dorms, and faculty lounges into unforgettable literary settings.
2 min
Family Portraits
A look inside Alta Journal’s Issue 36.
5 minLatest from the California Book Club
Join the West Coast literary conversation every month.
Lo Bonito
In Los Angeles, an undocumented mother confronts cancer and deportation fears through labor, faith, and grace.
Bearing Witness
She photographed the Black Panthers, the Alcatraz occupation, and the farmworker movement. At 84, Ilka Hartmann is still developing film—and still a radical.
18 minTHE MONDAY BOOK REVIEW
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Writer’s Room: Native Forms of Knowledge
6 minTHE WEEKLY ALTA NEWSLETTER
New stories from California and the West sent to your inbox every Thursday.
Highway 89 Revisited
A 1,400-mile trip through several national parks takes a writer deep into his past.
31 minThe Latest
California Bestsellers List (August 20, 2026)
5 min
Operation Make New Friends
8 min
5 Books to Better Understand Public Lands
6 min
Susan Orlean on the Many Uses of Libraries
1 min
Susan Orlean Recalls Discovering the Magic of the Library
1 min
Announcement of Fall 2026 Books
5 min
Excerpt: Native Country of the Heart
6 min
Portrait of Childhood Shame
6 min
Weekly Cartoon: Altatude #9 Issue 36
Event Recap: Susan Orlean’s ‘The Library Book’
6 min
‘The Library Book’
2 min