tom zoellner, the national road
ONLINE EXCLUSIVE
Drive, He Said

Tom Zoellner’s The National Road seeks to take the measure of America.

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mary austin
JOURNEY
Searching for Mary Austin

Life for the author of The Land of Little Rain was as hard as the inhospitable region she wrote about.

POETRY

Anastacia-Reneé is a Seattle-based poet, artist, and educator who was once described as a “queer super-shero of color.”
a two time pushcart nominee, anastacia reneé is the author of five books of poetry
“Aunt Jemima is the Picture of the American Dream”
American author James Baldwin.
“In Case You Forgot, I Am Not Your Negro” 
seattle based poet anastacia reneé
Low & Leaving
anastacia reneé served as the seattle civic poet from 2017 to 2019 and was the recipient of the 2018 james w ray distinguished artist award for washington artists
Daughter
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Special Section: NOIR

San Francisco–based private investigator Jack Palladino.
The Last of the Old-School Private Eyes
Colleen Eckvahl, host of the biweekly podcast Misconduct.
Death Becomes Them
More Murder and Mayhem
Dashiell Hammett, author of The Maltese Falcon, is one of the genre’s most well-known writers.
The Journey of the Antihero
Eight Easy Pieces
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a promised land, barack obama
NEWSLETTERS
Obama’s Memoir a Big Boost for Bookstores
This week’s California Book Club newsletter: Obama’s latest book goes on sale, Jonathan Lethem returns to his science-fiction roots, an…

CULTURE

“my emotional support animal popped”
Altatude Fall 2020 Online Extras
The Seek app was developed by iNaturalist, a collaboration between the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society.
Seek and You Shall Find
“I’m drinking a fuck it from the whatever region.”
Altatude Fall 2020
Denzel Washington in Devil in a Blue Dress (1995).
California Schemin’
two women in kimonos are featured in this screenshot from 1953's "tokyo story"
Four Films That Shaped a Critic
the cartoon character pepe the frog is the subject of the new documentary feels good man
Pepe the Frog’s Leap to the Dark Side
Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino.
A Film Critic Takes Direction
da powell
Imagines*: A Poem
looking up the yosemite valley circa 1873, albert bierstadt
The Collector Had a Good Eye
the our fifty states project began as a publicity stunt and has ended, 17 years and a pandemic later, as a 54 album set—one for each state in the union plus puerto rico, other us territories, the district of columbia, and the moon
To California, from California
poet matthew zapruder
The Making of a Poem
"hey kid you wanna dance with the devil"
Altatude Summer 2020 Online Extras

Latest from the California Book Club

david ulin
The New Canon
David L. Ulin on His Favorite California Books
reyna grande, john freeman, marissa lopez
Event Recap: How Writing Helped Free Reyna Grande
california book club, reyna grande, the distance between us
California Book Club: Reyna Grande Transcript
danzy senna
Danzy Senna on Her Favorite California Books
reyna grande's favorite books
Reyna Grande on Her Early Love of Stories

WATCH THE INTERVIEW

the distance between us, reyna grande
VIDEO
‘The Distance Between Us’

Reyna Grande’s affecting memoir is the California Book Club’s November 2020 selection.

Dispatches

rancho obi wan founder steve sansweet with a cast of thousands the darth vader head on the back wall once greeted toys “r” us shoppers in times square, while darth malgus left is a seven foot, 5,99999 limited edition action figure long sold out, alas
In a Galaxy Closer to Home
coyote
One Coyote
Wayne Thiebaud at his studio in Sacramento.
Having His Cake and Eating It, Too
An unidentified pair of prospectors pose with tools of their trade (circa 1860).
The Best Bad Things
Mixed Conifer on the Scott River.
Painting the Trees and the Forests

EVENTS

Alta Asks Live: Ken Layne

Wednesday, December 9 at 12:30 p.m. Pacific time

Alta Asks Live: Po Bronson

Wednesday, December 2 at 12:30 p.m. Pacific time

Alta Asks Live: Rancho Obi-Wan’s Steve Sansweet

The force is strong with Steve Sansweet, ruler of the largest collection of Star Wars memorabilia in the known world.

Alta Asks Live: Eddie Muller
Film noir expert Eddie Muller sits down to spill the beans on what makes noir so timeless, help us define the genre, reveal his favorit…
Alta Asks Live: Keenan Norris
Keenan Norris joins author and Alta contributor Susan Straight for an intimate discussion on writing and race in the suburbs of Souther…

The Latest

david ulin
David L. Ulin on His Favorite California Books
ken layne desert oracle
Alta Asks Live: Ken Layne
tom zoellner, the national road
Drive, He Said
reyna grande, john freeman, marissa lopez
Event Recap: How Writing Helped Free Reyna Grande
california book club, reyna grande, the distance between us
California Book Club: Reyna Grande Transcript
po bronson, decoding the world
Alta Asks Live: Po Bronson
a promised land, barack obama
Obama’s Memoir a Big Boost for Bookstores
danzy senna
Danzy Senna on Her Favorite California Books
anastacia reneé served as the seattle civic poet from 2017 to 2019 and was the recipient of the 2018 james w ray distinguished artist award for washington artists
Daughter
American author James Baldwin.
“In Case You Forgot, I Am Not Your Negro” 
a two time pushcart nominee, anastacia reneé is the author of five books of poetry
“Aunt Jemima is the Picture of the American Dream”
seattle based poet anastacia reneé
Low & Leaving