Alta Journal’s quarterly issue parties are hitting their stride. The latest gathering, held Thursday night at Los Angeles’s North Figueroa Bookshop, featured a completely packed house, readings from Issue 26 contributors Gustavo Arellano, Monica Corcoran Harel, and Bill Esparza, and a lively question-and-answer session with friends, contributors, and readers from around Southern California.
North Figueroa Bookshop is the joint venture of local independent book publishers, Rare Bird and Unnamed Press, in the heart of historic Highland Park. The store, which has been open for over a year, features a rotating selection of books from their publishing partners and curates a large section of literature surrounding California.
“It warms my heart to feel the store full of great energy and great writers,” said North Figueroa Bookshop store manager Mads Gobbo. “We wanted the store to be a gathering place for independent publishing and authors who maybe aren’t represented on mainstream presses.”
Alta member and attendee Ivan Fernandez learned of the bookstore through Alta’s promotion of the event. “It’s my first time hearing of this bookstore in particular, so I said I can go see people whose work I read and come together at a new bookstore.”
Harel’s essay, “Becoming a Modern Elder,” explored a week-long retreat focused on making the most of middle age in El Pescadero. Esparza wrote about the buzzing nightlife next door to Valle de Guadalupe’s wineries—and the havoc they are wreaking on the community and environment. Arellano also touched upon the ways Baja is rapidly changing. He read a portion of his piece about “Tijuana’s Beloved Market,” Mercado Miguel Hidalgo, and how it has changed since his frequent visits in his childhood.
“Baja is really having a moment right now,” said Mary Melton, Alta’s editor at large. “The border towns are evolving, but there’s something so magical about the peninsula.” The readings of the evening whisked listeners away to visit Valle de Guadalupe, El Pescadero, and Tijuana to experience a bit of that magic.
Attendees Greg Torres and his wife are fans of both Baja and the evening’s writers. The two have embarked on one of Esparza’s Club Tengo Hambre trips and were already familiar with Arellano’s writing.
“The personal connection makes [the event] worth it,” Torres said. “Getting to have a glass of wine and talk to the writers about their experiences is pretty rich.”
Attendee Ann-Marie Sanchez Torres said that she attended the evening because it featured her favorite things, “wine, food, and Gustavo.”
Despite some serious topics, the audience and speakers laughed throughout much of the evening’s readings and Q&A session, including chuckles about Esparza eating birria tacos under laser lights, Harel egging on attendees to boo her for loving “middle life,” and a play on words from Alta editorial director Blaise Zerega about the issue’s theme and the magazine’s title. But the takeaway from all three stories was loud and clear—if you’re taking a trip down to Baja, take it with respect.
“Yes, Baja is beautiful, yes, Mexican wine is great, but everyone should be consuming thoughtfully,” Arellano said.
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