Ian’s Ride: A Long-distance Journey to Joy by Karen Polinsky On a beautiful, early summer Santa Cruz evening, Ian Mackay was poised on his bike at the top of the Great Meadow bike path, looking down at shimmering Monterey Bay. Tonight was the night, he decided, that he would break his record, rocketing down the … Read more
The Lost Journals of Sacajewea by Debra Magpie Earling Debra Magpie Earling’s “The Lost Journals of Sacajewea” is the reclamation of a historical figure often clouded by myth. Sacajewea was a Shoshone woman who traveled as part of the Lewis and Clark Expedition from 1804 to 1806, serving at times as both an interpreter and … Read more
Algospeak: How Social Media Is Transforming the Future of Language by Alec Aleksic Why are young people saying “unalive” instead of “dead”? Why do all influencers sound the same? How is TikTok changing the way we speak—even for people who don’t use the app? Using his experience as TikTok’s @EtymologyNerd, linguist Alec Aleksic answers these … Read more
American Bulk: Essays on Excess by Emily Mester In Emily Mester’s childhood home, the dining table was cleared for dining only on Christmas and Easter. Every other day was for piles: piles from shopping bags from shopping hauls from Chicagoland big box stores, but especially from the closest place Emily’s family had to church: Costco. … Read more
Elita by Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum While “Nordic Noir” crime fiction has been a well-established genre since the 1990s (think of authors such as Henning Mankell, Jo Nesbø, Peter Høeg, and Stieg Larsson) Lynnwood author Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum gives it a local spin as “Northwest Noir,” which describes her first novel, “Elita.” Set in the winter … Read more
October 22, 2025 by Christine Perkins Elita by Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum While “Nordic Noir” crime fiction has been a well-established genre since the 1990s (think of authors such as Henning Mankell, Jo Nesbø, Peter Høeg, and Stieg Larsson) Lynnwood author Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum gives it a local spin as “Northwest Noir,” which describes her first novel, “Elita.” Set … Read more
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone” by Benjamin Stevenson is a darkly humorous thriller. Ernest Cunningham is the story’s aptly named and self-described “reliable narrator.” He presents himself as an earnest, forthright and upfront narrator – on page two he tells you everything to … Read more
Out of the Sierra: A Story of Rarámuri Resistance by Victoria Blanco “Out of the Sierra: A Story of Rarámuri Resistance” provides a window into the world of the Rarámuri, an Indigenous group in present-day Chihuahua, Mexico. Author Victoria Blanco spent years researching and living among a Rarámuri community, adapting ethnographic and sociologic practices to … Read more
Crooks: A Novel about Crime and Family by Lou Berney Think crime novels aren’t for you? Crooks may make you reconsider. In 1960s Vegas, Buddy Mercurio is a low-ranks mobster getting exactly nowhere. When Buddy catches department store clerk Lillian swiping cash from a customer, it’s love at first sight. “Mercurios don’t play by the … Read more
El Dorado Drive by Megan Abbott Oh, how the once-golden Bishop sisters have fallen. Nothing about their adult lives resembles their well-heeled childhood. Debra is drowning in medical debt, Pam’s contentious divorce drained her dry, and Harper is underemployed and ducking creditors. And then, salvation appears. The Wheel is a women-only financial “gifting club” – … Read more