Editor and writer
ARTICLES
A review of Damnation Spring, Ash Davidson’s debut novel about a logging community in Northern California. Cover of The New York Times Book Review
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An interview with John Brandon, author of the novel Ivory Shoals, set in post-Civil War Florida. McSweeney's
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Thinking About Place When Thinking About Tech
A conversation with Xiaowei Wang, author of Blockchain Chicken Farm: And Other Stories of Tech in China's Countryside. Zyzzyva
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A catalog of Donald Trump's misdeeds. McSweeney's
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Michael McClure, the poet whose roar helped launch the '60s, dies at 87
An appreciation. The Los Angeles Times
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Lois Lowry’s Ode to the Fallen in World War II
A review of Lowry's latest book, On the Horizon. The New York Times
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A conversation with novelist Margaret Wilkerson Sexton. Zyzzyva
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Keeping the Story of D-Day Alive
A review of Allies, a novel for young readers by Alan Gratz. The New York Times
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The Return of Olive Kitteridge, the Tart, Crotchety, Beloved Curmudgeon
A review of Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout. The New York Times
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A review of Karl Marlantes' new novel. Alta
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Finding My Mother in the Pages of Her Favorite Cookbook
An essay about a marked-up copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking as a repository of memories. Literary Hub
Books That Expand the Possibilities of Boyhood
A review of new titles by David Macaulay, Marc Aronson, Pierre-Jacques Ober and Kate T. Parker. The New York Times
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Mixing drinks, books and music
North Light, a bar with a new twist, opens in Oakland. San Francisco Chronicle
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Michelle Obama goes back to her nonprofit roots
During her book tour, Obama pays a visit to a San Jose community center. San Francisco Chronicle
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A podcast interview with Susan Orlean. San Francisco Chronicle
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A podcast interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson, author of Accessory to War: The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military. San Francisco Chronicle
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Eric Idle on his new memoir, Robin Williams and why Trump isn’t funny
An interview with the author of Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography. San Francisco Chronicle
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Life with — and without — Steve Jobs
A review of Small Fry, a memoir by Lisa Brennan-Jobs. San Francisco Chronicle
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Harvey Milk: His Lives and Death
A review of a biography by Lillian Faderman. San Francisco Chronicle
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Tom Wolfe, pioneering journalist and novelist, dies at 88
The influential writer laid the foundation for so-called New Journalism and wrote the best-sellers The Right Stuff and The Bonfire of the Vanities. San Francisco Chronicle
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‘Hi, this is Oprah’
An interview with Tayari Jones, whose novel An American Marriage was Oprah Winfrey’s 2018 book club selection. San Francisco Chronicle
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Ferlinghetti speaks out at 99, his voice as vital as ever
A podcast interview with the legendary co-founder of City Lights. San Francisco Chronicle
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Contested terrain
An interview with Francisco Cantú, a former Border Patrol agent who has written a memoir, The Lines Becomes a River. San Francisco Chronicle
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Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House
A review of Michael Wolff's best-seller. San Francisco Chronicle
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Jane Juska, author who chronicled search for sex late in life, dies at 84
Juska wrote the funny and frank best-selling memoir A Round-Heeled Woman: My Late-Life Adventures in Sex and Romance. San Francisco Chronicle
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Neil deGrasse Tyson opens up on the universe, and more
An interview with the author of Astrophysics in a Hurry. San Francisco Chronicle
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Joanne Kyger, trailblazing Beat poet, dies at 82
Kyger was a leading poet of the San Francisco Renaissance and a rare female voice of the male-dominated Beat generation. San Francisco Chronicle
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Hitler, by Volker Ullrich, and Blitzed, by Norman Ohler
A review of two new books about Hitler. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of the graphic novel The Best We Could Do, by Thi Bui. San Francisco Chronicle
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Bharati Mukherjee, chronicler of Indian American life, dies at 76
Mukherjee's many works examined the Indian American immigrant experience. San Francisco Chronicle
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Farewell to the reader in chief
An essay on President Obama, who views the world in shades of gray — a quality enhanced by a lifetime of reading.
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Point Reyes Books names new owners
The small but vibrant Marin County bookstore turns a page. San Francisco Chronicle
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Dylan becomes first songwriter to win Nobel in literature
Dylan is the first American to be awarded the prize since Toni Morrison won it in 1993. San Francisco Chronicle
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Late to the Ball
An interview with former New York Times Magazine editor Gerald Marzorati, who decided at age 54 to devote himself to becoming a competitive tennis player. San Francisco Chronicle
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William Hamilton, New Yorker cartoonist who satirized high society, dies
The cartoonist was known for his wry depictions of the upper crust. San Francisco Chronicle
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Readers unite! And raise a glass. It’s the Silent Reading Party
Daniel Handler and Dan Stone have founded a monthly event whose proceeds will help Bay Area libraries. San Francisco Chronicle
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Groucho Marx: The Comedy of Existence
A review of Lee Siegel's biography. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Adrian Tomine's graphic novel. San Francisco Chronicle
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Jimmy Carter discusses book, race and Willie Nelson’s love of pot
An interview with the former president, whose latest book is A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety. San Francisco Chronicle
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Two bookstores with Bay Area roots help literary life thrive in Paris. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of by Pamela Newkirk's biography of Ota Benga, who was kidnapped from the Congo and displayed in a cage at the Bronx Zoo. San Francisco Chronicle
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The Sellout
A review of Paul Beatty's satirical novel on race. San Francisco Chronicle
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Philip Levine, bard of blue-collar America, dies at 87
The former U.S. poet laureate's poems dignified working-class life. San Francisco Chronicle
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Novelist Robert Stone dies at age 77
Stone's globe-spanning, often socially charged novels delved into his characters’ despair with bleak humor. San Francisco Chronicle
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John Waters on the road
An interview with the film director and author of Carsick. San Francisco Chronicle
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Another Great Day at Sea, by Geoff Dyer
A review of Dyer's book about his time on the USS George H.W. Bush. San Francisco Chronicle
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An interview with David Thomson, author of the New Biographical Dictionary of Film. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Tom Zoellner's Train: Riding the Rails That Created the Modern World -- From the Trans-Siberian to the Southwest Chief. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of James Magnuson's comic novel. San Francisco Chronicle
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An interactive map that features hundreds of booksellers, authors, and literary landmark and passages. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Amana Fontanella-Khan's book on women and power in India. San Francisco Chronicle
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Ninety Percent of Everything, by Rose George
A review of a book that explores the little-known world of shipping. San Francisco Chronicle
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Al Gore on the future
An interview with the former vice president, author of The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change. San Francisco Chronicle
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Andrew McCarthy at home and abroad
An interview with the author of The Longest Way Home: One Man's Quest for the Courage to Settle Down. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Anne Enright's essay collection. San Francisco Chronicle
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Whatever It Is, I Don't Like It
A review of an anthology by Howard Jacobson. San Francisco Chronicle
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The Beauty and the Sorrow, by Peter Englund
A review of an "intimate history" of World War I. San Francisco Chronicle
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An interview with T.C. Boyle about his novel When the Killing's Done. San Francisco Chronicle
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Penn Jillette on the joys of atheism
An interview with the author of God, No! Signs You May Already Be An Atheist and Other Magical Tales. San Francisco Chronicle
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Radioactive: Marie and Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout
A review of Lauren Redniss' mix of drawings, photo-collages and text. San Francisco Chronicle
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Cleopatra reconsidered
An interview with the biographer Stacy Schiff. San Francisco Chronicle
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Infinite City
A review of Rebecca Solnit's San Francisco Atlas. San Francisco Chronicle
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Life
A review of Keith Richards' memoir. San Francisco Chronicle
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Golden Gate
A review of Kevin Starr's history of the bridge. San Francisco Chronicle
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War stories
An interview with Tim O'Brien, author of The Things They Carried on its 20th anniversary. San Francisco Chronicle
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Robert Stone keeps it short
An interview with Stone, whose latest book is the story collection Fun With Problems. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Avi Steinberg's memoir of his time as a prison librarian. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of John Vaillant's The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival. San Francisco Chronicle
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Baby, We Were Meant for Each Other
A review of Scott Simon's memoir on adoption. San Francisco Chronicle
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A review of Howard Bryant's biography of Henry Aaron. San Francisco Chronicle
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Agassi's next chapter
An interview with the tennis great and author of the memoir Open. San Francisco Chronicle
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Over the border
An interview with Luis Alberto Urrea, author of the novel Into the Beautiful North. San Francisco Chronicle
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New York story
An interview with Richard Price, author of the novel Lush Life. San Francisco Chronicle
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