Who: Dan McMenamin, Managing Editor of Bay City News
Recommendation: “Palo Alto” by Malcolm Harris
Why it’s a good read: I’m currently reading this book on the history of how money has shaped the Bay Area (and more broadly California and the West) from before the gold rush to our current times. It’s the stories of the people who brought the region its trains, tech and capital (like Leland Stanford, namesake of Palo Alto’s famous university) and the people they railroaded along the way.
Check if the book is available to borrow from your local public library.
Who: Kyla Zhao, Author of VALLEY VERIFIED and THE FRAUD SQUAD
Recommendation: “Valley Verified” by Kyla Zhao
Why it’s a good read: Imagine ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ meets ‘Legally Blonde’, but this time Elle Woods is tackling the cutthroat startup world. In Valley Verified, our heroine Zoe is forced to leave her fashion job in New York and move to Silicon Valley, where she joins an up-and-coming tech startup. In this sink-or-swim environment, Zoe must tackle judgmental coworkers, eccentric tech billionaires and her own insecurities to prove she’s more than just a fashionista in a land of tech bros.
Check if the book is available to borrow from your local public library.
Who: Leigh, Owner of Leigh’s Favorite Books
Recommendation: “The Golden Gate” by Amy Chua
Why it’s a good read: This richly plotted historical thriller set in 1940’s Berkeley and San Francisco is thrilling, while the in-depth characters and threads paint a complex picture of race and class in the Bay Area.
Check if the book is available to borrow from your local public library.
Who: Maida Paxton, librarian at Bay area public library
Recommendation: ​”Pride and Preston Lin” by Christina Hwang Dudley
Why it’s a good read: It’s a perfect summer read. A delightful, funny, angsty, and just plain fun Pride and Prejudice retelling set on the Peninsula. The Bay Area setting and use of local class signifiers (Darcy goes to Stanford, Lizzie goes to SJSU) are pitch perfect.
Synopsis: Lissie is the middle of three sisters, orphaned and taken in by their aunt and uncle. Both she and her older sister, Jenny, work in the family restaurant while pursuing their education and career dreams. When Lissie accidentally serves a dish containing shellfish paste to an allergic customer, she runs afoul of the wealthy Lin family. Their golden boy, Preston, star swimmer and Stanford Ph.D. student, is as handsome as he is self-righteous. Lissie hates him and everything he stands for, but circumstances keep bringing them together. Can she overcome her pride and her initial misgivings about Preston Lin and his condescending mother? Will love prevail, and will these enemies turn into lovers?
Check if the book is available to borrow from your local public library.
Who: Pam MacLean, retired journalist
Recommendation: “San Francisco’s Forgotten Cemeteries, a Buried History” by Beth Winegarner
Why it’s a good read: This well-researched trip through San Francisco’s early history via its forgotten cemeteries leads the reader through storied neighborhoods and monuments by tracing where many bodies are still buried. Almost all city cemeteries were moved, but not completely and some of the souls underfoot are still turning up. It’s a history lovers delight.
Check if the book is available to borrow from your public library.