Books

For months, Kathleen Caldwell had been waking at 3am to check her bank balance. That’s when the nightly business deposit arrived and indicated if she’d be able to retain her home, health and greatest happiness as the...

The passage of time, 10 best-selling books and countless essays for The New York Times Magazine and other publications make it clear that Michael Pollan has no off button. Appearing March 10 at First Congregational Church of...

History has a way of pretending certain people didn’t exist. In a region that prides itself on progress, women who built institutions, changed laws, fought segregation, defended bodily autonomy and reshaped culture have largely vanished from the...

Since 1999, the annual literary festival, Litquake, has featured 11,500 authors and performers appearing before an audience total of 315,000. And in 2025, it’s gaining considerable steam in the East Bay. Numerous writers, poets, illustrators, playwrights and...

Elizabeth Rosner‘s new book, Third Ear: Reflections on the Art and Science of Listening, is by no means a prescriptive, how-to, self-help book. But it could be. Focused on listening and hearing, the Berkeley-based writer remembers and...

EBM: Oddest library request you (or a colleague) received from a guest? BLAINE WENTWORTH (HE/THEY): One of the oddest requests was from a community member who wanted to hold their child's birthday party at the library. They hoped...

He’s part dog, part man, a champion of justice—and the canine hero of the Fremont Main Library’s most checked-out book.  Since the beginning of the year, readers have checked out Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea...