G.E. Nordell's State of California
Reading Material Page
“Come down to Big Sur and let your soul have some room to get outside its marrow.”
— Richard Brautigan [1935-84], in the novel "A Confederate General From Big Sur" [1964]
browse travel books about California U.S.A. at Amazon
NewPages.com's Directory of Independent Bookstores for California
Authors & Literary Subjects of California
California Authors directory
Edgar Rice Burroughs [1875-1950]
Bay Area columnist Herb Caen [1916-97]: entry at Wikipedia
 | "The World of Herb Caen: San Francisco, 1938-1997" [1997] Edited by Barnaby Conrad Chronicle Books 10x9½ pb [8/99] for $14.78 Chronicle Books 10¼x10 hardcover [10/97] out of print/many used |
mystery author Raymond Chandler [1888-1959]
mystery author Erle Stanley Gardner [1889-1970]
mystery author Sue Grafton [1940-2017]
Western author Zane Grey [1872-1939]
mystery author Dashiell Hammett [1894-1961]
(Francis) Bret Harte [1836-1902]
Helen Hunt Jackson [1830-85]
poet Robinson Jeffers [1887-1962]
Western author Louis L'Amour [1908-88]
mystery author Ross Macdonald [1915-83]
screenwriter Frances Marion [1886-1973]
pulp author Johnston McCulley [1883-1958]
mystery author Marilyn Meredith
Henry Miller [1891-1980]
 | "Big Sur and The Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch" [June 1967] by Henry Miller [1891-1980] author Henry Miller lived in Big Sur from 1944 to 1962 New Directions 8x5 pb [9/78] for $12.44 |
eco-activist John Muir [1838-1914]
philosopher Ayn Rand [1905-82]
Berkeley economist Robert B. Reich
author William Saroyan [1908-81]
Dr. Seuss {Theodor Geisel 1904-91}
author John Steinbeck [1902-68]
California poet George Sterling [1869-1926]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Sterling
Robert Louis Stevenson [1850-94]
mystery author Jim Thompson [1906-77]
[blacklistee] screenwriter Dalton Trumbo [1905-76]
Latino playwright Luis Valdez
fictional character 'El Zorro'
beat poet Gregory Corso [1930-2001]
 | "Big Sur" [Sept 1962] by Jack Kerouac [1922-1969] Penguin 7¾x5 pb [6/92] for $11.20 |
Non-Fiction Books About California
browse travel books about California U.S.A. at Amazon
 | "The Old Franciscan Missions of California" [Little, Brown 1912] by George Wharton James [1858-1923] also known as "In and Out of The Old Missions of California" Kindle Edition from historicalbookshop.com [1/2009] for $7.99 Dodo Press 8¾x6 illustrated pb [3/2007] for $21.99 BiblioLife 8x5 pb [4/2009] for $18.99 BiblioLife 9¾x7½ pb [4/2009] for $23.99 BiblioLife 9¼x6 hardcover [4/2009] for $24.99 BiblioLife 10x7 hardcover [4/2009] for $28.99 IndyPublish 9x6 hardcover [10/2007] for $52.99 |
 | "The California Padres and Their Missions" [Houghton Mifflin, 1915] by Charles F. Saunders & Joseph S. Chase Kessinger Publng 9x6½ pb [6/2007] for $28.08 Kessinger Publng 9x6 hardcover [6/2007] for $37.92 |
 | "Southern California [Country]: An Island On The Land" [1946] by Carey McWilliams "Probably the best book on Southern California." — Robert Towne Peregrine Smith 8x5½ pb [3/80] for $17.95 |
 | "Americans and The California Dream, 1850-1915" [1973] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9x5¾ pb [12/86] for $35.99 Oxford Univ Press 9¼x6¼ hardcover [5/73] for $55.15 |
 | "The California Missions: A Complete Pictorial History & Visitor's Guide" [1979] by the Editors of Sunset Magazine Oxmoor House 10¾x8¼ pb [12/96] for $11.96 |
 | "Rails Across The Ranchos: The Pacific Coastline of Southern Pacific Railroad (San Luis Obispo County)" [1980] by Loren Nicholson California Heritage Publing 10¾x8½ pb [8/93] out of print/used California Heritage Publing hardcover [5/1980] out of print/used |
 | "Inventing The Dream: California Through The Progressive Era" [1985] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9¼x6 pb [12/86] for $22.50 Oxford Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [3/85] out of print/used |
 | "Material Dreams: Southern California Through The 1920s" [1990] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9x5¾ pb [10/91] for $27.95 Oxford Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [4/90] for $61.49 |
 | "Endangered Dreams: The Great Depression In California" [1996] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9x6 pb [11/97] for $22.45 Oxford Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [1/96] for $60.00 see also Spirit of America's 'Great Depression' [1929-39] Page |
 | "The Dream Endures: California Enters The 1940s" [1997] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9x6 pb [11/2002] for $22.45 Oxford Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [5/97] for $48.00 |
 | "Jack London’s Golden State: Selected California Writings" [1999] Edited by Gerald Haslam Heyday Books 9x6 pb [7/1999] out of print/used essays, short stories, journalism, and fiction excerpts (from "John Barleycorn", "Martin Eden", "The Sea Wolf", "The Star Rover", "The Iron Heel", "The Valley Of The Moon" & others) Jack London [1876-1916] Page at Spirit of America Bookstore |
 | "Salt Dreams: Land and Water In Low-Down California" [1999] by William deBuys, Photographs by Joan Myers Kindle Edition from VisionIntoArt [4/2017] for $9.99 Univ New Mexico Press 10x8½ pb [3/2001] for $29.95 Univ New Mexico Press 10½x9 hardcover [10/99] for $34.50 |
 | "Chasing The California Dream: A Solo Horseback Journey Along The California Coast" [2001] by Lisa F. Wood
The author traveled on horseback in 1991 along the California coastline from the Mexican border to the Oregon border, duplicating the 1500-mile journey that J. Smeaton Chase made in 1911. Lost Coast Press 8½x5½ pb [6/2001] for $12.95 |
 | "Another City: Writing From Los Angeles" [2001] Edited by David Ulin Named one of the Best Books of 2001 in the Los Angeles Times Book Review; writers of these 37 essays, stories & poems include Luis Alfaro, William Archila, Aimee Bender, Michael Datcher, Jacqueline De Angelis, Bart Edelman, Sesshu Foster, Lynell George, Amy Gerstler, Erik Himmels-bach, Russell Leong, Bia Lowe, Ellen Maybe, Jeffrey McDaniel, Cindy Milwe, Richard Rayner, Aleida Rodríguez, Joan Jobe Smith, Jervey Tervalon, Amy Uyematsu, and Benjamin Weissman City Lights Publrs 7¾x6 pb [9/2001] for $16.95 |
 | "Embattled Dreams: California In War & Peace, 1940-1950" [2002] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9x6 pb [9/2003] for $22.45 Oxford Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [5/2002] out of print/used |
 | "Writing Los Angeles: A Literary Anthology" [2002] Edited by David L. Ulin Nearly 900 pages of novel excerpts, short stories, poems, diary entries, and newspaper & magazine articles; authors include Bertolt Brecht, James M. Cain, Truman Capote, Raymond Chandler, Joan Didion, James Ellroy, William Faulkner, M.F.K. Fisher, F. Scott Fitzgerald, painter David Hockney, Pico Iyer, Helen Hunt Jackson, Norman Mailer, Ruben Martinez, H.L. Mencken, Charles Mingus, Walter Mosley, Octavio Paz, Art Pepper, Mona Simpson, screenwriter Robert Towne, William T. Vollman, D.J. Waldie, Evelyn Waugh, Nathanael West, and Tom Wolfe Library of America 9¼x6½ hardcover [9/2002] for $26.53 |
 | "The Misread City: New Literary Los Angeles" [2003] Edited by Scott Timberg & Dana Gioia 34 selections intended as rebuttal to "Writing Los Angeles" just above; writers include Brendan Bernhard, Laurel Ann Bogen, Wanda Coleman, Jenny Factor, David Fine, Kate Gale, Lynell George, Peter Gilstrap, editor Gioia, Laurence Goldstein, Pico Iyer, Ken Kelley, David Kipen, Ron Koertge, Suzanne Lummis, Susan Moffat, John Powers, David St. John, Sara Scribner, Paul Skenazy, Timothy Steele, Ariel Swartley, David L. Ulin, Amy Uyematsu, Gina Valdés, Marcos M. Villatoro, Charles Harper Webb, and Chryss Yost Red Hen Press 9x6 pb [5/2003] out of print/used |
 | "Los Angeles: Where Anything Is Possible" [2003] photos by Culver City resident Larry Brownstein self-publd pb [12/2003] for $13.97 |
 | "My California: Journeys By Great Writers" [27 travel essays, 2004] Edited by Donna Wares, Illustrations by David Hockney, Introduction by Pico Iyer Essays by 27 California authors, compiled as a revenue source for the California Arts Council; contributors include Mark Arax, Michael Chabon, Veronique de Turenne, Anh Do, Firoozeh Dumas, Percival Everett, Dana Gioia, Kathi Kamen Goldmark, Gerald Haslam, Edward Humes, Pico Iyer, David Kipen, Aimee Liu, Mary Mackey, devorah major, Rubén Martínez, Patt Morrison, T. Jefferson Parker, Derek M. Powazek, Carolyn See, Thomas Steinbeck, Deanne Stillman, Héctor Tobar, D.J. Waldie, Matt Warshaw, Daniel Weintraub & Chryss Yost Angel City Press pb [6/2004] for $10.88 |
 | "Images of America: Big Sur, California" [2004] by Jeff Norman & the Big Sur Historical Society Arcadia Publng 9x6¼ pb [10/2004] for $15.59 |
 | "Images of America: San Luis Obispo - A History In Architecture" [2004] by Janet Penn Franks Arcadia Publng 9¼x6¼ pb [10/2004] for $13.59 |
 | "Coast of Dreams: California On The Edge, 1990-2002" [2005] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Vintage 7½x5 pb [2/2006] for $12.21 Allen Lane 9¼x6 hardcover [6/2005] out of print/used |
 | "Images of America: Nevada City [California}" [2005] by Maria E. Brower Arcadia Publng 8¼x6¼ pb [9/2005] for $13.59 |
 | "California: A History" [2005] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Modern Library 8x5¼ pb [3/2007] for $10.17 Modern Library 8½x5¾ hardcover [10/2005] for $16.47 |
 | "Images of America: Gold Rush Towns of Nevada County [California]" [2006] by Maria E. Brower Arcadia Publng 8½x6½ pb [10/2006] for $13.59 |
 | "Images of America: Grass Valley [California]" [2006] by Claudine Chalmers Arcadia Publng 9x6½ pb [11/2006] for $13.59 |
 | "Vanishing Orange County, California (Images of America)" [2008] by Chris Epting Kindle Edition from Arcadia Publng [11/2008] for $7.99 Arcadia Publng 9¼x6½ pb [11/2008] for $17.42 Arcadia Library Editions 9½x6¾ hardcover [11/2008] for $26.99 |
 | "Golden Dreams: California In An Age of Abundance, 1950-1963" [2009] by Kevin Starr, California State Librarian Emeritus Oxford Univ Press 9¼x6½ hardcover [7/2009] for $23.07 |
 | "Knott's Berry Farm: The Early Years (Images of America)" [2009] by Jay Jennings
Arcadia Publng 9¼x6½ pb [8/2009] for $16.32 |
 | "Knott's Preserved: From Boysenberry To Theme Park, The History of Knott's Berry Farm" [2010] by Christopher Merritt & J. Eric Lynxwiler, Introduction by Tony Baxter
Angel City Press 8¾x9 pb [6/2010] for $19.00 Angel City Press 9½x9¼ hardcover [6/2010] for $29.20 |
 | "World Film Locations: Los Angeles" [2011] by Gabriel Solomons Series book spotlights location-specific scenes from classic & contemporary films shot in the City of Angels, with particular emphasis on filmmakers such as Robert Altman, Nicholas Ray, Michael Mann & Roman Polanski Intellect Books U.K. 9¾x6 pb [8/2011] for $12.24 |
 | "Sacramento's Gold Rush Saloons: El Dorado In A Shot Glass" [2014] from Special Collections of the Sacramento Public Library Kindle Edition from The History Press [1/2014] for $9.99 The History Press 9x6 pb [1/2014] for $15.67 |
California Fiction
"Ramona: The Story of The White Man's Injustice To The Indian" [1884 novel] by Helen Hunt Jackson [1830-85]
"Brett Easton Ellis classic "Less Than Zero" [1985] is set in L.A.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bret_Easton_Ellis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Less_Than_Zero_(novel)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Less_Than_Zero_(film) 1987
 | "Los Angeles In Fiction: A Collection of Essays From James M. Cain To Walter Mosley" [1984 & 1995] Edited by David Fine Essayists include Oscar Zeta Acosta, James M. Cain, Raymond Chandler, Joan Didion, John Gregory Dunne, John Fante, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Chester Himes Aldous Huxley, Ross Macdonald, Norman Mailer, Horace McCoy, Walter Mosley, Marc Norman, Thomas Pynchon, Thomas Sanchez, Budd Schulberg, Evelyn Waugh, Nathanael West, and Hysaye Yamamoto UNM Press rev edition 9x6 pb [8/95] out of print/used UNM Press 9x5¾ pb [12/84] out of print/used |
 | "California Girl: A Novel" [2004] by T. Jefferson Parker A decades-long epic about two Orange County families and a murder Kindle Edition from HarperCollins e-books [10/2009] for $6.49 Harper Perennial 8x5¼ pb [7/2009] for $14.93 HarperTorch mass pb [12/2005] out of print/100+ used Wm. Morrow 9¼x6½ hardcover [10/2004] out of print/100+ used |
 | "Backlot Requiem: A Rick Walker Mystery" [2005] by G.E. Nordell A long-buried body discovered at National Pictures Studios brings in private investigator Rick Walker and leads to a thirty- year-old murder case, a dying film director and his wild daughters, a legendary film star of the Silent Era, local gangsters, and a very discreet love affair. • click here for excerpt Kindle Edition from Amazon [7/2011] for $9.95 iUniverse 9x6 pb [3/2005] for $12.95 iUniverse 9x6 hardcover [3/2005] for $22.95 official Rick Walker novels website • Croatian-language edition |
 | "Orange County Noir" [14 stories 2010] Edited by Gary Phillips, Foreword by T. Jefferson Parker 14 brand-new stories by Mary Castillo, Barbara DeMarco-Barrett, Dan Duling, Robert S. Levinson, Dick Lochte, Lawrence Maddox, Gordon McAlpine, Patricia McFall, editor Phillips, Rob Roberge, Martin J. Smith, Susan Straight, Nathan Walpow, and Robert Ward Kindle Edition from Akashic Noir Series [6/2012] for $8.75 Akashic Books 8¼x5¼ pb [4/2010] for $14.84 |
 | "The Madonnas of Echo Park: A Novel" [2010] by Brando Skyhorse This novel-in-stories weaves a vivid portrayal of the lives of Mexican-Americans who live and work in the hidden barrios of Los Angeles - migrant farm workers, gardeners, dishwashers, bus drivers, house cleaners, gang members - each trying to survive and to somehow make a better life for themselves. Free Press 8½x5½ pb [2/2011] for $11.20 Free Press 9x6 hardcover [6/2010] for $15.64 |
 | "Land of The Afternoon Sun" [2016] by historical romance novelist Barbara Wood A disinherited English baron and a young New York heiress marry and move West in the 1920s; they build an agricultural empire in Palm Springs when it was just a small town on the edge of the Mojave Desert. Kindle Edition from Turner Publng [7/2016] for $9.49 Turner Publng 9x6 pb [7/2016] for $15.55 Turner Publng 9x6¼ hardcover [7/2016] for $25.21 |
here on the Reading Material About California Page
top of page •• A Few California Authors •• non-fiction about California •• fiction about California
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