Read L.A.: What Makes Mike Run?

THIS WEEKEND marks the Los Angeles Times' Book Festival's debut on the campus of the University of Southern California. Already this morning, I've watched busloads of book lovers leave from independent bookstore parking lots from bedroom communities threaded across the Southland. So, in honor of the book fest, I thought I might republish some L.A. book lists from our past guests.

Journalist, teacher and poet, Mike Sonksen, (BKA, Mike the Poet) touched down in class earlier this semester and spun L.A. history via shimmering rhyming couplets. He threw out names of some of his favorite books, authors and hidden places in L.A. Full list to follow but here are a few of the books and/or authors he made mention of both in conversation and verse:



Budd Schulberg: What Makes Sammy Run?





Kamau Daaood, Leimert Park CD



John Fante, Ask the Dust




Charles Bukowski, Hollywood

L.G.

The Misread City: Eric Puchner and the California Dream

MY L.A. TIMES colleague, Scott Timberg posts today on his blog, "The Misread City", about young L.A. author, Eric Puchner and his new book, Model Home.

Here'a link to Timberg's post, The Misread City: Eric Puchner and the California Dream: "HERE at The Misread City, we try to capture what makes Los Angeles and the West Coast distinct, and aim to look at the way the existing clic..."

Here's Puchner talking about his own work on YouTube.

Timberg posts the author's new story on his his blog as well, you might want to check it out as it wanders around some of the themes -- particularly trying to articulate the essence of Los Angeles -- and what it is to be an Angeleno -- outside of its narrow list of cliches.

-- L.G.