Thanks for wanting to join our literary side hustle: the CH Projects and San Diego Magazine Book Club. It’s a clunky name, but it’s ours.
We created this club because we believe in the regenerative power of independent bookstores. And the power of a well-chosen cluster of words to shift whole lives. The club will be based around the books that shaped our own.
To join this sexy book club, enter your information in the form below. As esteemed members, you’ll be the first to know each month’s selected book. Expect to receive an email soon announcing the October book.
We also announce each month’s pick in San Diego Magazine. We encourage you to subscribe (this is also a scheme to support local media and creatives).
Please visit one of the participating local, indie bookshops listed below to get your copy. Keep your receipt, snap a photo, and email it to us at [email protected].
We’ll randomly select one member each month to win $300 to any Consortium Holdings Projects establishment (Born & Raised, Neighborhood, Polite Provisions, Ironside, Craft & Commerce, Part Time Lover, Fortunate Son, etc.).
More details to come.
A sincere thank you,
Consortium Holdings Project & San Diego Magazine
Enter your information below to sign-up for the CH x SDM Book Club
CH Projects x San Diego Magazine Book Club is back, and mutated. Our life goal now: indie bookstores and good, old-fashioned bribery.
SDM’s gonna tell the stories of our city’s indie bookstores. Those fantastic culture beasts. And CH Projects will dole out bribes for you to walk into one of them, browse your brains out, and buy something from a well-read neighbor. Nothing against online supermega retailers and their one-click seducery. We just think local bookstores should be obsessively supported and exalted.
Please visit one of the participating local, indie bookshops listed below. Keep your receipt, snap a photo, and email it to us at [email protected].
We’ll randomly select one member every three months to win a $200 gift card to Craft & Commerce.
Don’t matter if your vice is literary nonfiction or eyelid-sweat romance smut. All books are equal under the eyes of the bribe.
Support indie bookstores. Our holy word churches. Join the club.
The Pulitzer-winning author of A Visit from the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan, joined SDM content chief Troy Johnson for an IG Live to talk about her award-winning novel, which kicked off the CH + SDM Book Club.
We’re kind of geeked.
When we started this book club with Consortium Holdings Projects, we were just two companies with a shared affinity for books that have the power to shape lives. Now, we’re 1,000+ members strong, breaking down a novel’s themes with the author herself.
Jennifer Egan does not like to go backwards in time. She likes to go forward and she has been gracious enough to go backwards 10 years to A Visit From the Goon Squad, which was her amazing, visceral, beautiful book. She’s written a ton.
In fact, she just released a new one, The Candy House, which Obama said was one of his favorite reads of the summer. Watch the full conversation above, or read the condensed transcript below, which highlights some of our favorite moments.
Chief Content Officer, Troy Johnson (TJ):
I wouldn’t say that [Goon Squad] is a rage against the machine, but you show a little trepidation about the machine. And social media…
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Jennifer Egan (JE):
I’m kind of an incompetent machine. I think about a new device and I think how long will it take me to be able to use it and how much will I screw it up? But I have nothing inherently against any of it.
TJ:
I was reading about your process of writing, which is fascinating and a bit luddite too.You write everything out by hand?
JE:
I write by hand for fiction [because] fiction requires a connection with my unconscious, with the part of me that is not thinking and not critiquing the part of me that in some ways can surprise myself and handwriting. And by that I really mean cursive because printing doesn’t do it. But cursive seems to activate that part of my brain, and it has some additional advantages. I can’t really read it very well because my writing is appalling. And so again, I don’t have that urge that I think we all have when we look at a screen to like back up and make it better, I can’t do that. And it seems that I get into a less thought driven state of mind in which I can enact a kind of improvisation on the page. And that’s what leads to my best material.
TJ:
Athletes get that way… performers get that way … they talk about it being a flow. Where you’re so engrossed and you don’t have the backspace button, the only way through it is forward, right?
JE:
Absolutely. And what you said about the only way forward is actually really important because I don’t do much editing at all as I write. Most importantly, I don’t read over what I’ve written until the next day, and I do that basically just to reenter that flow.
TJ:
In [the first couple pages of] Goon Squad, Sasha is staring at a purse, which is sitting on the floor in a bathroom… and she’s listening to somebody pee. It’s so imperfectly human… How do you come up with those first [scenes] and how do you know when you found them?
JE:
For me, starting with a physical environment is a crucial part of the process because I want to sort of be in a sensory environment [or] space where someone is observing sensory details of a physical environment. Then the question is, who is making these observations? Who is perceiving the woman peeing or anything else that is the beginning of a character? And then what does that person do or who else is there? And now we have the beginning of more characters and action.
In that particular case… there was a corollary from my own life, which is that I was in a hotel bathroom; I did see a wallet. And what it evoked for me was one of too many memories of having actually been robbed. I saw that wallet and I thought, Oh my God, someone’s gonna take it. And then I thought, Well, I’m the only one here. I’m obviously not gonna take it. But in general, I don’t write about my own life. And what I’m most curious about is a point of view opposed to mine. So if I’ve been robbed… what’s it like to be the one who steals the wallet and my curiosity was provoked.
TJ:
It seems to me you love imperfection [and] fallibility of humanity. Every character lives with myriad flaws in Goon Squad yet they’re not unlovable… you have so much compassion for them.
Troy Johnson is the magazine’s award-winning food writer and humorist, and a long-standing expert on Food Network. His work has been featured on NatGeo, Travel Channel, NPR, and in Food Matters, a textbook of the best American food writing.
San Diego summers can be brutal. But since the hottest period is typically late summer into early fall, San Diegans still have time to prepare. The pros at Mauzy Cooling, Heating, Plumbing, and Electrical are standing by to help homeowners fortify their homes against the elements and ensure their air conditioning is as frosty as the penguins that serve as the company’s mascots.
Many homeowners underestimate the load their AC system faces, especially in the inland valleys where temperatures regularly top 100 degrees. San Diego regularly sees multi-day heatwaves each summer, and a system that struggles on the first day will likely fail by the third.Longer run times, unusual sounds or smells, and uneven cooling from room to room are all signs that your system may not survive the next hot spell.
Systems typically last 12 to 17 years, but there are exceptions. If a system is approaching that, or is already there, a professional evaluation is recommended before summer really heats up. A good rule of thumb: If you can’t remember when your system was last serviced, it’s due.
“As technology changes, systems become smarter and smarter,” says Sean O’Connor, an install manager at Mauzy with 42 years of experience. “There are a lot of people out there who will say a system’s only good for 10 years. I don’t buy that—these systems are built to last as long as they’re taken care of.”
There are also a few steps homeowners can take between services to extend the life of their system. Regularly changing a dirty filter—especially if you have kids or pets—and keeping an outdoor unit clean can help head off problems in the future, says O’Connor.
Also, be realistic about whether it’s time to replace a unit. O’Connor likens pouring money into salvaging a faulty unit with patchwork repairs and replacement parts to “tripping over a dollar to pick up a dime.” When one part fails, others are sure to follow, and newer parts may not be compatible with older units. Mauzy recommends homeowners use the 50% rule: If a repair costs more than 50% of the system’s replacement value, and the equipment is over 10 years old, replacement is usually the better long-term value. And don’t forget the ducting. An older house that was built with heat and later had air conditioning added may not have sufficient airflow, regardless of how good the system is.
Last but not least, homeowners should know who to trust when it comes to their homes. Built on three generations of professional integrity, Mauzy has grown into not just a leader for cooling, heating, plumbing, and electrical services, but a leader in the community known for supporting local nonprofits across an array of causes. To ensure complete peace of mind, Mauzy stands behind a comprehensive 12-point guarantee that outlines its commitment to outstanding service, quality equipment, expert technicians who understand how the local microclimates affect HVAC performance, and no upsells or surprises on the bill.
“We go the extra mile. That’s what sets us apart,” O’Connor says. To get a free quote today, visit mauzy.com.
SeaWorld dazzles with a drone show, big-name entertainers, new animal adventures and more
By Partner Content
Nights are heating up at SeaWorld San Diego. The quintessential summertime staple on Mission Bay is transforming into a destination for unforgettable day-to-night adventures, bringing back some of its most popular Summer Nights programming and introducing exciting new experiences sure to delight both kids and adults alike.
The 2026 Summer Day to Night at SeaWorld San Diego is the park’s most ambitious season yet. SeaWorld has planned a highly anticipated entertainment lineup that features nine weeks of throwback concerts featuring R&B and hip‑hop favorites from the ‘90s and early 2000s, including Jordin Sparks, Too $hort and Warren G, Ashanti, and an array of boy band heartthrobs performing together as part of the Pop 2000 Tour.
New this season is perhaps the park’s most visible update: a nightly drone show, Ocean of Dreams, which illuminates the sky with hundreds of synchronized sparklers. Drones form sea otters, sharks, dolphins, and a majestic orca that tell a breathtaking 12-minute story of marine life and underwater ecosystems. The show culminates with a spectacular electric neon finale celebrating hope, wonder, and ocean stewardship.
Nighttime visitors are also in store for animal adventures that fuse education with high-energy fun and the dreamy ambiance of nighttime. The park has launched two all-new animal presentations: Shamu’s Celebration:Light Up the Night and Dolphins: Touch the Sky. Shamu’s Celebration:Light Up the Night features vibrant lighting, music, and dynamic choreography that celebrates the power and beauty of killer whales. Dolphins: Touch the Sky showcases playful bottlenose dolphins and the special connection between humans and the natural world. And back by popular demand is fan-favorite Sea Lions Tonite. See the charming pinnipeds splash, play, and parody pop culture in this refreshed crowd-pleaser.
More must-sees: a newly reimagined Shark Encounter, one of the country’s more immersive exhibits highlighting 11 different species up close, SeaWorld’s beloved BMX Blast! stunt show, and high-seas escapade, Pirates Ahoy! The Battle for Mermaid Cove. And don’t miss the park’s all-new Deep Sea Disco, which encourages guests to dance the night away under the glow of the SkyTower, and vibrant closing time laser light display Laser Reef Summer Spectacular.
Amp up the nighttime vibe with local craft beers, curated cocktails, and nostalgic theme park treats with $1 beer all summer long. SeaWorld is the place for day to night summer fun. When the sun goes down, SeaWorld lights up, and inspires guests of all ages to embrace their inner whimsy and see why generations of San Diegans head to SeaWorld to make memories they’ll never forget.
