A reclusive elderly woman lives surrounded by books in a Beirut apartment. She translates them into Arabic, but they go unread, because she locks them away. As her mind bends and swirls through her solitary existence, we learn more about her past, Lebanese history, and her brilliant ideas about literature.
Bingo’s Run: A Novel cover
Bingo’s Run: A Novel
By James Levine
Bingo is the greatest drug runner in the slums of Nairobi, and he’s only a teenager. When he witnesses a drug-related murder, his boss sends him to an orphanage for protection, and his whole life changes. Funny and tender, Bingo is the perfect trickster protagonist to guide us through a corrupt world.
In a futuristic America divided by class, urban neighborhoods become walled-in labor camps where workers search for produce and fish to feed the wealthy colonies on the outside. A woman leaves her camp when her beloved disappears and sets out across the crime-ridden “Open Counties.”
Strange Bodies: A Novel cover
Strange Bodies: A Novel
By Marcel Theroux
A man shows up on a woman’s doorstep claiming to be her old boyfriend. The only problem is he died months ago. Skip to a psych ward, where the same man continues to insist he’s the dead man, a former Samuel Johnson scholar. This high-concept literary thriller is a well-crafted, eerie tale of doubles.
Quesadillas: A Novel cover
Quesadillas: A Novel
By Juan Pablo Villalobos
A large family in Mexico is confined to its rural home because of surrounding violence. The father crafts insults of the “your mama” variety, the mother makes quesadillas, and the children try to escape the boredom of a rustic life. The novel’s structure is avant-garde, and combines magical realism with a satire of modern Mexico.
Our Essential Guide to Shopping Small in San Diego
More than 60 retail shops to help you find the perfect gifts for your loved ones this holiday season
Courtesy of Home + Hound
By Erica Nichols and Marie Tutko, with Jeanette Giovannellio, Elena Gomez, Kai Oliver- Kurtin, Jenna Miller, Sarah Pfledderer, Hannah Lott-Schwartz, and Carlos Rico | Photography by Kimberly Motos
Shopping Small – main
Courtesy of Home + Hound
We love San Diego’s small businesses, and you should, too. In these pages we’ve highlighted a sample of the many independently owned and effortlessly cool retail shops that make up our city. At these brick-and-mortars, both old and new, you can score a secondhand statement piece, shop handmade accessories, discover local brands, and fall in love with shopping small all over again.
This holiday season, help support local by visiting some of our favorite haunts around town. Got your credit card? You’re about to do some damage.
Soon after One Paseo shopping center began welcoming tenants, fashion entrepreneur and self-described tomboy Ariel Hujar opened Whiskey + Leather fashion boutique. This high-end men’s and women’s clothing shop stocks luxury brands from across the country, including One Teaspoon, Spell, Scotch & Soda, and For Love and Lemons. They also carry stylish accessories and home goods such as candles, books, and barware.
Quality comes first at Gold Dust Collective, where all the accessories are handmade and sourced as sustainably as possible. The North Park storefront carries goods from three local artists: Flight of Fancy jewelry, Haberdash hats, and El Gato Montes leatherwork. Shop here for unique readymade pieces like beetle pendants and adorned felt hats, or to start customizing one.
Hip-hop and street culture inspired the formation of The Fresh Yard. This independent boutique carries some of the most anticipated brands in streetwear, such as Raised by Wolves and Black Market Tailors, along with its own signature clothing and accessories like T-shirts, hats, and beanies. With a strong tie to the local art and music communities, The Fresh Yard releases exclusive collaborations and often hosts art shows and live events. When they’re not running the store, the team also organizes food and clothing drives to donate to people in need.
Tyler Axtell started this line of refined leather and canvas bags, backpacks, and jackets in a garage in Ocean Beach, and later moved to a store in East Village. All the items in this adventure goods collection—such as the best-selling camouflage Wilder backpack—are made to withstand travel and camping, but their polished look also works for the day-to- day. The bags are made to last, and free repairs are included for each purchase. The company had to close their 17th Street storefront, but they’re still crafting the line right here in San Diego and you can order online.
Onesies, cardigans, teething necklaces— this just-opened Alpine boutique serves the wee one in your life. Consider Cuddle + Kind dolls, which are knitted by hand in Peru, and Stokke, a sophisticated Norwegian furniture brand specializing in cribs and high chairs that grow with your baby.
Sophie Machado isn’t bashful to admit that, yes, being married to a professional surfer has its perks. She’s followed her husband, Rob, to countries around the world, including Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and his native Australia—but she jokes that in humid countries, you can only lie about for so long. So instead, her habit is to jump in a tuk tuk or taxi and drop into the heart of a city’s artisan district to see firsthand the care and craftsmanship that go into the imports we buy. Sophie’s never been one to gloat about those experiences. Instead, she’s on a mission to make something more of them, and that’s where Salt Culture comes in. The boutique stocks products from their travels and their favorite local brands.“Salt Culture is basically a scrapbook, and a place to tell our stories,” she says. It’s an homage to the girl she once was, a college student living on a shoestring; and the guy Rob’s always been, a surfer with an affection for supporting local. Salt Culture stocks Rob’s signature Smiley Face merch in the form of sweatpants and shirts, and it’s also the only brick-and-mortar storefront in the world where you can buy a custom-made Rob Machado surfboard. Sophie just launched her own loungewear line, too, named “Reawakening.”
Take a step into Four Moons Spa’s Bali-inspired oasis. The spa’s stated focus is on “wholeness”—meaning the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual layers of each guest. Visitors can experience everything from an astrological reading to a massage. They recently introduced a hammam treatment, inspire by Muslim public bathing culture, which can be done with a therapist or self-guided. A shop on site is full of products to keep up the Zen long after you leave.
The most interesting (and delicious) events happening around town this month
Chefs create dishes inspired by their favorite literary characters at Eat. Drink. Read. | Photo: Council on Literacy
By Chase Scheinbaum
There is no shortage of food and drink events in San Diego, which means more and more organizers are thinking outside the box in an effort to stand out from the crowd. Here are three unique events that combine delicious food with exercise, literature, and complete darkness.
Darkroom: A Dinner Series
Where: Uptown Tavern
When: May 9, and monthly
It’s lights out at this monthly, five-course tasting dinner where guests might be left in the dark by the surprise menu, but won’t be distracted from its flavors by any light whatsoever. Uptown Tavern’s executive chef Mark Molina designs the menu around in-season ingredients. Each month’s event—limited to no more than 20 guests and guaranteed to sell out quickly—features a new menu for $49.95 per person, including a welcome aperitif cocktail.
Sweat San Diego
Where: Catamaran Resort Hotel and Spa
When: May 12, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Yes, the focus of San Diego Magazine‘s very own annual fitness event is to break a sweat while sampling workouts from a long list of the hottest studios like Orangetheory Fitness, Barre 59, Club Pilates, and Define U Fitness. But fitness is a lifestyle that should include delicious bites, drinks, and other ways of feeling good. Round out your day with healthy bites and beverages from names like Califia Farms, Bonafide Provisions, Fizzique, and Café Moto, plus live music, swag bags and mini-massages. Tickets ($46) include two 20-minute workout sessions.
Eat. Drink. Read. A Culinary Event for Literacy
Where: San Diego Air & Space Museum in Balboa Park
When: Thursday, May 17, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
The “read” part of the San Diego Council on Literacy’s annual food event and fundraiser refers to the fact that proceeds go toward literacy programs and books for kids. Which means you can feel even better about the “eat” and “drink” parts: dishes and drinks inspired by local chefs’ favorite books or literary characters. Diners can sample creations from more than 20 chefs from notable restaurants like Civico 1845, Waypoint Public, Stone Brewing Co., Pacific Del Mar, and Galaxy Taco, and watch them go head-to-head for a number of awards granted by celebrity judges. Tickets are $75.
3 Unique San Diego Food Events Not to Miss in May
Chefs create dishes inspired by their favorite literary characters at Eat. Drink. Read. | Photo: Council on Literacy
A reclusive elderly woman lives surrounded by books in a Beirut apartment. She translates them into Arabic, but they go unread, because she locks them away. As her mind bends and swirls through her solitary existence, we learn more about her past, Lebanese history, and her brilliant ideas about literature.
Bingo’s Run: A Novel cover
Bingo’s Run: A Novel
By James Levine
Bingo is the greatest drug runner in the slums of Nairobi, and he’s only a teenager. When he witnesses a drug-related murder, his boss sends him to an orphanage for protection, and his whole life changes. Funny and tender, Bingo is the perfect trickster protagonist to guide us through a corrupt world.
On Such a Full Sea cover
On Such a Full Sea
By Change-rae Lee
In a futuristic America divided by class, urban neighborhoods become walled-in labor camps where workers search for produce and fish to feed the wealthy colonies on the outside. A woman leaves her camp when her beloved disappears and sets out across the crime-ridden “Open Counties.”
Strange Bodies: A Novel cover
Strange Bodies: A Novel
By Marcel Theroux
A man shows up on a woman’s doorstep claiming to be her old boyfriend. The only problem is he died months ago. Skip to a psych ward, where the same man continues to insist he’s the dead man, a former Samuel Johnson scholar. This high-concept literary thriller is a well-crafted, eerie tale of doubles.
Quesadillas: A Novel cover
Quesadillas: A Novel
By Juan Pablo Villalobos
A large family in Mexico is confined to its rural home because of surrounding violence. The father crafts insults of the “your mama” variety, the mother makes quesadillas, and the children try to escape the boredom of a rustic life. The novel’s structure is avant-garde, and combines magical realism with a satire of modern Mexico.
Renewable energy companies building hundreds of power plants. Biotech startups using artificial intelligence to create personalized medicine for children with rare diseases. Hospitality companies quietly powering thousands of local events. Consumer brands growing from beach-town startups into national businesses. These are the kinds of companies driving San Diego’s economy today, and the businesses recognized at this year’s San Diego Business Impact Awards offer a snapshot of where the region is headed.
Hosted July 23 by San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and JPMorganChase, the second annual awards event honored four local companies for innovation, growth, and economic impact. More than 100 nominations from San Diego’s middle-market businesses were reviewed by a 10-person judging committee, with winners selected across four categories: startup, early-stage innovator, rising star, and established heavyweight.
Two-time honoree Jimbo Someck, founder of Jimbo’s organic grocery stores, also joined the event for a fireside chat on buying local, supporting emerging brands, and giving back to the community.
“San Diego’s strength comes from its makers and builders—the resilient people who endure great risks and overcome obstacles to build and scale a company,” says Aaron Ryan, San Diego Region Manager and Middle Market Banking at JPMorganChase & Co. “These awards aren’t just recognition; they spotlight the talent, grit, and innovation shaping our region’s future. By celebrating those who create and build, we foster connections and fuel the growth that keeps San Diego thriving.”
Photo Credit: Matt Furman
Building the Infrastructure Behind Clean Energy
Heavyweight honoree SOLV Energy has grown alongside the country’s rapid investment in renewable power. “It’s an exciting time for SOLV Energy as we are experiencing significant growth,” says CEO George Hershman. “The business has doubled over the last year and has almost double-digit growth since its inception.”
The Rancho Bernardo-based company designs, builds, operates, and maintains utility-scale solar and energy storage facilities. Since its founding in 2008, SOLV Energy has built more than 500 power plants.
Growth has translated directly into hiring. About 200 employees work from the company’s local headquarters, including roughly 20 interns. “Our intern program is a big part of the way that we grow our workforce,” Hershman says. “Last year, 43 percent of our interns became full-time employees. We believe San Diego is a great community to build and grow a high-tech infrastructure and technology company because of the incredible workforce—the ability to attract top talent and draw from world-class universities.”
Photo Credit: Matt Furman
Developing Medicine One Patient at a Time
Startup honoree La Jolla Labs is tackling one of medicine’s biggest challenges by developing personalized RNA therapeutics for patients with rare diseases—many of them children with neurological disorders like ALS. Using proprietary artificial intelligence and machine learning tools, the biotech company develops treatments tailored to each patient’s specific genetic mutation.
CEO Tamar Grossman says the recognition reflects how far the company has come despite limited resources. “We’re honored to be recognized for our ability to change and save patients’ lives and turn our lean startup into a clinical company with very minimal resources,” she says.
Grossman credits San Diego’s concentration of research institutions—including UC San Diego, the Salk Institute, and Scripps Research—with creating a pipeline of talent and collaboration. “San Diego is one of the world-leading centers for technology, genomics, and RNA therapeutics,” she says. “We have over 30 RNA therapeutics companies here, and we support each other and help with anything related to drug discovery.”
She says that collaborative spirit extends beyond formal partnerships. “You can walk around Torrey Pines, go into a café, and find colleagues from the industry and have an ad hoc conversation,” Grossman says. “That’s something very unique to San Diego.”
While Snake Oil Venue Company may not be a household name, chances are many San Diegans have attended one of its events. The early-stage innovator honoree has expanded from beverage catering and mixology consulting into venue management, operating Julep Venue in Mission Hills, Bramble Bay Venue in Imperial Beach, Vesper Venue, the Chapel at Liberty Station, and five outdoor venues throughout Liberty Station—more than 500,000 square feet of event space altogether.
“We do a lot of launch parties for corporations and new products,” says CEO Mike Esposito. “I really like working on the entrepreneur side of things, where new businesses are entering the San Diego market and looking to make a splash.”
Snake Oil has executed more than 16,000 events, employed more than 1,000 people, and partnered with more than 900 local vendors, including caterers, florists, photographers, entertainers, and other hospitality businesses. The company also works with many of San Diego’s nonprofits, museums, and cultural institutions. “We get to celebrate people’s most important moments,” Esposito says. “Whether that’s a wedding, celebration of life, or quinceañera, we’re fortunate to be involved in the community in so many different ways.”
Photo Credit: Matt Furman
Growing a Beach-Town Brand into a National Business
Rising star honoree ALOHA Collection is proof that a simple idea can grow into a thriving company. Founded by two roommates who wanted a better way to carry wet swimsuits after a day at the beach, the lifestyle brand has grown into a business while maintaining strong year-over-year growth.
Now headquartered in Carlsbad, ALOHA Collection employs more than 100 people and operates its California flagship store in Encinitas, which is slated for a remodel. With roots in Hawaii, the company is known for its lightweight, splash-proof travel bags that have become a familiar sight on beaches in San Diego and beyond.
“‘Aloha’ is part of our name, but it’s also how we move through the world,” says CEO Lynna Barnard. “It’s how we show up for people, the way we travel, the way we give back.” Since day one, the company has maintained a 5 percent giveback to Hawaii conservation efforts, contributing millions of dollars over the years.
“I think what’s so inspiring about ALOHA Collection, and the founders in particular, is when you dream big, those dreams can come true when you work hard and trust in the universe,” Barnard says. “It’s inspiring to be a role model for other people wanting to start businesses from humble beginnings. Start small and watch it grow.”
Together, businesses like these form a cornerstone of San Diego’s economy—not only through the jobs and revenue they generate—but through the local workers they hire, vendors they support, and investments they make in the region. Their growth doesn’t happen in isolation; it ripples outward, strengthening the broader business community and the people who call San Diego home.
Anything That Moves: Renegade Chefs, Fearless Eaters, and the Making of a New American Food Culture cover
Anything That Moves: Renegade Chefs, Fearless Eaters, and the Making of a New American Food Culture
By Dana Goodyear
Goodyear writes about the hucksters and avant-garde chefs making meals out of the unconventional, like roadside leaves. She follows exotic items into the marketplace and predicts how such trends will impact our food choices.
Dog Songs cover
Dog Songs
By Mary Oliver
This collection comes from the rarest of breeds: a popular poet. Oliver’s plainspoken style seems fitting for celebrating the small, sustaining moments of owning and befriending a dog. Wrap this one up for the poetry or dog lover on your list.
The Wes Anderson Collection cover
The Wes Anderson Collection
By Matt Zoller Seitz
The rich, detailed worlds of filmmaker Wes Anderson are explored in this exhaustive study by critic and Anderson cohort Matt Zoller Seitz. Interviews, full-color stills from Anderson’s seven movies, storyboards, and layouts document his distinctive visual palette.
Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Coloring Book cover
Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Coloring Book
By Johanna Basford
A coloring book for the seven- or 70-year-old on your gift list. Each page contains tiny hidden creatures waiting to be discovered, including 63 beetles, 20 songbirds, and 116 butterflies. A charming and diverting book.
The Circle cover
The Circle
By Dave Eggers
A company called The Circle has swallowed up all the major tech companies and can link everyone’s online identity and consumer habits. The protagonist, a new hire at The Circle, slowly succumbs to its all-consuming world.
In addition to checking out a book this month, check out the world-class public art at the new Central Library downtown
By Robert L. Pincus | Photo by John Durant
The new San Diego Central Library
copyright: John Durant
All nine floors of the new Central Library have art on the walls, and occasionally on the floor. Commissioned works, large and small, have been smoothly integrated into its interior. Architect Rob Quigley has designed a public destination that is decisively hospitable to art.
The Art Gallery resides on the ninth floor. The inaugural show is Renewed: A Short Story About the San Diego Public Library’s Visual Arts Program (through March 29) and it was organized by Kathryn Kanjo, Chief Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. The show pays tribute to this program, established by librarian and former art critic Mark-Elliott Lugo in 1997 and developed by him with great success through 2012, when he retired.
The gallery is handsome and well suited to the small and medium scale works on view. Kanjo has included some of San Diego’s better-known artists, eight in all. Gail Roberts’ seductive paintings depict magnified versions of bird nests superimposed on pages from classic literary texts that speak of feathered creatures. Photography is particularly strong: Philipp Scholz Rittermann’s tightly composed landscapes and Suda House’s sensuous compositions featuring fabric both make beautiful use of line and form. A pair of Jeff Irwin’s masterful sculptures in glazed earthenware depicts animal heads in the manner of grotesque hunters’ trophies.
Unfortunately, though, Kanjo’s concept for the show feels like a half-hearted tribute to Lugo’s program. The only connection between what he achieved and what she chose is this: the exhibited artists also appeared in one or another of Lugo’s exhibitions at the Pacific Beach branch. Surely some of the history of what he exhibited, during his 15-year run, could have been integrated into the works selected.
The gallery and the spaces outside its doors are united by the presence of Kenneth Capps’ sculptures. There is a judicious sampling of them: slender vertical works in his zinc on steel Prism series are one of the highlights, alternating closed and open space with grace and elegance. It was Lugo’s desire to exhibit Capps’ work when the library opened, a wish that was wisely fulfilled.
Lugo had accumulated some 150 works that are now part of the Civic Art Collection. Many examples, supplemented by other gifts to the collection, can be found on every floor. Dana Springs, longtime public art program manager of the city’s Commission for Arts and Culture as well as it current interim executive director, worked with consultant Christine Jones—and together they created a deft installation of them throughout the library.
The eclectic mix is accessible, but a few works will stretch some visitors’ assumptions about art. Lugo championed one of San Diego’s homegrown conceptual artists, the late Russell Baldwin—some acquired were examples; others were gifted from a collection. There are 13 Baldwins in all, at various locales. At their best, they are beautiful objects that double as little philosophical essays about art and life. The installation of a pair of them, near the elevator bay on the second floor, is particularly inspired.
The central elevator bay is sure to attract attention for another reason: the immensely gifted brothers Einar and Jamex de la Torre have created a large-scale permanent work, Corpus Callosum, which mostly resides within it. They funnel their virtuosic cut- and blown-glass techniques into the creation of grotesque, cartoonish figures that populate intricate hallucinatory dioramas.
The de la Torre brothers, who split their time between San Diego and Ensenada, aren’t the only widely recognized locals with a major commission in the Central Library. There is also Roy McMakin’s Recreations of Furniture Found Discarded in Alleys and on Curbs While Driving Around San Diego Several Bright Summer Afternoons with David. Take the artist at his word(s). These objects, in a festive blue located on the eighth floor, are only the latest of his brilliant “recycling” projects.
Two more excellent public commissions underscore the success of art within the Central Library. New York-based Donald Lipski, widely known for public commissions, made 2,000 books into a cross between a sculptural relief and a found form mural. Hiding My Candy is in the library’s auditorium and it has a serendipitous function—as a sound dampener. Seattle artist Gary Hill, justly celebrated for his visually arresting video installations with highly philosophical scripts, has created a multi-screen mediation on mortality that bears repeated viewing.
A bit of advice for the dedicated art seeker: travel to all corners of some floors. It is part of the charm of this exemplary new civic space that art sometimes appears where you don’t expect to find it.
—ROBERT L. PINCUS, our resident art critic, reviewed the paintings, sculptures, and installations on all nine floors of the new Central Library.
From advancements in cellular biology and molecular research to innovations that deepen our understanding of complex biological systems, biotechnology continues to influence how researchers explore some of science’s most important questions.
While major discoveries often capture headlines, the process behind those breakthroughs receives far less attention. Scientific progress depends on a vast network of researchers, laboratories, manufacturers, and specialized organizations working together to support ongoing investigation and discovery.
The Growing Importance of Biotechnology
In recent years, biotechnology has moved beyond the walls of research institutions and into mainstream conversation. Increased access to scientific information, educational content, and expert commentary has sparked growing public interest in the biological sciences.
Topics once discussed primarily within academic circles are now reaching broader audiences through podcasts, documentaries, digital media, and online communities. As a result, more people are developing an appreciation for the research, experimentation, and innovation that drive scientific advancement.
This growing visibility has transformed biotechnology from a largely specialized field into a subject of interest for educators, innovators, investors, and curious observers alike.
The Hidden Infrastructure Behind Discovery
Scientific breakthroughs often capture public attention, but the infrastructure that makes those breakthroughs possible rarely receives the same recognition. Behind every new discovery are years of investigation, testing, analysis, and refinement.
Behind nearly every research project is a network of laboratories, suppliers, technical specialists, and research-focused organizations working together to support scientific exploration. Laboratory infrastructure, specialized materials, quality standards, and reliable methodologies all contribute to the integrity of the research process.
When these foundational elements are in place, researchers can focus on generating insights, exploring new ideas, and building upon existing knowledge. Although much of this work occurs behind the scenes, it plays a critical role in helping science move forward.
Why Discovery Depends on More Than Researchers Alone
As biotechnology continues to evolve, research-focused organizations have become increasingly important contributors to the broader scientific ecosystem.
Among them is NewBioRx, a company operating within the biotechnology and life sciences sector. Like many organizations operating within the broader research ecosystem, NewBioRx contributes to the network of suppliers, laboratories, and scientific stakeholders that help support ongoing research efforts.
As scientific research becomes increasingly sophisticated, organizations that help support the research environment contribute to a culture where innovation can continue to thrive. Their work may not always be visible to the public, but it forms part of the foundation that enables scientific progress.
Why Science Is Reaching Wider Audiences
One of the most notable developments in recent years has been the growing public fascination with science and human biology.
Scientific concepts that were once primarily discussed within research settings are now reaching wider audiences through educational content, podcasts, digital media, and online communities. People are becoming increasingly interested not only in scientific outcomes, but also in the process of discovery itself.
The growing visibility of science has also created new connections between scientific communities and broader audiences. Individuals who operate across multiple worlds—including fitness, media, and life sciences—have helped introduce scientific topics to audiences that may not have engaged with them previously.
One example is Sam Sulek, co-founder of NewBioRx, whose involvement across fitness culture and the life sciences sector reflects the growing intersection between public curiosity and scientific exploration.
As co-founder of NewBioRx, he has helped champion a research-focused approach to scientific inquiry while supporting broader conversations around scientific literacy and discovery.
As scientific discovery becomes increasingly collaborative, public attention is beginning to extend beyond individual breakthroughs and toward the broader ecosystem that makes those breakthroughs possible. From researchers and laboratories to the organizations that support them, scientific progress remains a collective effort built on curiosity, expertise, and long-term commitment.
