The literary powerhouse waxes poetic on San Diego, the freedom of thinking like a dog, journalistic agony, and “age agnosticism” in anticipation of his SD Public Library event on October 9
For those uninitiated, Dave Eggers has gone from breakout cult icon with his 2000 debut memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius to elder statesman of the modern literary scene. He’s a New York Times bestseller multiple times over, a celebrated journalist in both the US and the UK, and a Pulitzer Prize winner, and he has lent his talent and time to charitable endeavors like 826 Valencia—a youth writing center with several different locations nationwide, which he co-founded. And there’s more: He’s been featured in countless anthologies and collections, and created McSweeney’s, an independent publishing ring where writers go to live on in glory (IYKYK).
“I mean, it’s one of my favorite places just because you can’t swing a cat without hitting the beach,” Eggers admits. Eggers digs beaches and us (and his two cats at home, who, he promises, he doesn’t swing). On the evening of October 9, Eggers is in our city for at the San Diego Public Library to discuss his latest novel The Eyes & The Impossible.
Take it in, SD. We’re cool. The reason may not be highfalutin’, but our sandy shores sealed in our je n’ai sais quoi.
Eggers’ love of California runs in his blood. “My dad’s side is all from California going back to 1860 … But the rest of us are from Boston,” Eggers says. “For some reason, I grew up in Chicago. So, none of it makes any sense.”
What does make sense is Eggers’ insatiable curiosity, a driving force in why he’s drawn to so many different genres and styles of writing (case in point: The Eyes & The Impossible is written from the perspective of a roving park dog).
Though his career is steeped in fiction, journalism is his foundation. He studied it at University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. “As a reporter, I always just kind of start out with a personal interest and see what’s going on and using that journalism degree as an entry point or as a bridge,” he says. “I was trained as a journalist, so I always had that sense that, every so often, there might be a way that I could explain things that haven’t been explained.”
He preffered to talk with rally attendees who looked dressed for a major league baseball game versus the red-washed ones carrying effigies of Biden. “I always come out thinking that people are a little bit more swayable than you think and thinking things through, to some extent, with open eyes,” he adds.
Students at 826 Valencia, the nonprofit that Eggers co-founded, participate in free writing workshops offered for for those ages 8 to 18
Commonality can be found if you go looking for it, no matter what party you prefer. That sense of seeking finds its way into his works of fiction, as well.
“I do toggle [or] pivot pretty hard between the two forms, because journalism is so rewarding and, you know, you have this excuse to ask questions and this way to get answers,” Eggers says. “And you can get very deep very quickly by asking the most knowledgeable people, but then, at the same time, writing up what you found out is a whole different task and sometimes very laborious and kind of a grind.”
On the other hand, he says, “Writing fiction … is just when you get to make everything up. It is far more liberating.”
Eggers has found the ultimate liberation in his latest book, The Eyes & The Impossible, where the narrator assumes an entirely different species: a dog called Johannes. But this isn’t the first time Eggers has shape-shifted for literary purposes. In 2002, he wrote a short story called After I Was Thrown In The River And Before I Drowned, in which his narrator was also canine. “That was the most fun I ever had to that moment [in] writing,” he says. “It’s just totally untethered. And I think that you could sort of get away with a more sort of liberated kind of train of thought, and that I think a lot of us humans would be diagnosed with having some kind of, I don’t know, cognitive issue, I guess, now.”
The Eyes & The Impossible has other quirks lending it a fantastical bend. Seeing the book’s Flemish-inspired illustrations by Shawn Harris, you’d be tempted to wonder if this is Eggers dipping his quill into the YA market. Think again.
Danielle is a freelance culture journalist focusing on music, food, wine, hospitality, and arts, and founder-playwright of Yeah No Yeah Theatre company, based in San Diego. Her work has been featured in FLAUNT, Filter Magazine, and San Diego Magazine. Born and raised in Maui, she still loves a good Mai Tai.
Originally published March 2023 | Updated June 2023
“We are dedicated to making sure that we are highlighting the voices of underrepresented authors—queer people, people of color, nonbinary people—and making sure that those coming into the store are seeing those books,” says Becca Title, owner of Meet Cute Romance Bookshop in North Park.
Now the third romance-themed bookstore in the US, Meet Cute is focused on stocking books with traditionally underrepresented characters at the center of the narrative.
“Even in the amount of time that I have been working on opening this bookstore, the climate in the US for marginalized people has really shifted. The amount of anti-trans legislation and book banning has been spiraling out of control,” she says. “It’s really important in genre romance to make stories with happy endings [available] … about and by people of color because the representation of BIPOC stories and queer stories is overwhelmingly about trauma and tragedy.”
But her space is for more than just books. In the future, she plans to host a full calendar of events, a podcast, and Romance for Reproductive Justice, a virtual auction set to support a national network of abortion funds. “It was one of the reasons to open an indie bookstore,” she says. “That’s one of the things we can do that Amazon cannot: be a place for organizing and catalyzing a community.”
We spoke with Title to share her recommendations for new, returning, or regular readers of the romance genre seeking stories of the LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities. Here’s what she had to say:
“This is one of the funniest rom-coms I’ve ever read. Rosaline, a bisexual single mom (to one of romance’s least annoying children), is at the end of her rope. When she enters herself into a popular British TV baking competition that is, for legal reasons, definitely not The Great British Bake-Off, she has to deal with more than just soggy bottoms and accidentally phallic breads. But she may also find her very own cinnamon roll. As a side note, I will die on the hill that Alexis Hall is one of the best living writers.”
“The Companion is a cozy read from trans author E. E. Ottoman. It’s ideal for an evening curled up in an overstuffed chair with a mug of tea. It’s 1949, and after years of trying to break into New York’s literary scene, trans woman Madeline Slaughter takes a friend up on the offer of moving to the woods upstate as a live-in companion to a reclusive best-selling novelist (and trans man) Victor Hallowell.
There, she becomes entangled not only with Victor, but with his neighbor, and ex, Audrey (who is also trans). Can the three of them make a go of it?”
“In this delightfully steamy novel, Adriana Herrera takes on classic historical romance tropes while expanding the genre’s scope beyond the traditional cast of titled White Brits.
It’s 1889, and Luz Alana has set sail for Paris from Santo Domingo with her two best friends and 300 casks of rum, intent on expanding her family’s successful rum business. Of course, hijinks ensue, and she ends up in a marriage of convenience with a brooding whisky distiller who also happens to be a Scottish earl.”
“Filled to the brim with wacky coworkers and lovably chaotic roommates, One Last Stop is a love letter to found family and the queer liberation movement from nonbinary author Casey McQuiston. The life of amateur sleuth, part-time college student, and 24-hour pancake diner waitress August Landry takes an unexpected turn the day she accidentally spills her coffee on a subway hottie.
She soon discovers that her new crush, Chinese-American Jane, doesn’t only dress like a riot grrrl—she’s actually been trapped in a time loop since the 1970s.”
“Set in small-town Kansas, and woven through with the history of the traqueros, the Mexican and Mexican-American workers who helped build our cross-country railroads, this book features a sexy romance between a prickly Latina bartender who has come home from Chicago to lick her wounds and the sweet local professor who has been welcomed into her messy, sprawling family in her absence.”
“From author Helen Hoang, a local San Diegan with Autism Spectrum Disorder, The Kiss Quotient is a sexy but surprisingly tender read.
Stella, an autistic Bay Area econometrician, hires an escort, Michael, to help her complete the lesson plan that she created in the hopes of becoming more comfortable with physical intimacy.
Vietnamese-Swedish-American Michael is happy to help, if only to take his mind off his own problems. His mother is sick, his father is absent, and his life is stuck in neutral. Of course, the more time they spend together, the more their practical partnership begins to feel like something more.”
“This is a witty delight full of pining and sword fighting that also manages to interrogate the entire system of British aristocracy. Edward Percy, future duke, finds himself in the inconvenient position of needing to steal a book from his own father.
He enlists the help of grumpy coffee shop owner Kit Webb, a reformed highwayman whose last job killed his best friend and left him walking with the aid of a cane. When sparks fly, it’s not long before Percy decides that a book isn’t the only thing he’d like to steal.”
“In Sailor’s Delight, Rose Lerner expands the traditional scope of historical romance, featuring a love story between two men with regular jobs, one of whom is Jewish. This quiet, slow burn, friends-to-lovers romance set during the Jewish High Holidays is threaded through with impeccably researched historical detail about daily life and filled with enough pining to stock a forest.”
“In this sparkling and swoony queer Edwardian-set fantasy romance, Marske gives us a beautifully constructed system of magic, a meditation on bravery and vulnerability, and enough classic tropes (slow burn, grumpy/sunshine, himbo/nerd, forced proximity) to satisfy any seasoned romance reader.”
“Talia Hibbert is well-known for her British wit and characters who feel relatable and real, and this book is no different. Chloe Brown is a Black British woman with fibromyalgia and chronic pain who works from home as a web designer.
She’s grumpy and funny and has excellent taste in cardigans. After she almost gets hit by a car, she makes herself a bucket list and her sexy, tattooed neighbor, who sometimes paints shirtless, insists on helping her complete it.”
“This is the best kind of space opera: atmospheric, adventurous, and warm. Set in a queernormative world and complete with a colorful cast of a deftly drawn side characters, Winter’s Orbit features a slow burn romance between a scandalous prince and a dutiful scholar who have a hastily arranged political marriage, only to discover that one of them is a suspect in his late husband’s murder.”
“A cross between a romantic comedy and a thriller that takes place over the course of one long night in Vegas, Partners in Crime has it all: a kidnapping, a high stakes heist, and a second chance romance between accountant Mira Chaudhary and her rejected suitor, the perfectly boring lawyer Naveen Desai. It is a delightful romp of a book in which nothing is quite as it seems.”
“A charming You’ve Got Mail retelling brimming with the warmth of family, faith, and food. Hana Khan hosts a podcast and dreams of a career in radio all while waitressing part-time at her family’s restaurant—the only halal eatery in their close-knit Toronto neighborhood.
When a more upscale halal restaurant is set to open across the street, Hana adds sabotage to her lengthy to-do list. If only the new restaurant’s owner weren’t quite so handsome…or quite so familiar…”
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.
For Executive Chef Emily Brubaker, Omni La Costa Resort & Spa feels like home. She grew up just a mile-and-a-half away from the 400-acre property and fondly recalls walking the golf course perimeter as a kid. Though her ambitions led her away from San Diego for nearly two decades in which she honed her craft in some of the highest of high-profile Las Vegas restaurants—including triple Michelin-starred Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand—they ultimately brought her back to North County.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Today, the classically French-trained chef, who’s fresh off a victory on NBC’s Yes, Chef!, judged by Martha Stewart and José Andrés, oversees Omni La Costa Resort & Spa’s seven distinct dining concepts. Her goal is to elevate the resort’s culinary program with her creative, hyperlocal ingredient-driven approach while maintaining the Spanish- inspired flavors and fresh California coastal cuisine that are the bedrock of its culinary identity.
“The San Diego food scene is really growing, and in North County alone, it’s really exploded in the last five years,” Brubaker says. “There are Michelin stars, beautiful tasting menus, craft bakers, and all this food—when I was growing up in La Costa, it was fish tacos. Now there are really cool things popping up, and I’m so happy to be here to see where it’s going to go.”
Brubaker gives chefs de cuisine at each individual restaurant autonomy, however, her influence is evident across the resort.
For example, lobby restaurant Bar Traza serves as Omni La Costa’s culinary centerpiece and features bold Spanish flavors in a lively, social atmosphere. Brubaker overhauled the menu to be more consistent and centered on casual bites with that signature vibe. Think smoky paprika, vibrant citrus, and Spanish meats and cheeses.
At VUE, the focus is on seasonal offerings, California coastal cuisine, and Baja-inspired dishes. She and Chef de Cuisine Cameron Dixon change the menu biannually, which heading into summer, will highlight farm-fresh produce and hyperlocal ingredients—the resort even has its own herb garden and honeybee hives.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Poolside dining options are leaning into the country’s 250th this summer with a selection of classic American dishes with an Omni La Costa twist. And Bob’s Steak & Chop House (Brubaker is a trained butcher) offers a classic steakhouse experience with elevated service.
The chef and company also plan menus for special events at the resort where her creativity can really shine. For an upcoming National Ski Association dinner, the banquet hall will be transformed into an Alpine-themed winter wonderland complete with a snow machine, savory sausages, and melty, decadent raclette. A recent dinner was built around the Carlsbad Flower Fields and each course was matched to a color of ranunculus (Did you know pink dragonfruit are grown in North County? You do now.).
“It’s my zen to be in the kitchen playing with food,” Brubaker says.
Omni La Costa’s culinary program is a key part of the resort experience. And with Brubaker’s leadership, it’s becoming a draw for visitors and locals alike.
“These aren’t just hotel restaurants, these are restaurants that you should go to. They’re destinations, and I’m really hoping for the future that’s where we’re going,” Brubaker says.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Brubaker is also channeling her experience on Yes, Chef! into the culture at Omni La Costa—more emphasis on teamwork and collaboration, empowering her staff to share constructive critiques, and embracing different perspectives. Alongside her leadership role, Brubaker has become an advocate for mental health in the hospitality industry, serving as chief ambassador for the Burnt Chef Project and serves on the Board of Advisors for the Apex Culinary Program, where she mentors and develops future talent.
A novel based on the life of Laura Bridgman, the first deaf and blind person to learn language. When she was 12, Charles Dickens declared her his prime interest for visiting America. She also paved the way for Helen Keller.
Eyrie cover
Eyrie
By Tim Winton
Scandal has left environmentalist Tom Keely broke and popping pills. When a woman from his past shows up and needs help, Keely slips into a nightmarish world of con artists, drug dealers, and extortion to save her.
I’ll Be Right There cover
I’ll Be Right There
By Kyung-Sook Shin
Amid 1980s political turmoil in South Korea, a highly literate, 20-something woman recounts her tragic personal history. She revisits the death of her mother, the excitement of her first love, and the forging of friendships.
The Book of Unknown Americans cover
The Book of Unknown Americans
By Cristina Henríquez
After an accident, Maribel’s family moves from Mexico to Delaware. While getting care, she falls for a Panamanian boy. A love story and a tale of the urban immigrant experience.
California cover
California
By Edan Lepucki
In a new post-apocalyptic world, Cal and Frida have left L.A. to live in a shack in the wilderness. But when Frida gets pregnant, they set out to find a community to join, which proves difficult in a world where society has collapsed.
While glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agents have been used to treat Type 2 diabetes for more than 20 years, their recent emergence as weight-loss wonder drugs marked a new frontier in medicine. But their effectiveness has left some patients wondering what to do once they’ve reached their goal. Stopping the medication could mean regaining some, if not all, of the weight. A Scripps Clinic internal medicine physician recently conducted a small study of whether GLP-1 patients who had reached their goal weight could maintain that weight by taking their regularly prescribed injection every other week instead of weekly. Spoiler alert: 30 of 34 patients did. Read more about the study here and what that may mean as pharmaceutical companies roll out oral GLP-1s.
For more nutrition, wellness, and healthy living tips, sign up for the San Diego Health newsletter here.
