Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
Dear Los Angeles
Dear Los Angeles: The City in Diaries and Letters, 1542-2018 | David Kipen
8 posts | 1 read | 2 to read
A rich mosaic of diary entries and letters from Marilyn Monroe, Cesar Chavez, Susan Sontag, Albert Einstein, and many more, this is the story of Los Angeles as told by locals, transplants, and some just passing through. David Kipen scoured the archives of libraries, historical societies, and private estates to assemble a kaleidoscopic view of Los Angeles from the Spanish missionary expeditions in the 1500s to the present day. These entries are arranged by date--January 1 through December 31--but are selected from more than three centuries of writing by those living in, or visiting, Los Angeles. Thus the entry for January 21, for example, will have an excerpt from Benjamin Hayes in 1850, F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1938, Charlton Heston in 1957, John Lennon in 1974, and a blogger in 2011. In the process, readers get a wonderful glimpse of life in this city through the ages. Profound, historical, whimsical, this rich mix of letters and diary entries marking each day of the year offers intimate flashes of life in Los Angeles over the past four centuries.
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
blurb
swishandflick
post image

I've been in LA for work this week and haven't had much time to read. But that view! 😍

LauraJ Welcome! Brace yourself for the heat. 5y
Leftcoastzen Venice?Groundwork coffee! 5y
mrp27 Welcome! Enjoy your stay! 5y
See All 6 Comments
swishandflick @LauraJ It doesn't even feel hot to me because at least it's not humid 😆 5y
LauraJ @swishandflick It‘s usually pretty nice by the ocean. 5y
CafeMom I am glad you are enjoying your visit to LA. I live in Venice Beach. 5y
83 likes6 comments
blurb
BennettBookworm
post image

Visited my dear friend in LA last week and I was totally smitten with Chevalier‘s!

blurb
Pruzy
post image

Found another Litsy challenge to try my hand at! Looks fun as always! #MusicalNewYear

Now just to find some time to get creative with my posts.

Tagged book is one I just finished reading today and loved! Now what to read next? 🤔

Cinfhen Thanks for the repost🥳🥳🥳looking forward to seeing your posts 5y
vivastory Thanks for joining! Looking forward to your interpretations 👍 5y
61 likes2 comments
review
Pruzy
post image
Pickpick

Dear Los Angeles was a delight. This is the first collection of letters/diaries I‘ve ever read. It is so good I‘m hooked and want to read more.

What enriched the experience even further is the appendix at the back with biographies of all letter writers. Thought you knew all there was to know about Aldous Huxley or John Steinbeck? There‘s more!

Also interesting was that the complaints/praises about LA have been essentially the same since 1847!

blurb
Pruzy
post image

How you know it is a weekend. Books and booze and no end in sight (for now)!

Drinking a 2017 Riesling from Megalomaniac vineyards in the Niagara region of Ontario. Crisp and light, it goes down easy...although it is very clear. Is this normal for a Riesling? 🤔

CrowCAH Overall yes. To me Riesling‘s go down very well; they‘re my go to when I‘m out and need a wine. 5y
wanderinglynn The Rieslings I‘ve had are all relatively clear. Very light, crisp and yummy. 😋 5y
Pruzy @CrowCAH I read a quote online (maybe in the NYTimes) about how Rieslings are so easy drinking that they go good with reading, but you could easily find yourself downing the whole bottle, lol! 5y
See All 25 Comments
Pruzy @wanderinglynn I have to admit this is my go to winery for Rieslings 5y
britt_brooke Perfect evening - cheers! 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke Thank you! And I hope you have a wonderful evening too! 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke Reading something good, I hope? 5y
britt_brooke @Pruzy Working on an ARC that will be published Jan 22. I‘ll get it done just in time, I think. Wine, also. 🍷 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke I‘ve heard of that one. Looked intriguing. How is it? 5y
britt_brooke @Pruzy I‘m about halfway and it‘s decent so far. Always good to get different perspectives on life. 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke Anything that has subtly changed your world view? 5y
britt_brooke @Pruzy It‘s a good reminder that many people on government assistance are very hard workers who need and deserve the help. Everyone‘s human. 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke Adding it to my TBR now! 5y
britt_brooke @Pruzy 👍🏻 If you haven‘t read Evicted, add that, too. It‘s so good. Heartbreaking, but important. 5y
Pruzy @britt_brooke Will do. Just read the full synopsis for Maid. Can‘t believe her life took such a turn at 28! 5y
BarbaraBB I don‘t know about your Riesling but here in Europe it comes from Germany. It is very clear indeed and the better (dry!) ones taste a little of petroleum. Does yours too? 5y
julesG @BarbaraBB What Barbara said. Riesling is fairly clear and may hint at chemicals in taste. I was told I'd make a terrible sommelier since I was too blunt in describing the taste of wine. 5y
Pruzy @BarbaraBB I can‘t say that I‘ve had any high end Rieslings from Canada as the ones I usually get are just under $15. I personally don‘t notice any petroleum notes, but it is also not dry either so it‘s probably not one that is considered better. 5y
Pruzy @julesG Tastes like refreshing crispiness to me. I‘d say those flavoured balsamic vinegars that are trendy now taste like chemicals. This Riesling tastes nothing like that 5y
julesG Dry Riesling is the thing here in Germany. I just don't get it. I don't like the taste. Enjoy your Canadian wine. I've heard a lot of good things about Canadian wine. Since I only rarely buy wine and try to keep the carbon footprint low, I seldom get wine from overseas. I shall look for a Canadian Riesling next. 5y
BarbaraBB @julesG I love your dry Riesling 😍 5y
Cailey_Mac Mmmmm one of my favorites! I‘m no wine connoisseur, but I‘m partial to my area ( Fingerlakes wines). Whenever we travel for vacation, I make a point to buy a bottle of that areas “best” or “most popular” wines, just to see how it all compares. When we went to Cape Cod, we stopped at Truro Vineyards, and ironically they were Fingerlakes gals making most of the wine with my favorite; Cayuga White (edited) 5y
Pruzy @Cailey_Mac Great way to try a variety of wines! (edited) 5y
89 likes25 comments
blurb
Pruzy
post image

My collection of bookmarks is always in a state of flux depending on how many books I have that are randomly marked to return to later (or never).

My collection hasn‘t been this small for a while, but pictured are two bookmarks from my favourite indie Canadian bookseller, McNally Robinson, one from my favourite (and only) Canadian bookstore chain Indigo, and one from an amazing indie bookstore in Madison, WI.

#PageSaver #ANewChapter

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Nice!!! 🙌🏻📚 5y
63 likes1 comment
blurb
Pruzy
post image

I‘ve been looking for a new Litsy posting challenge to increase my activity. Took me a couple of weeks, but the #ANewChapter challenge by @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks and @vkois88 looks fun. I‘ll be participating with my first post soon.

Also, tagged book is my current read.

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Awesome!!! Looking forward to seeing your posts!! 📚📚📚 5y
48 likes1 comment
quote
Pruzy
post image

Clifford Odets was a playwright and screenwriter who lived in LA. This quote is from his 1940 journal, collected in a book of writings from a variety of individuals about the city of Los Angeles.

As you can see the writings capture something universal about what it means to be human as well.

Gina It amazes me that no matter how much our outter world changes, that our inner world stays the same throughout time thus far... 5y
Pruzy @Gina No doubt 5y
48 likes2 comments