All Booked | Local Legends and Plentiful Payback

The original version of this newsletter was sent out on Tuesday, February 11.

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Hello, fellow bookworms! I hope everyone has been staying dry and cozy with the recent rains.

We’ve got plenty of book events happening, from author talks to book fairs supporting Roosevelt Elementary School and S.B. Junior High! Consider treating yourself to a new book at Chaucer’s and supporting local schools at the same time.

On the Arts & Lectures front, coming soon is Pulitzer Prize–winning environmental novelist Richard Powers, in conversation with Pico Iyer. In Powers’s most recent novel, Playground, four very different lives come together on an island in French Polynesia, where the residents must vote to greenlight a project that involves building floating, autonomous cities atop the ocean — but will it lead to a new chapter for humanity or an environmental nightmare?

Richard Powers will speak at UCSB’s Campbell Hall on Sunday, February 23, 7:30 p.m. For more information and tickets, click here.

I haven’t had as much time to read as I’d like to during these past few weeks, but I did have the pleasure of reading two books sent to me by authors with Santa Barbara ties, and I’m happy to share them with you!

Who Was Grandpa Doc? William J. Mellinger, 1886–1948 by Patricia Griffin Caird

Patricia Griffin Caird barely knew her grandfather, a man they called Grandpa Doc, as he passed away when she was 5. However, as she came to know more about the life of William J. Mellinger, pieced together from family diaries, letters, photos, and scrapbooks, Caird became determined to tell the story of Grandpa Doc, his successful and fulfilled life, and his contributions to Santa Barbara.

Caird’s book takes us from Mellinger’s time as a doctor in Indiana in the 1910s to his move to Santa Barbara with his wife and kids in 1920 to his tireless efforts over the years, which involved working as a physician, pursuing his interest in archaeology with the S.B. Museum of Natural History, and becoming a member of the City Council, all while maintaining his family and keeping up with a plethora of hobbies, including fishing, photography, blacksmithing, and many more. In piecing together the history of her smart, ambitious, loving grandfather, Caird provides an individualized look into the history of Santa Barbara itself, as well as the beauty of giving so much to the town you come to call home.

This book is also available at Chaucer’s Books, the Book Den, Tecolote Book Shop, and S.B. Historical Museum.

Ruby’s Revenge by Christine Gallagher

Last but not least, we have Ruby’s Revenge by Christine Gallagher, the co-owner of Plenty on Bell in Los Alamos. Ruby Bixler has spent her life playing it safe and getting along with everyone around her, even when it’s to her own detriment. But when she discovers that her husband is cheating on her and plans to move his mistress into Ruby’s dream house, that Ruby’s own mother is supporting the new couple, and that a co-worker is out to steal a promotion that’s rightfully hers, Ruby decides she’s not going to roll over and take this. She sets out on a campaign of revenge, determined to make those who have wronged her regret messing with the nice girl.

Ruby’s Revenge is a light, fun read that challenges the notion that is all too often drilled into women’s heads: that we must people-please, acquiesce, and put others before ourselves. Ruby’s story is delightfully dishy and full of hilariously cathartic revenge. While not everyone deserves shrimp hidden in their house’s curtain rods (though it’s fitting for a cheater!), I think many women could use the empowering reminder that standing up for ourselves and our needs will bring more confidence and a better life.

—Tessa, allbooked@independent.com

FROM OUR PAGES

We’ve had some great author visits and interviews recently, so don’t miss out. Here is some of our book-related coverage from the last two weeks! Read all this and more at Independent.com.

Novelist Tommy Orange Shares His Wanderings with Riveted UC Santa Barbara Crowd by Leslie Dinaberg

From Student to Stripper to Rocker by Tessa Reeg

Insightful and Entertaining, Fran Lebowitz Brings Her A-Game to UCSB Campus by Leslie Dinaberg

UPCOMING BOOK EVENTS

Below, you will find a few bookish events coming up in Santa Barbara. If you are hosting a bookish event in Santa Barbara, be sure to submit the event to our online events calendar.

Storytime at Solvang Library
Tuesday, February 11, 10:30 a.m. | Solvang Library

Bilingual Songs & Stories for Kids
Tuesday, February 11, 11 a.m. | Eastside Library

Read to a Dog
Wednesday, February 12, 3 p.m. | Eastside Library

Romance Book Club
Wednesday, February 12, 5:30 p.m. | S.B. Central Library

Book Talk and Signing: Dr. Amitha Kalaichandran
Wednesday, February 12, 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books

Wiggly Storytime
Thursday, February 13, 4:30 p.m. | S.B. Central Library

Book Fair Benefiting Roosevelt Elementary School
Thursday, February 13, 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books

Poetry Book Club
Thursday, February 13, 6:30 p.m. | Timbre Books

Book Signing: Ann Shepphird
Saturday, February 15, 3 p.m. | Tecolote Book Shop

Literally Amazing Silent Reading Group Meet-Up
Sunday, February 16, noon | Loud Flower Art Co.

Book Talk and Signing: Kirk Honeycutt and Mira Advani Honeycutt
Sunday, February 16, 3 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books

Bilingual Songs & Stories for Kids
Tuesday, February 18, 11 a.m. | Eastside Library

Read to a Dog
Wednesday, February 19, 3 p.m. | Eastside Library

Book Fair Benefiting S.B. Junior High
Wednesday, February 19, 6 p.m. | Chaucer’s Book

Grace Fisher Foundation Book Club
Thursday, February 20, 1 p.m. | Grace Fisher Foundation Inclusive Arts Clubhouse

Wiggly Storytime
Thursday, February 20, 4:30 p.m. | S.B. Central Library

Blue Whale Reading Series: Celebrating Salt 7
Saturday, February 22, 4 p.m. | Unity of Santa Barbara

Book Talk and Signing: Darrell M. McNeill
Sunday, February 23, 3 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books

UCSB Arts & Lectures Presents Richard Powers
Sunday, February 23, 7:30 p.m. | Campbell Hall, UCSB

S.B. SPOTLIGHT

We at the Independent get many books sent to us by area authors, sometimes too many! It’s practically impossible for us to read and review them all, but just because we are busy bees does not mean that they aren’t worth the attention. In an attempt to not completely drop the ball, we have compiled a list of books here that are either written by a Santa Barbara author, feature someone in our community, or have another tie to Santa Barbara. I urge you to look through this list. Perhaps you will find your new favorite read!

The following are the most recent titles that have been sent to us.

Birds, Monarch Butterflies, and Short Hikes in the Santa Barbara Area by Leslie Bains

If you are a local author and would like us to feature your book in this section, please email allbooked@independent.com with the subject line “S.B. Spotlight.”

Book Reviews Courtesy of CALIFORNIA REVIEW OF BOOKS*

Thanks to the generous contributions of David Starkey, Brian Tanguay and their team of reviewers at California Review of Books, we are able to provide a steady stream of book reviews via our content partnership. Recent reviews at Independent.com include:

A Sunny Place for Shady People: How Malta Became One of the Most Curious and Corrupt Places in the World by Ryan Murdock; review by David Starkey

The Harder I Fight the More I Love You by Neko Case; review by George Yatchisin

*At the present time, all of the Independent’s book reviews are provided in collaboration with California Review of Books (calirb.com).