wandering stars

Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 round-up. i enjoyed this more than orange's debut and perhaps it's the intergenerational element a la homegoing that did it for me. the victoria bear shield and opal viola bear shield stories were quite moving, as well as the trio of great-grandchildren set in the somewhat present really hammered home the cycle of addiction. it's hard enough to find identity in your youth and harder when the history of our ancestors has been erased or misrepresented throughout history. orange has a heartbreaking way of navigating these feelings and hope for resilience for the next generation.

sophie ellis-bextor at webster hall

 sophie ellis-bextor brings north american tour to sold-out webster hall

photo: mark ashe

charlotte day wilson at webster hall

charlotte day wilson wows webster hall crowd 
with new music on friday night

photo: Ken Grand-Pierre

open

Open: An Autobiography by Andre Agassi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 round-up. this has sat on my to-read shelf for years and i finally got around to it just as the french open was kicking off. i'd heard this is one of the best sports memoirs and I can see why. agassi really gets to the heart of the psyche of being a tennis player. how lonely the game can be? you are your own worst enemy not the opponent you are playing. i laughed out loud every time brad gilbert showed up. he truly is the hidden star of this book and i can see how he has driven the best out of so many player, especially the first player he coached - andre. i grew up watching agassi, sampras, chang and courier. i remembered many of the matches he talks about, and agassi's internal monologue during these matches really makes this book.

julia holter at webster hall

julia holter bathes webster hall in sumptuous new music

photo: lexi yob

the unobserved universe

The Observable Universe: An Investigation by Heather McCalden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

a mediation on grief in an unorthodox literary sense, which makes sense since mccalden is an artist that generally identifies with photography. it's refreshing and sometimes difficult read, emotionally and structurally. irregardless, it gave me jenny odell how to do nothing vibes. the consciousness that items on the internet are ephemeral from link rot to 404 errors. mccalden has a way of encapsulating feeling in concise prose that hits upon its emotion. meticulous researched and paints a vision of la that's less glitz and more reality.

real estate at webster hall

real estate bring new music home to a sold-out webster hall

photo: savannah lauren