You\u2019re reading Book Club <\/p>\n
An exclusive look at what we\u2019re reading, book club events and our latest author interviews. <\/p>\n
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service<\/a>, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy<\/a> such as personalizing your experience and ads. <\/p>\n \u270d\ufe0f Author Chat<\/p>\n You are an epidemiologist.<\/b><\/p>\n I was trained as a social epidemiologist \u2014 somebody who can look at how societal factors influence the health of populations. I study how society determines who lives and dies, who is sick and who is healthy.<\/p>\n I\u2019m wondering if it was your interest in Zoonotic viruses that led you to this subject?<\/b><\/p>\n The last book I wrote was called \u201cThe Invisible Siege.\u201d<\/b><\/a> It is an overview of the history of coronavirus science, starting in the \u201880s, braided with the much longer history of the coronavirus family. And it ends with this scientist who is describing being in northern Thailand and moving through Myanmar and Yunnan Province in China in the \u201890s. And he stumbles upon this exotic animal market near the Shan Autonomous state, which is an ethnic enclave in northern Myanmar that\u2019s been at war with the junta there forever. And this market\u2019s got cloud leopard skins, civets and every crazy, exotic animal that you can imagine. And they were all being sent directly into China. And it\u2019s exactly this kind of trafficking that is carrying all these viruses, like this superhighway of exotic animals into urban areas.<\/p>\n But not all urban animals are vectors for disease. In fact, we have fostered very cushy urban environments for many different species. Pigeons, for example, who don\u2019t have to fly in cities because they have no natural predators. <\/b><\/p>\n Chris Shell, a coyote expert from Altadena that I interviewed, pointed out that pigeons do have to worry about predators now, because there are red tail hawks and coyotes and other creatures. Our urban ecosystems are becoming more complex. There are some biologists that are describing our time right now in North America as the great urban shift. They\u2019ve done modeling exercises showing that over the next few decades there are literally going to be thousands of species moving into urban areas. They\u2019re increasingly going to be mega-fauna, much larger animals.<\/p>\n Why is that happening?<\/b><\/p>\n We\u2019re seeing the continuing acceleration of the transformation of wild spaces into human modified spaces. But it\u2019s also because of extreme weather events. If you look at the horrible fires that occurred in Los Angeles last year, one of the things that happened was hundreds of thousands, even millions, of animals had to flee those areas that were on fire, and they fled into urban areas. What do urban areas provide? Constant sources of freshwater, continual sources of food waste, and other prey. You\u2019ve got climate change happening, and that\u2019s causing this real shift of animals moving into different places.<\/p>\n Dan Werb, author of \u201cOur Wild Familiars,\u201d a new book about wild animals who\u2019ve managed to survive in human communities.<\/p>\n (Joseph Fuda)<\/p>\n What about a less traditional metropolitan space, like L.A. County, which is a hodgepodge of so many different kinds of topography and terrain.<\/b><\/p>\n L.A. is super fascinating because lot size isn\u2019t directly related to income. It\u2019s very much more heterogeneous and variable, even within neighborhoods. The wealthier a neighborhood is, the higher the biodiversity is going to be, because we\u2019re going to have larger lots, more green space, fewer fences, things like that.<\/p>\n We have a complicated relationship with coyotes in L.A., especially those of us who have lost pets to them. But according to your book, we have trapped them in our cities. <\/b><\/p>\n Coyotes need to have pathways that allow them to move in and out cities. As it is now, they move into urban environments looking for food and water, and they can\u2019t get out. They get trapped in cities, and conflict happens. Like black bears in suburbs across large parts of North America that dig into people\u2019s garbage.<\/p>\n And bears and other animals eating, say, fast food leftovers is a nutritional disaster as well. <\/b><\/p>\n It\u2019s like an ecological trap. They see no reason why they would leave, even though staying is actually more dangerous for them. And there are all kinds of ecological traps across cities that manifest in different ways. One that I always think about is seagulls at the seashore that have evolved over tens of millions of years to be able to hunt fish and shellfish. And the fish are right there, yet they\u2019re eating french fries because it\u2019s slightly less work.<\/p>\n You mention the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing that spans the 101 freeway in Agoura Hills, the first animal crossing of its kind in America, as a potential solution to this problem. <\/b><\/p>\n I think it\u2019s great. One hopes there will be more projects like that undertaken in other cities around the world.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve discussed all the rotten things that are going on with animals in cities. Why is it a wonderful thing that animals have come into our cities and our lives?<\/b><\/p>\n If we hear birdsong, we\u2019re less stressed. If we hear additional birdsong, it multiplies the stress-relieving effect. Being close to animals is biologically beneficial for us. It\u2019s really about connection. I look at AI, and there\u2019s this kind of sense that an AI chat bot can decrease loneliness. But it\u2019s just an echo chamber. I think a true connection is bridging some kind of divide in the way that you think or perceive the world. And in that sense, being aware of an animal who is aware of you takes you out of yourself in a way that I think is really, really special.<\/p>\n This Q&A was edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcf0 The Week(s) in Books Book jacket for \u201cYou Won\u2019t Get Free of It: Stories of Mothers and Daughters\u201d by Rachel Aviv<\/p>\n (Los Angeles Times illustration; book jacket from Knopf)<\/p>\n The ostensible topic of Rachel Aviv\u2019s new essay collection, \u201cYou Won\u2019t Get Free of It,\u201d<\/b><\/a> is mothers and daughters, but according to Julia M. Klein<\/a>, Aviv\u2019s sparkling, sharp-eyed pieces \u201cinvolve the slipperiness of truth and the crushing inadequacy of our mental-health system and social safety net.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCool Machine,\u201d<\/b><\/a> the final volume of Colson Whitehead\u2019s Harlem trilogy, is an \u201cAmerican epic disguised as a heist novel,\u201d writes Leigh Haber<\/a>. \u201cWhether or not New York is your jam, or a place you have escaped from or to, Whitehead\u2019s Harlem Trilogy is destined to live on as an American classic.\u201d<\/p>\n Whitney Friedlander<\/a> profiles Jessica Knoll, one of America\u2019s most successful authors of sexy thrillers that \u201cdepict the absolute worst things one person could do to another \u2014 but in such a sensational, tongue-prickling-sour-candy kind of way that her books come off as devilishly evil beach reads.\u201d<\/p>\n Finally, Dan Tana\u2019s book about his legendary, eponymously-named restaurant in West Hollywood, \u201cEverybody Came to Tana\u2019s,\u201d<\/b><\/a> has been posthumously published. Sixty-two years after the restaurant\u2019s opening, it\u2019s still a tough reservation to snag. \u201cIn a town that\u2019s always trying to be something that it\u2019s not, it\u2019s not trying to be anything,\u201d his daughter Katerina tells Maddie Connors<\/a>. \u201cDan Tana\u2019s is longevity in the midst of ephemera.\u201d<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcd6 Bookstore Faves The Philosophical Research Society is a Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument in Los Feliz.<\/p>\n (Philosophical Research Society)<\/p>\n There is nothing else in L.A. like the Philosophical Research Society. The nonprofit was founded by scholar Manly Hall in 1934 as a place for the curious to explore wisdom, philosophy, mysticism and mythology across all cultures. Its visually striking Mayan Revival Los Feliz campus, a Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument, features an auditorium, a gallery and a library of 30,000 volumes. The PRS bookshop is its own gem, a well-curated miscellany of books for spiritual seeking and enlightenment.<\/p>\n In a joint email exchange, PRS staffers dama, Jarrett Schaefer, Kelly Carmena and Amanda Brass explain what makes the store a sui generis experience.<\/p>\n How does the bookshop tie in thematically with the Philosophical Research Society?<\/b><\/p>\n The PRS Bookstore is a reflection of all that we do here at PRS. It is an extension of the library created by Manly Hall where you will find foundational texts in alchemy, mythology, philosophy, astrology, and art. You will also find a selection of books based on themes explored in our talks and screenings and from recommendations made by the team at PRS.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a very well-curated inventory of new and secondhand books \u2014 I assume you\u2019re very careful about what you stock on the shelves. <\/b><\/p>\n We select works that are meaningful to us and hope that they will resonate with everyone too. We highlight works by mystics and visionaries. In our staff recommendations section, you\u2019ll find titles like Ben Caldwell and Robeson Taj Frazier\u2019s \u201cKaos Theory,\u201d<\/b><\/a> art books by Penny Slinger, Betye Saar and Remedios Varo, Yoko Ono\u2019s \u201cGrapefruit,\u201d<\/b><\/a> \u201cRed Tarot\u201d<\/b><\/a> by Christopher Marmolejo, \u201cThe Bhagavad Gita,\u201d<\/b><\/a> and \u201cTime, Myth & Matter\u201d<\/b><\/a> by LD Deutsch. We also feature items from local artists like Moss Candles, Black Willow Jewelry, and perfume by Syd Botanica. Our secondhand books are donation-only and are a kaleidoscopic bag of surprises. <\/b><\/p>\n The Philosophical Research Society features an auditorium, a gallery, a library of 30,000 volumes and a bookshop.<\/p>\n (Philosophical Research Society)<\/p>\n What book genres tend to sell well? <\/b><\/p>\n Esoteric art, mythology, tarot and divinatory practices, ancient philosophy, and hermeticism are all popular subjects. The top-selling book every year is Manly Hall\u2019s seminal work \u201cThe Secret Teachings of All Ages,\u201d<\/b><\/a> which is an encyclopedic outline of symbolic philosophy. The used astrology books and children\u2019s books are quite popular too.<\/p>\n Do you have author events? <\/b><\/p>\n We\u2019ve hosted book talks with Mark Mothersbaugh, Michelle Coltrane, Mitch Horowitz and Susan Orlean. We regularly co-present events with publishers like Hat & Beard Press, Angel City Press, the Library of Esoterica, Sky Press, Ouroboros Press and Bibliomancers. There are also monthly events that are centered around the bookstore: The Manly Hall Book Club, Astro Study Group, Surrealist Study Group, Tarot Salon and an Esoteric Game Night.<\/p>\n![\"Dan](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785034822_851_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Book](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785034823_479_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785034824_636_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785034826_970_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n