How Scary Is Nosferatu, the New Dracula Movie From the Director of The Witch and The Northman?

For die-hards, no horror movie can be too scary. But for you, a wimp, the wrong one can leave you miserable. Never fear, scaredies, because Slate’s Scaredy Scale is here to help. We’ve put together a highly scientific and mostly spoiler-free system for rating new horror movies, comparing them with classics along a 10-point scale. And because not everyone is scared by the same things—some viewers can’t stand jump scares, while others are haunted by more psychological terrors or can’t stomach arterial spurts—it breaks down each movie’s scares across three criteria: suspense, spookiness, and gore.

If you haven’t had enough of towering Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård scaring the living daylights out of you as the killer clown in It, then I’m pleased to announce that this edition of the Scaredy Scale will be about his attempt to do it all over again. The new Nosferatu finds Skarsgård trying to match writer-director Robert Eggers’ freak, which is no small task given the auteur (also responsible for The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman) is known for his signature blend of creepy folklore, horror, and, simply put, delightfully weird shit. Now, in his first article-less feature-length film, Eggers decided to take on the classic vampire tale, revamping the classic 1922 German film of the same name with stars such as Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, and Willem Dafoe. There’s little question that the movie is good—for a genre flick, it boasts exceptionally high numbers on review aggregators—but just how scary is this not-so-jolly Christmas release? Is it OK to take the kiddies who are in town for the holidays, or should you sneak out from the festivities to watch it alone? Let’s dive in.

Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Focus Features.

Nosferatu starts with the sound of distressed breathing set to only a black screen, from which you don’t know what will emerge. Then, it doles out its first, genuinely surprising, jump scare within those first five minutes. It’s a film that shows you, from the start, just how much it wants to terrify you as a movie that’s not about what goes bump in the night, but BAM. There are frights aplenty, but they’re nothing if not artful. Plenty are accomplished with sound that unexpectedly crescendos and, thus, can be avoided by a well-timed plugging of ears. But it would be a shame to miss how its combinations of high-volume string instruments, quick cuts, darkness, and bodily fluids are used to raise your heart rate. Some of the heightened moments of tension are even playful, like one particularly successful shock that is followed by a shot so angelic my screening laughed at the tonal whiplash. Of course, that heavenly tableau then tees up a set piece, practically lifted from a future textbook on horror masterclasses, that will have you unconsciously holding your breath. Be prepared for your nervous system to get a workout.

Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Focus Features.

The Grand Guignol in Nosferatu isn’t frequent or fundamental to the plot like it is in some other horror franchises, but whenever it does come time to get grisly, Eggers goes for broke. Given that the story follows a vampire that brings a plague to a whole town, there’s naturally a healthy amount of bodily fluids on display. Chief among them, of course, is blood: It spurts, it squirts, it pours, it pools, it even, somehow, bursts. In the film’s most repulsive moments, something alive is always being bitten into, whether it’s a human neck or an animal head. And, given the whole plague thing, there are also sufficient sickly sights to amply disgust you. Not to mention the abundance of spit and mucus, which is, admittedly, not my thing. Your mileage may vary, but if you’re even the slightest bit squeamish, you may want to reconsider your decision to see this one at a dine-in theater.

Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Focus Features.

Seeing Lily-Rose Depp’s body demonically contort might stay with you, sure. But the truth of the matter is: The film is set in a specific time and place, and unfolds like it does because of a character’s poor decision-making years prior. The movie is a total ride, but as long as you don’t time-travel back to 1838, go to Germany, and make a deal with the devil, you should be able to mostly leave this one behind you.

Photo illustration by Slate. Photo by Focus Features.

2024 has offered no shortage of creative horror flicks, like Nicolas Cage’s viral Longlegs, the riveting social commentary The Substance, the high-concept Late Night With the Devil, and the daring Hugh Grant vehicle Heretic, not to mention international standouts like South Korea’s Exhuma and France’s MadS. It is only fitting that the year should end with another entry in this category of Actually Good Horror Movies. Though Nosferatu may not keep your pulse pounding for too long after you leave the theater, its full-throttle exploration of art meeting terror should leave a mark on you in the best way. You’ll definitely close your eyes at the carnage, and cover your ears at the jolts, but nothing about its scares is cheap. Not everyone lives forever, but some Christmas memories can still be immortal.

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BOOK REVIEW: ‘The Mosquito Bowl’

A unique football game was played between the 4th and 29th Marine Regiments stationed on the Pacific island of Guadalcanal on Christmas Eve 1944.The ranks of these regiments were filled by one of the greatest pools of football talent ever assembled. They were mostly college football players who enlisted in the Marines after the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor, including former all-Americans, captains from Brown, Notre Dame and Wisconsin, and nearly 20 players who would later play in the NFL.In his book “The Mosquito Bowl,” Buzz Bissinger explains that “It was over a few beers that former collegiate football players in the 29th Regiment of the 6th Marine Division stood toe-to-toe with former collegiate football players of the 4th Regiment and made the emphatic claim that the 29th would kick the 4th’s ass if there was ever a football game between the two, which of course was preposterous in a place like Guadalcanal with a war going on.”

Edmonds Bookshop invites community members to buy a book for MLK Jr. Day event giveaway

The Edmonds Bookshop invites community members to participate in a special book drive for the Lift Every Voice Legacy’s seventh annual Tribute to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. event scheduled for Monday, Jan. 20 at the Edmonds Waterfront Center, 220 Railroad Ave.
This celebration — “Inspiring a Beloved Community in Song, Artistic Expression and Dance” — in open to children and families, and the  Edmonds Bookshop will be joining in the festivities with a book sale table. With the help of generous community members, the bookshop would also like to provide books to be given as prizes to event attendees.
From Jan. 13-19, you can purchase books from a select list at Edmonds Bookshop, and these will be given away to children and families at the MLK Day event.
More details can be found on the Edmonds Bookshop’s website or at the store, located at 111 5th Ave. S., Edmonds.

India Post abolishes Book Post service, leaves readers, publishers shocked

India Post has officially stopped its ‘Book Post’ service in a decision that has shocked book lovers and the publishing industry alike. The service was created to promote education and reading habits. It allowed books to be shipped at very low rates. Sending five kilograms of books cost just Rs 80 – a rate that no courier service could match. India Post’s massive network also ensured quick deliveries with parcels often reaching destinations within a week across the country. Within cities, delivery was sometimes done the next day. While the government provided these low rates to encourage reading, book, magazines, and periodicals all benefited. Also Read: India Post celebrates Mysuru’s ‘hidden heritage’ for World Heritage Day Removed without warning However, reports said that the service was suddenly removed on Wednesday (18 December) without any prior warning. Stakeholders were not consulted. Even postal employees were caught off guard. At midnight, the RBP category vanished from the postal software. Customers were shocked to learn it was no longer available. This decision has hurt the publishing industry. Shipping costs have now surged. Many readers hesitate to pay Rs 78 postage for a Rs 100 book. The move risks damaging India’s already weak reading culture. The cost difference is huge. Sending one kilogram via RBP used to cost Rs 32. Now, it costs Rs 78 under ‘Registered Parcel’. A five-kilogram package that was Rs 80 is now Rs 229. Also Read: Move to etch Covid battle in history through memorial, postal cover 5% tax on sample books The government also introduced a 5 per cent duty on sample books. Foreign publishers often send complimentary translations. These are now taxed for the first time. Industry experts say while taxing commercial book imports may make sense, imposing levy on non-commercial samples seems unfair and counterproductive. Critics say this is another arbitrary decision by the government which puts literacy and education efforts on the backburner.

Creativity meets free speech: Queens Public Library extends deadline for Banned Books art contest

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Queens Public Library (QPL) has extended the submission deadline for the Banned Books Library Card Design Contest to Friday, Jan. 10, 2025.
The American Library Association (ALA) has recently reported historic highs in the number of banned and challenged book titles. QPL wants to highlight how it is more important than ever right now to stand against censorship and celebrate the freedom to read.

To raise awareness of this ongoing issue, QPL is holding a contest for local artists and the general public, ages 13 and up, to submit original artwork celebrating the freedom to read. The artwork may be inspired by books or authors who have been banned or challenged, or it may be inspired by an original interpretation of the freedom to read in Queens.
The winning artwork will be featured on QPL’s Banned Books Special Edition Library Card, which will be released in 2025. The winner will also receive a $2,000 cash prize. Finalists may also have a chance to have their artwork displayed on the QPL website and at QPL locations.

All entries will be reviewed by a panel of QPL staff members and community judges and judged according to the following criteria: creativity, originality, relevance to the theme, and visual appeal and quality. The winner will be notified by email within 14 days following the selection.
Artists must be at least 13 to enter, and those under 18 must obtain parental consent before entering. Each individual can submit up to three different works of art. They must be original pieces, and A.I. generations are not permitted.
Entrants can use any art medium they want, but the file must include their name and be submitted electronically in JPG, PNG, or PDF format. It cannot be over 3MB.
Artists should submit a brief statement for each work submitted, discussing its theme and meaning. Preference will be given to individuals with a connection to Queens.
The ALA condemns censorship and works to defend each person’s right to read under the First Amendment and ensure free access to information. Every year, ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) compiles a list of the Top 10 Most Challenged Books to inform the public about censorship in libraries and schools. The lists are based on information from reports filed by library professionals and community members, as well as news stories published throughout the United States.
In 2023, the ALA reported 4,240 unique book titles targeted for censorship, a 65% surge over the 2022 numbers.
Some of its Top 10 Most Challenged Books included: ‘Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe’ (106 challenges), ‘All Boys Aren’t Blue’ by George M. Johnson (82 challenges), and ‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower’ by Stephen Chbosky (68 challenges).
Artists can enter QPL’s Banned Books design contest here.

11 food (and food-adjacent) books from Minnesota authors to scoop up

“Zoë Bakes Cookies,” by Zoë François. François’ ode to the ultimate handheld dessert shares the recipes, stories and lessons that paved her way from humble beginnings (she started with a cookie cart) to bestselling author, creator of awe-inspiring desserts and wielder of kitchen torches. It was a pivotal experience for François as she dug deep into family recipes, turning the book into much more than a love letter to cookies. She also takes the opportunity to teach us the finer points of baking with the Baking Academy chapter, how to make a cookie our own in the Cookie Lab chapter, and defends the inclusion of bars. “In the pastry world, we always talk about texture, flavor, contrast and balance. A bar has it all,” she told the Star Tribune ahead of the book’s release. “It’s the perfect food group. The bars are to be revered.” (Ten Speed Press)“The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book,” by Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson. A sequel to the 2015 edition, the book chronicles the first 20 years of the Star Tribune’s Holiday Cookie Contest, which was started by the two retired Taste staffers. “This book also gave us an opportunity to tell personal stories, to have sort of a personal signoff on the contest,” Svitak Dean told the Star Tribune. “It’s sort of our legacy.” But don’t think this is just a holiday cookie book. While many recipes lend themselves to winter (Snowball Clippers and Hot Cocoa Cookies), there are plenty that deserve year-round status (Almond Palmiers, Strawberry Margarita Gems). The cookie contest proudly carries on and is as popular as ever, thanks to the foundation set by Nelson and Svitak Dean. (University of Minnesota Press)The Sausage Sister & Me stand at the Minnesota State Fair has remained popular since its debut in 2002. This year’s new food: 3 Piggy Pals On-A-Stick. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune)“A Season for That: Lost and Found in the Other Southern France” by Steve Hoffman. This memoir from the accountant/award-winning food writer is topping many national “best of the year” lists (and mine, too). The book chronicles the six-month period he and his wife, Mary Jo — whose book “Still” is also making waves in literary circles — moved their family across the globe to immerse themselves in a new culture. It’s a story of a husband and father wanting his family to share his love of France, and how the adventure changed their dynamic — and their futures. Both riveting and relatable, by the end of the book you’ll be ready to embark on a journey of rediscovery, or at least track down wines from France’s Languedoc region, which Hoffman writes about so beautifully. (Crown)“River Language,” by JD Fratzke. We love seeing a different side of the people we have come to know through restaurants. And this book of poetry by the chef and hospitality pro is a great example of that, yet perhaps not a surprise to those who remember reading his evocative menu descriptions. Billed as “an autobiographical testament to a reconnection with the ancient waterways that run through the deepest parts of all of us,” Fratzke does indeed write about rivers and waterways, foundational for the Winona native, but also restaurants, mullets and wildlife. Even if you’re not a poetry expert (guilty), the poems are a window into both Fratzke and, after a little time, yourself. (Liquid North Publishing)“The Wisdom of the Sausage Sister,” by Cherie Peterson. Fans of the Minnesota State Fair know the Sausage Sisters and their Food Building stand well. In this book, Peterson tells the story of how she and her sister Merry got their sausage start (carrying on a craft started by their father), and their journey from creating recipes and starting the Weenie Wagon, taking it to the Minneapolis Farmers Market and, finally, debuting at the fair in 2002. They instantly became a perennial favorite with offerings like the popular Twisted Sister to this year’s 3 Piggy Pals On-A-Stick. You’ll read about family traditions, entrepreneurship and, of course, sausage. There are recipes, too. This book slipped by us in 2023, but it’s a meaty addition to this year’s list. (Wise Ink)Knophela (Little German Button Soup) is among the recipes that lean into author Hayden Haas’ Midwestern upbringing. From “Simply Delishaas: Favorite Recipes from my Midwestern Kitchen,” by Hayden Haas. (Tessa Hiney)

11 food (and food-adjacent) books from Minnesota authors to scoop up

“Zoë Bakes Cookies,” by Zoë François. François’ ode to the ultimate handheld dessert shares the recipes, stories and lessons that paved her way from humble beginnings (she started with a cookie cart) to bestselling author, creator of awe-inspiring desserts and wielder of kitchen torches. It was a pivotal experience for François as she dug deep into family recipes, turning the book into much more than a love letter to cookies. She also takes the opportunity to teach us the finer points of baking with the Baking Academy chapter, how to make a cookie our own in the Cookie Lab chapter, and defends the inclusion of bars. “In the pastry world, we always talk about texture, flavor, contrast and balance. A bar has it all,” she told the Star Tribune ahead of the book’s release. “It’s the perfect food group. The bars are to be revered.” (Ten Speed Press)“The Ultimate Minnesota Cookie Book,” by Lee Svitak Dean and Rick Nelson. A sequel to the 2015 edition, the book chronicles the first 20 years of the Star Tribune’s Holiday Cookie Contest, which was started by the two retired Taste staffers. “This book also gave us an opportunity to tell personal stories, to have sort of a personal signoff on the contest,” Svitak Dean told the Star Tribune. “It’s sort of our legacy.” But don’t think this is just a holiday cookie book. While many recipes lend themselves to winter (Snowball Clippers and Hot Cocoa Cookies), there are plenty that deserve year-round status (Almond Palmiers, Strawberry Margarita Gems). The cookie contest proudly carries on and is as popular as ever, thanks to the foundation set by Nelson and Svitak Dean. (University of Minnesota Press)The Sausage Sister & Me stand at the Minnesota State Fair has remained popular since its debut in 2002. This year’s new food: 3 Piggy Pals On-A-Stick. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune)“A Season for That: Lost and Found in the Other Southern France” by Steve Hoffman. This memoir from the accountant/award-winning food writer is topping many national “best of the year” lists (and mine, too). The book chronicles the six-month period he and his wife, Mary Jo — whose book “Still” is also making waves in literary circles — moved their family across the globe to immerse themselves in a new culture. It’s a story of a husband and father wanting his family to share his love of France, and how the adventure changed their dynamic — and their futures. Both riveting and relatable, by the end of the book you’ll be ready to embark on a journey of rediscovery, or at least track down wines from France’s Languedoc region, which Hoffman writes about so beautifully. (Crown)“River Language,” by JD Fratzke. We love seeing a different side of the people we have come to know through restaurants. And this book of poetry by the chef and hospitality pro is a great example of that, yet perhaps not a surprise to those who remember reading his evocative menu descriptions. Billed as “an autobiographical testament to a reconnection with the ancient waterways that run through the deepest parts of all of us,” Fratzke does indeed write about rivers and waterways, foundational for the Winona native, but also restaurants, mullets and wildlife. Even if you’re not a poetry expert (guilty), the poems are a window into both Fratzke and, after a little time, yourself. (Liquid North Publishing)“The Wisdom of the Sausage Sister,” by Cherie Peterson. Fans of the Minnesota State Fair know the Sausage Sisters and their Food Building stand well. In this book, Peterson tells the story of how she and her sister Merry got their sausage start (carrying on a craft started by their father), and their journey from creating recipes and starting the Weenie Wagon, taking it to the Minneapolis Farmers Market and, finally, debuting at the fair in 2002. They instantly became a perennial favorite with offerings like the popular Twisted Sister to this year’s 3 Piggy Pals On-A-Stick. You’ll read about family traditions, entrepreneurship and, of course, sausage. There are recipes, too. This book slipped by us in 2023, but it’s a meaty addition to this year’s list. (Wise Ink)Knophela (Little German Button Soup) is among the recipes that lean into author Hayden Haas’ Midwestern upbringing. From “Simply Delishaas: Favorite Recipes from my Midwestern Kitchen,” by Hayden Haas. (Tessa Hiney)

Berkeley author wrote a book about an old painting he found on the streets of Paris

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A UC Berkeley professor explores how Native arts have contributed to the land reclamation efforts of the past 50 years. An organizer and life coach offers tips on tidying up your life. And a comic book author shares little-known facts about plants with a young audience.  These are a sampling of the new books written by local authors that are set here or otherwise connected to Berkeley in some way. NonfictionPortrait in Red: A Paris Obsession by L. John HarrisBerkeley author L. John Harris describes his sixth book as a whodunnit with three whos: the artist, the subject and “the idiot who threw out the painting.”“The painting” is an unfinished portrait of a girl wearing a bright red head covering that Harris found on the streets of Paris in 2015. “The Girl in Red,” as he calls it, is unsigned and bears only a date: Jan. 12, 1935. @media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 100px;}}
Harris, a food writer and illustrator, began posting about his search for the portrait’s provenance on Facebook, expanding his posts into a book-length manuscript in 2017. His search lasted two years and spanned two continents, with stops in London, Paris, Stinson Beach, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Berkeley.The book’s publication comes 50 years after Harris’ first book, The Book of Garlic, in 1974. To solve the whodunnit, Harris puts up posters on the streets of Paris seeking any information on the portrait, contacts art advisors and experts and a stolen or missing art register. He heads to the Louvre, where he compares the portrait to the Mona Lisa, a task, he admits, better suited to professional critics and art historians, but which he approaches as an art history student or travel magazine stringer. He contemplates finishing the portrait himself and winds up having a companion portrait of himself in the style of “The Girl in Red” painted by the Berkeley artist Max Thill at the suggestion of Marcia Masse of Masse’s Pastries in North Berkeley. That encounter provides an opportunity for Harris to gush about her husband’s buttery almond croissants, his favorite “this side of Paris.” Such diversions are one of many Harris intersperses throughout, along with musings on fine art, found objects and the aesthetics of a perfect croque monsieur — what had led him to Paris in the first place. The publisher especially recommends this book for readers who loved Edmund de Wall’s The Hare with Amber Eyes or Michael Finkel’s The Art Thief. @media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 100px;}}
Heyday, 320 pages, $35Historical Turns: Weimar Cinema and the Crisis of Historicism by Nicholas BaerThe aftereffects of a war and global pandemic. Hyperinflation and economic crisis. The rise of an authoritarian leader and the so-called “crisis of historicism,” in which intellectuals felt disillusioned with the course of history and skeptical whether the historical process held any meaning or coherence at all. These are some of the crises faced by Germany’s Weimar Republic between the wars that have prompted analogies to the U.S. in the age of Trump, said Nicholas Baer, an assistant professor of German at UC Berkeley who also lives in Berkeley.“Commentators have been drawing parallels between interwar Germany and the contemporary U.S.,” Baer said. “There’s definitely a resonance between then and now. We are similarly in a moment of historical pessimism.”Baer’s first book, Historical Turns: Weimar Cinema and the Crisis of Historicism, examines that crisis of historicism during the Weimar era by putting its films in conversation with the philosophical critiques of historicism from that time. He then draws links with the U.S. “as we face our own political, economic, and environmental crises,” Baer said. Baer analyzes five legendary works of German silent cinema: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Destiny, Rhythm 21, The Holy Mountain and Metropolis. In the epilogue, Baer draws links between Fritz Lang’s Metropolis and Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite and Sorry to Bother You by the Oakland filmmaker Boots Riley. Like Metropolis, Sorry to Bother You is also an allegory of capitalism, Baer said. Both contemporary films also try to visualize class stratification.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 100px;}}
 “I try to extend the legacies of Weimar cinema by thinking about contemporary global cinema as well,” Baer said.University of California Press, 258 pages, $29.95Life Styled: Your Guide to a More Organized & Intentional Life by Shira GillShira Gill’s latest book is different from her first two, Minimalista from 2021 and Organized Living from 2023. Those books illustrate how to live stylishly and simply, with Gill often using her own 1,200-square-foot Craftsman bungalow in Berkeley, which she shares with her husband, two daughters and an Australian shepherd as an example. Gill’s latest effort falls into the personal development category, in which she also has expertise. In addition to being a professional organizer, Gill happens to be a certified life coach and applies her less-is-more approach to one’s health, wellness and career and relationships, as well as one’s home and environment. Like her previous books, this one includes images from her own white-washed, minimalist residence and four others in the Bay Area. The book’s biggest message, she said, is the “power of less” and setting boundaries so you’ll have time to focus on the things that matter most to you, which Gill helps you determine.“We’ve reached this tipping point where we keep adding more, but without subtracting we’re doomed to being completely overwhelmed,” she said. @media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-4{min-height: 100px;}}
Ten Speed Press, 248 pages, $29.99Old Films, Young Eyes: A Teenage Take on Hollywood’s Golden Age by Simone O. EliasSimone O. Elias said that she did not write her first book, Old Films, Young Eyes: A Teenage Take on Hollywood’s Golden Age with college applications in mind. Now 15, a freshman at Eldorado High School in Placerville began pursuing her passion for classic films two years earlier when she created with a friend the podcast “Teenage Golden Age.” “I was thinking about my own personal creative fulfillment,” said Elias, who is also “a writer of everything you can possibly think of,” as she puts it in the preface, from songs to movies, TV pilots and essays. Elias is the daughter of Jessica Carew Kraft, a forager and author of Why We Need to Be Wild: One Woman’s Quest for Ancient Human Answers to 21st Century Problems, who was interviewed by Berkeleyside last year. Like her mother, Elias divides her time between the Berkeley Hills and Placerville. Elias will be discussing her book at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14, at the Berkeley Historical Society and at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 7, at Mrs. Dalloway’s. The book is a Gen Zer’s take on the golden age of films, which she defines as the beginning of the 1930s to the end of the 1960s. She argues that members of her generation would learn a lot about American history and popular culture by watching old movies and demonstrates how they foreshadowed, influenced and continue to shape pop culture. Watching a full-length film, she writes, also provides an antidote to her generation’s limited attention span. @media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-5{min-height: 100px;}}
Though her first exposure to film began with the 1957 musical Funny Face, Elias began working her way back and found herself falling in love with films of the 1930s. In particular, she finds the wise-cracking, fast-talking women played by the likes of Clara Bow, Ginger Rogers and Barbara Stanwyck to be, well, dope.“They played strong female characters who were ahead of their time. I found so much joy watching them. I don’t see women acting this way even today,” she said. “Back then they were very strong.” McFarland, 192 pages, $29.95Native Lands: Culture and Gender in Indigenous Territorial Claims by Shari M. HuhndorfIn the spring of 2021, the Native artist Nicholas Galanin created an installation in the desert near Palm Springs with the words “Native Land” in 45-foot high white letters, recalling the iconic Hollywood sign overlooking Los Angeles. The Hollywood sign had served as a real-estate advertisement for the new, whites-only communities in Los Angeles, writes Shari M. Huhndorf, a professor of Native American studies at UC Berkeley. Such land was “a commodity for purchase while promoting racial segregation” and “an act of erasure, obscuring the long histories of the Gabrielino Tongva people.”Huhndorf begins her latest book with the story of the “Native Lands” sign because it best represents its subject matter: the ties between Indigenous arts and Native land reclamation movements that have taken place over the past 50 years.@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-6{min-height: 100px;}}
“Native artists, filmmakers and writers have used their work to represent Indigenous histories and meanings of land in ways that support Indigenous territorial claims,” she writes. Such “radical political imagery” challenges the authority of the U.S. and Canada, “refutes extractive colonialism on Native lands and envisions a future that draws together territorial reclamation with social justice, including gender justice, for Native people.”Huhndorf’s previous books on Native culture include Going Native: Indians in the American Cultural Imagination and Mapping the Americas: The Transnational Politics of Contemporary Native Culture. University of California Press, 204 pages, $29.95KidsGolden Gate: Building the Mighty Bridge by Elizabeth PartridgeGrowing up in the 1950s and ’60s on a hill near Claremont’s Star Grocery, the children’s book author Elizabeth Partridge saw the Golden Gate Bridge on a daily basis. Nevertheless, the bridge still represented a magical place to her because it also formed the basis of a family myth. The myth was that her godmother, Dorothea Lange, the Depression-era photographer, had selected the color of the bridge, a half-truth spread by Lange’s first husband, the artist Maynard Dixon. “It turned out that when bridge officials met with local artists, they chose the color of the bridge,” Partridge said. “So, yes, my godmother helped choose the color of the bridge, but didn’t choose it all by herself.” With illustrations by Ellen Heck, Golden Gate (for ages 5 to 8) is dubbed “a love story to the bridge and its creation.” It chronicles the planning and construction of the bridge from the point of view of the nearby lighthouse keeper’s children. The children watch as trucks and crews arrive and the steel towers are primed in the color called International Orange and rise above the tempestuous water of the Golden Gate, where the ocean meets the bay. When the bridge opened on May 27, 1937, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Partridge now lives in North Berkeley, where she no longer has bridge views, but glimpses them each night when she walks her two dogs in the hills. “Every day I say, ‘Hello bridge, how are you doing?’” she said. “I love watching the fog roll in and out of the bay.” Chronicle Books, 60 pages, $19.95Andy Warner’s Oddball Histories: Spices and Spuds, How Plants Made Our World by Andy WarnerAndy Warner pays attention — close attention. An observer of the overlooked, the nonfiction comic book author turned his curiosity to everyday objects and the result was his 2016 book, Brief Histories of Everyday Objects, a New York Times bestseller. Because the book was a hit with kids and librarians, when Little Brown approached him to do a series for ages 6 and up, he jumped at the chance. The result: Andy Warner’s Oddball Histories series. The first book in the series, Pests and Pets (2021), is about the animals — domesticated or not — that are successful because of humans. The second book in the series, Spices and Spuds, came out Nov. 5. It explores the ways people use the plants around us and follows domesticated plants, trends and technologies to find the connective stories between places and cultures. “Did you know that a pepper blockade led to the Age of Exploration? How about that hugewheat barges once kept Rome running with free bread? Or that whole wars were fought overTea?” These are a few of the many questions Warner answers in a way that “makes learning fun,” according to the publisher. Though he continues to create work for an adult audience, Warner has personal experience with the younger audience. His 7-year-old twins go to Malcolm X Elementary School, where he recently did a presentation for their class about being a cartoonist. “Making work they’re interested in is definitely a fun part of the job,” he said.Little, Brown Ink, 248 pages, $12.99-$24.99 (hardcover)The Long Way Around by Anne NesbetAnne Nesbet is an associate professor of Slavic languages and literatures and film and media at UC Berkeley whose side hustle is writing children’s books. Lots of them. Her eighth, The Long Way Around, is a wilderness adventure for readers ages 8 to 12. The plot involves three cousins who get cut off from their parents after getting permission to camp for one night at a lake all on their own. A major earthquake makes it impossible to return the way they came, so they must chart a different path. Along the way, they encounter a wide range of obstacles, from wild animals to raging rivers and treacherous mountain passes. Their hardest challenges, however, are the psychological ones they carry along with their backpacks. Vivian’s afraid of starting middle school and of “changes she can’t control,” while Own still suffers from the emotional scars of a car accident and Amy wishes to live another life rather than her own boring one. Candlewick, 256 pages, $18.99Calling All Future Voters! by Laura Atkins, Edward A. Hailes Jr. and Jennifer Lai-PetersonCalling All Future Voters! seeks to explain to 7 to 11 year olds the importance of voting and the ongoing fight for voting rights. Berkeley children’s book author Laura Atkins shares the byline with two veteran civil rights activists: Edward A. Hailes, a former civil rights attorney and Baptist minister, and Jennifer Lai-Peterson, a civil rights attorney and former union organizer. Srimalie Bassani illustrated the book. “We’ve written a book to help kids understand why it’s important to vote, how people have fought for this right and the tools to know their rights,” says Atkins. Passionate about social justice, Atkins co-wrote Fred Korematsu Speaks Up with Stan Yogi and Biddy Mason Speaks Up with Arisa White, both part of the Fighting for Justice Series. She is also the author of the picture book Sled Dog Dachshund, an editor and coach. Gloo Books, 32 pages, $19.95
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