Old Los Angeles I just spent five days in Los Angeles and will be home for just 24 hours before leaving for New Jersey and New York.   I flew into the Burbank Airport around 9:30 on Thursday and was met by Ken Wilson, who is known in the publishing business as a media escort.…

It’s been a whirlwind week of talking, talking, talking and signing for Towers of Gold. It’s so strange to be finally doing this – selling my book – after dreaming about it for years. By far the most fun is going to bookstores and venues to talk about the life of Isaias Hellman. Last night…

Today is the day I have been waiting for the last eight years. Today is the day that Towers of Gold: How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman Created California is officially published. Did the heavens sing to me this morning? Did stardust drop around my head as I woke up? Frankly, no. It was…

My book, Towers of Gold, officially goes on sale November 11, and amid all the worry about reviews, publicity, and speaking engagements, I have been obsessed by an equally important question: what do I wear for my book tour? Now, I am a pants and sweater kind of gal who occasionally puts on slightly nicer…

When you write a book, it’s like you enter a vast, dark universe. There are no markers to guide you. You just fumble along, stringing sentences and paragraphs together, hoping they make sense. From the beginning, you try and create order but you know you are only fooling yourself. You really are just hanging on…

  It was cold and foggy on Thursday as I left my house in Berkeley to drive to the Jewish Community Center in Walnut Creek. I was scheduled to give a talk on my book, Towers of Gold, to those who had gathered at the center for the Contra Costa Jewish Book and Arts Festival.…