The Booksmith

DAVID TALBOT / SEASON OF THE WITCH: Enchantment, Terror and Deliverance in the City of Love

Wednesday, May 16 at 7:30 PM

WEDNESDAY EVENING!

“This is my love letter to San Francisco. But if it’s a Valentine, it’s a bloody valentine, filled with the raw truth as well as the glory about the city that has been my home for more than three decades now. The story I’m about to tell is an epic one, filled with personalities and events. But in the end, this is what it is all about. It’s the story of a city that changed itself, and then changed the world.”

In a kaleidoscopic narrative, David Talbot recounts the gripping story of San Francisco in the turbulent years between 1967 and 1982 -- and of the extraordinary men and women who led to the city’s ultimate rebirth and triumph.

Season of the Witch is the first book to fully capture the dark magic of San Francisco in this breathtaking period, when the city radically changed itself -- and then revolutionized the world. The cool gray city of love was the epicenter of the 1960s cultural revolution. But by the early 1970s, San Francisco’s ecstatic experiment came crashing down from its starry heights. The city was rocked by savage murder sprees, mysterious terror campaigns, political assassinations, street riots, and finally a terrifying sexual epidemic. No other city endured so many calamities in such a short time span.

Talbot takes us deep into the riveting story of his city’s ascent, decline, and heroic recovery. He draws intimate portraits of San Francisco’s legendary demons and saviors: Charles Manson, Patty Hearst and the Symbionese Liberation Army, Jerry Garcia, Janis Joplin, Bill Graham, Herb Caen, the Cockettes, Harvey Milk, Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple, Joe Montana and the Super Bowl 49ers. He reveals how the city emerged from the trials of this period with a new brand of “San Francisco values,” including gay marriage, medical marijuana, immigration sanctuary, universal health care, recycling, renewable energy, consumer safety, and a living wage mandate. Considered radical when they were first introduced, these ideas have become the bedrock of decent society in many parts of the country, and exemplify the ways that the city now inspires us toward a live-and-let-live tolerance, a shared sense of humanity, and an openness to change.

As a new generation of activists and dreamers seeks its own path to a more enlightened future, Season of the Witch -- with its epic tale of the wild and bloody birth of San Francisco values -- offers both inspiration and cautionary wisdom.

“David Talbot is a great story-teller. He writes like an angel and has a reporter’s passion for the truth. Describing people I knew, I can say that Talbot has perfect pitch, but he has also introduced me to others, as thrilling as sin. He got it all just right and gets closer to describing the lusty, languorous, glamorous, and sometimes lethal Saint named Francisco than anyone I know. The book overflows with gifts. I’m in awe of it.” -- Peter Coyote, author of Sleeping Where I Fall

"In this wonderful book, David Talbot tells the stories deep in San Francisco’s loric landscape, from its cultural greatness to the slides into madness. Talbot explores its volcanic originality with awe and respect. An unforgettable history."

-- Tom Hayden, author of The Long Sixties

David Talbot, founder and CEO of the San Francisco based web magazine Salon, is uniquely poised to tell his iconic city’s story in all its terrible glory. Talbot is the author of the New York Times bestseller Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years, and Devil Dog: The Amazing True Story of the Man Who Saved America. He has been hailed as a "pioneer of online journalism" by The New York Times. He has worked as a senior editor for Mother Jones magazine and as a features editor for the San Francisco Examiner. Talbot has written for The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, and Time among other publications. He lives with his family in San Francisco.

Season of the Witch: Enchantment, Terror and Deliverance in the City of Love (Hardcover)

By David Talbot

$28.00

ISBN-13: 9781439108215
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Free Press, 1/2012

Other Editions of this Title

Location:

Street:: 1644 Haight St.
City:: San Francisco
Province:: California
Postal Code:: 94117-2816
Country:: United States

Calendar

CHRIS GUILLEBEAU / $100 STARTUP: Reinvent the Way You make a Living, Do What you Love, and Create A New Future

Tuesday, May 29 at 7:30 PM

Have you been searching for a rewarding, high-paying job

but aren't making any progress?

Do you have a job but feel you’re just going through the motions?

Are you called to a life of travel and adventure,

but feel chained to your desk or cubicle?

Do you want your life to have more meaning and purpose?

Chris Guillebeau wrote this book for you.

Still in his early thirties, Chris is on the verge of completing a tour of every country on earth – he’s already visited more than 175 nations – and yet he’s never held a “real job” or earned a regular paycheck. Rather, he has a special genius for turning ideas into income, and he uses what he earns both to support his life of adventure and to give back.

There are many others like Chris – those who’ve found ways to opt out of traditional employment and create the time and income to pursue what they find meaningful. Sometimes, achieving that perfect blend of passion and income doesn’t depend on shelving what you currently do. You can start small with your venture, committing little time or money, and wait to take the real plunge when you're sure it's successful.

In preparing to write this book, Chris identified 1,500 individuals who have built businesses earning $50,000 or more from an initial investment of $100 or less, and from that group he’s chosen to focus on the 50 most intriguing case studies. In nearly all cases, people with no special skills discovered aspects of their personal passions that could be monetized, and were able to restructure their lives in ways that gave them greater freedom and fulfillment.

Here, finally, distilled into one easy-to-use guide, are the most valuable lessons from those who’ve learned how to turn what they do into a gateway to self-fulfillment. In ancient times, people who were dissatisfied with their lives dreamed of finding magic lamps, buried treasure, or streets paved with gold. Today, we know that it’s up to us to change our lives. And the best part is, if we change our own life, we can help others change theirs. This remarkable book will start you on your way.

If you’d like to share a one-minute description of your startup plan, Chris will offer a one-minute response. Get inspired!

"THE $100 STARTUP is a twofer: It's a kick in the pants to get started on your dream and a road map for finding your way once you begin. If you're not ready to launch your own business after reading this book, you need to go back and read it again!"

-- Daniel H. Pink

Host of the World Domination Summit, an international gathering of creative people, Chris Guillebeau is focused on encouraging individual quests while also “giving back.”