QDB Authors on the Air — Sam McManis, author of “Crossing California”
Sam McManis, the author of the new book Crossing California: A Cultural Topography of a State of Wonder and Weirdness, has been on the radio a lot lately talking about the amazing things he’s seen and eccentric people he’s met traveling the Golden State. Here are some of his recent radio appearances:
Insight with Beth Ruyak, Capital Public Radio: “Crossing California” with Sam McManis
Crossing California is a unique guide to the state exploring California’s cultural uniqueness and well-deserved reputation for eccentricity. Based on McManis’ “Discoveries” columns for the Sacramento Bee, Crossing California collects his best reports from the oddball heart of California, profiling outsider artists, museums of the unusual, and dedicated weirdos of every stripe.
Whether he is spotting the final resting places of the stars in a tour of Hollywood cemeteries, learning the alternative history of the world at the Scientology museum, playing with new technological toys from Silicon Valley, touring a porn studio in San Francisco, interviewing a Muslim found object sculptor in Palm Springs or hanging out with a Japanese country music yodeler, McManis is tireless in his quest to find the heart of California.
McManis’ tart and funny profiles of eccentricity and monomania will both entertain and give the reader a surprising sympathy for these people on the edge. All told, Crossing California is a trip.