'My Job Is to Represent My Place': Susan Straight on Conveying the Beauty of 'Overlooked' California in Her New Novel 'Mecca'
Susan Straight is a professor of creative writing at UC Riverside, and also grew up in Riverside. Her new novel, "Mecca," is a story of intertwined characters who all have deep roots in the mountains, deserts and canyons near Riverside and Coachella, and who are all in their own ways, looking for a version of the California Dream.
San Jose Had 5 Chinatowns. What Happened To Them?
On the West Coast, there are Chinatowns from Seattle to San Diego. Some of the oldest are in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles. But did you know that San Jose used to have a Chinatown? It’s actually had five throughout its history. But why isn’t there a Chinatown in San Jose today? KQED’s Adhiti Bandlamudi explains.