California Rewritten: A Journey Through the Golden State’s New Literature

by John Freeman

Dive into the revelatory worlds of California's most exciting writers, and discover how their books uncover our history and can help us imagine our shared future.

Percival Everett, Rebecca Solnit, Tommy Orange, Michael Connelly, Julie As John Freeman writes in California Rewritten, "Literature of so many kinds and so many genres from so many different types of people—at the highest level—has been coming out of California and from Californians for decades now." Freeman, one of the sharpest editors working today, has followed the evolution of California's literary life since his teenage years in Sacramento. In over fifty essays inspired by his hosting of Alta Journal's popular California Book Club, he offers an essential road map to California literature now. He shows us how the state's most exciting writers can unlock our understanding of the past, and how they can deepen our imaginations as we confront the most pressing issues that face our labor and inequality, migration and citizenship, technology and its limits, changing landscapes and climate catastrophe. Incisive and compulsively readable, California Rewritten will be a source of empowering discovery for any book lover who cares about the Golden State.

Genres: Essays, Nonfiction, Literary Criticism

400 pages, Hardcover

Published October 14, 2025

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name
For other authors of this name, see:

John Freeman - English poet and essayist, 1880-1929

John Freeman - Book critic, Editor

John Freeman - British politician, diplomat, broadcaster, 1915-2014

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are five basic senses, and the difference between good writing and that which fades —especially writing about a place like California, so throbbed by its elements — lies in how well these senses are evoked. What is life, after all, besides what we sense and what we make of that information in the place we might call home? Is the air outside dry or humid? Does the light fall soft or sharply? Do the acoustics make you feel wary or safe? What do the people sound like? Do the skies turn copper-colored or purplish at sundown, or does the sun sink like a stone? Does the stink of cattle farms seethe? Is it cold at night? Can you smell what is cooking when you walk down the street?

in this collection of around fifty book reviews/essays, editor John Freeman curates a set of contemporary literature — mostly fiction — associated with the state of California. i’ve previously enjoyed Freeman’s anthologies and his hosting of Alta Journal’s California Book Club. i found it a little tricky to figure out the best way to read this book. is it all in one burst, from cover to cover? one essay at a time off the nightstand? when reading many reviews from one person all at once, it’s easy to start getting suspicious when all of them are positive, but then you remember that this is already a selection of favorites. of course not all of the books profiled appealed to me, but i appreciated the many recommendations and added a bunch to my tbr.

(3.5/5)

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freeman surveys 50 books that impact California culture — books that he thinks should be taught to California students alongside the great classics. Many of the reviews are inspired and deeply interesting. Some, like Allen Ginsburg’s and Jennifer Egan’s Candy Room, I think of as New York, but they touch on CA. Many, in Freeman’s bid to be comprehensive, are multicultural. In some cases, they don’t seem like they are truly major works and their inclusion seems close to the “woke” space. Some I had not really heard of, and it was interesting to learn about them and their take on an aspect of California. Written over the years, however, the collection of essays don’t really lead to any specific buildup or resolutions. I didn’t finish all the essay, but will probably enjoy picking up this book every now and then.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compilation of love letters to California authors and reflecting California history

[Carolyn Bowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting commentary on so many books of substance.