Booksellers Seek Return to Normalcy After Catastrophic Wildfires
Last year, Los Angeles (through the offices of its mayor and library system) chose an official novel for the entire city to read, a work by native son Ray Bradbury -- Fahrenheit 451, named for the temperature at which book-paper burns. For much of the past twelve days, as L.A. and surrounding communities suffered the unprecedented catastrophe of nearly a dozen huge wildfires raging over four counties, from Ventura to San Diego, that choice took on a dreadful aptness.
For about five months now, Midnight Special's planned reopening on Second Street in Santa Monica has been hampered by financial woes and unexpected delays. Now, a movie star, a famous slam poet, three independent presses, and a literary arts club want to help put the bookstore back on its feet.