Meet the Author of "The California Field Atlas" and Artist Obi Kaufmann!

Join us to celebrate Obi Kaufmann's new book, "California Inside Out: Mapping an Ecology of the Mind"
About this Event

We are beyond excited to announce that we will be hosting Obi Kaufmann, author of The California Field Atlas and an incredibly talented artist, to celebrate his new book, California Inside Out: Mapping an Ecology of the Mind, this October! Join us for an evening of speculation on the state we call home and the spirit of poetry and art.

This event is FREE to attend. Seating is first-come, first-served. (RSVPs are optional, but encouraged for our planning purposes.)

You don't need to have read the book beforehand to enjoy the event, but we do recommend reserving your copy ahead of time:

About the Book:

From the acclaimed author of The California Field Atlas and The State of Fire, a mind-expanding manifesto on belonging to the land called California.

For more than 250 years, the story of California has been told through conquest, self-reinvention, novelty, and riches. Beneath that mythology lies another reality: the erasure of Native histories, the exploitation of natural systems, and a deepening separation between people and place. As climate breakdown intensifies and natural disasters escalate, bestselling author Obi Kaufmann challenges us to see the Golden State anew--not as a commodity or fantasy, but as a living, interconnected world.

With wonder and urgency, California Inside Out reflects on the boundless intricacies of the world that surrounds, prompting bold, imaginative questions: What words might connect us more deeply with the places where we live? What if a watershed can think? What if a forest has a mind of its own? Across five chapters full of wisdom and heart, Kaufmann shares poignant personal stories and ecological insights from five decades of life in California. Illustrated throughout with his signature watercolor artwork drawn from across Kaufmann's celebrated career, this naturalist's treatise is a call for awe and action.

About the Author:

Obi Kaufmann is the author of The California Field Atlas (2017, #1 San Francisco Chronicle Best Seller), The State of Water (2019), The Forests of California (2020), The Coasts of California (2022), The Deserts of California (2023), and The State of Fire (2024), all published by Heyday. When he is not backpacking, you can find the painter-poet at home in the East Bay, posting trail paintings at his handle @coyotethunder on Instagram. His speaking tour dates are available at californiafieldatlas.com, and his essays are posted at coyoteandthunder.com.

Agenda

🕑: 06:30 PM - 07:00 PM
Buy the book, browse the shelves, snag your seat!
🕑: 07:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Hear from the author + Q&A
🕑: 08:00 PM - 08:30 PM
Signing Line - Get your copy personalized by the author