The Brief

A few reasons for reading science fiction.

It makes you think.

“When sci-fi is done really, really well, it is profound,” says Octavia E. Butler Magnet librarian Natalie Daily. “The way that it makes you think about the future, the way it makes you think about humanity.”

The future is cool. 

Grayson Schnitger is a sixth grader at the Pasadena middle school and says his dad first recommended sci-fi.

“I like just reading stuff that could happen and, like, knowing possibilities in the future,” Grayson says.

It can make you a better human. 

Big Marvel franchises first hooked eighth grader Brooklyn Roffman.

“So I started to research what kind of genre The Avengers were,” Brooklyn says. “I saw, ‘Oh, science fiction? I bet I'll like this kind of stuff.’” And she did.

Brooklyn says she’s “a big catastrophizer,” but reading about dystopian and post-apocalypse futures isn’t depressing, it’s motivating.

“I just start thinking, ‘How did this happen and how can I prevent this from happening?’” Brooklyn says.

LAist recently reported a story about the Pasadena middle school Butler once attended — that now bears her name — and has these recommendations from the adults. And, more importantly, from students.

Kindred

By Octavia E. Butler; graphic novel adaptation by Damian Duffy

“I thought, wow, this is weird, but it's really good,” Brooklyn says.

Butler’s 1979 novel is the story of a contemporary California woman transported to the plantation where her ancestors were enslaved. The book was adapted into a graphic novel in 2018.

“I’m mixed,” Brooklyn says. Her background includes African American, Irish, and Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. “A lot of people don't see that.”

“There's been a lot of like, feeling like I'm not Black enough, if that makes sense. Or like, I'm not enough of what I am,” Brooklyn says. “I don't fit into any of the boxes. And so in a lot of Octavia's works, it's quite often about characters who don't really fit into a box.”

Amulet

by Kazu Kibuishi

Sixth grader Naila Walker has read five parts of this nine-volume graphic novel series about a young girl, a magical amulet, and a world of robots and elves.

“It's kind of, like, mysterious and, like, magical,” Naila says. “They run around and do all these adventures, which I think is really fun.”

The Last Cuentista

by Donna Barba Higuera

Protagonist Petra Peña’s world is ending and the girl is among the few chosen to continue the human race.

“Not everybody gets to go,” Daily says. “That's a humanity question, right? How do we choose who we save, right? And those are questions that exist now in our country.”

The novel picked up some of the highest awards for children’s literature, including the John Newbery Medal.

The Maze Runner

by James Dashner

A disease has decimated the Earth and the teenagers of the future must navigate a treacherous artificial maze to survive.

“It's a combination of mystery and science fiction,” Grayson said of the series. “That's what makes it like one of my favorite books.”

Star Child

by Ibi Zoboi

This one is from me — Star Child is unlike any biography I’ve ever read.

Zoboi weaves together Butler’s words, artifacts, and original poetry into a “biographical constellation” of the author’s early life.

Among the pages I sticky-noted to revisit later is the poem “Imagination II,” which imagines Butler as a creator of worlds.

“her own universe of stars and planets and heroes / to free us all from this confined planetarium/ made up of other people’s imaginations.”

The STEAM Chasers

by Doresa Jennings

Nikki High, owner of Pasadena shop Octavia’s Bookshelf, recommends this three-book series about a group of friends who uncover the contributions of Black American inventors.

Where to pick up a copy

Octavia E. Butler championed public libraries throughout her life — the city’s libraries became her second home. Butler wrote her first novel from downtown Los Angeles’ Central Library. And your local library is where you can also find these books listed above — for free!

But if you're inclined to own a copy, here are some of our favorite places to shop for books:

• Children’s Book World — A longstanding and vast west L.A. outpost for children’s books. Location: 10580 1/2 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles.
• Gallery Nucleus— There’s an eclectic shelf of books and gifts for kids at this art gallery that often highlights pop culture and also carries prints from children’s illustrators. Location: 210 East Main St., Alhambra.
• LA Librería — Specializes in Spanish-language books for kids. Location: 4732 W. Washington Blvd., Mid-City.
• Malik Books — African American books and gifts, including for children. Location: 3650 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Ste 245, Crenshaw and Westfield Culver City Mall, 6000 Sepulveda Blvd., Culver City.
• MiJa Books — An online Lakewood-based bookseller focused on multicultural children’s books. Watch their website for appearances at school book fairs and pop-up events.
• Octavia’s Bookshelf — This Pasadena bookstore is named for one of the city’s most revered authors, Octavia Butler, and owner Nikki High contributed several recommendations to this list. Her bookstore carries titles mainly from authors of color. Location: 1365 North Hill Ave., Pasadena. 
• Once Upon A Time Bookstore — The nation's oldest continuously running children’s book purveyor. Location: 2207 Honolulu Ave., Montrose.
• The Salt Eaters Bookshop — Bookstore focused on works by and about Black women, girls and gender expansive people with has a small, but colorful children’s book section. Location: 302 E Queen St., Inglewood. 
• Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural and Bookstore — The shop focuses on Xicanx, Latinx, and Indigenous stories. The multi-use space also hosts arts workshops and other community gatherings. Location: 12677 Glenoaks Blvd., Sylmar.

Topline:

The case: In September, the city settled a lawsuit brought forward by two brothers in their 70s who said they suffered serious injuries after an LAPD officer crashed into their car. Days before the $18 million settlement was reached, lawyers for the brothers said Feldstein Soto called an expert witness testifying for the plaintiffs and “attempted to ingratiate herself with him and asked him to make a contribution to her political campaign,” according to a sworn declaration to the court by the plaintiffs’ attorney, Robert Glassman.

The response: Feldstein Soto did not respond to an interview request. Her spokesperson said the settlement “had nothing to do” with the expert witness. Her campaign manager told LAist the city attorney had been making a routine fundraising call and did not know the person had a role in the case, nor that there were pending requests for her office to pay him fees.

What Jurado says: In a statement to LAist, Jurado said she wants to “make sure that the city’s legal leadership is guided by integrity and accountability, especially when their choices affect public trust, civic rights and the city’s limited resources."

What’s next: The motion needs to go through a few committees before reaching the full City Council. If it passes, the motion calls for the city attorney to “report to council in closed session within 45 days regarding the ethics breach violation and give updates to the City Council."

Every year in Santa Ana, Luis Cantabrana turns the front of his home into an elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe that draws hundreds of visitors.

Along the front of the house, the multi-colored altar is filled with lights, flowers and a stained-glass tapestry behind a sculpture of the Lady of Guadalupe. Cantabrana’s roof also is lit up with the green, white and red lights that spell out “Virgen de Guadalupe” and a cross.

Visitors are welcomed with music and the smell of roses as they celebrate the saint, but this year’s gathering comes after a dark year for immigrant communities.

Luis Cantabrana stands in front of the stunning altar he built in front of his home in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe. Every year, his display draws hundreds of visitors.

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Destiny Torres

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LAist

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Why do they celebrate? 

In 1513, the Virgin Mary appeared before St. Juan Diego between Dec. 9 and Dec. 12, asking him to build a church in her honor. Her image — a brown-skinned woman wearing a green veil with her hands together in prayer and an angel at her feet — miraculously appeared on his cloak.

To celebrate in Santa Ana, worshippers gathered late-night Wednesday and in the very early hours Dec. 12 to pray the rosary, sing hymns and celebrate the saint.

Cantabrana has hosted worshippers at his home for 27 years — 17 in Santa Ana.

The altar started out small, he said, and over the years, he added a fabric background, more lights and flowers (lots and lots of flowers).

“It started with me making a promise to la Virgen de Guadalupe that while I had life and a home to build an altar, that I would do it,” Cantabrana said. “Everything you see in photos and videos is pretty, but when you come and see it live, it's more than pretty. It's beautiful.”

The Santa Ana home's elaborate altar in honor of La Virgen de Guadalupe draws hundreds of visitors each year.

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Destiny Torres

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LAist

)

Gathering in a time of turmoil 

Many also look to the Lady of Guadalupe for protection, especially at a time when federal enforcement has rattled immigrant communities.

“People don’t want to go to work, they don’t want to take their kids to school, but the love we have for our Virgen de Guadalupe,” Cantabrana said. “We see that la Virgen de Guadalupe has a lot of power, and so we know immigration [enforcement] won’t come here.”

Margarita Lopez of Garden Grove has been visiting the altar for three years with her husband. She’s been celebrating the Virgencita since she was a young girl. Honoring the saint is as important now as ever, she said.

“We ask, and she performs miracles,” Lopez said.

Claudia Tapia, a lifelong Santa Ana resident, said the Virgin Mary represents strength.

“Right now, with everything going on, a lot of our families [have] turned and prayed to the Virgen for strength during these times,” Tapia said. “She's a very strong symbol of Mexican culture, of unity, of faith and of resilience.”

See it for yourself

The shrine will stay up into the new year on the corner of Broadway and Camile Street.

California’s unemployment agency kept paying cellphone bills for 4 1/2 years without checking whether its workers actually were using the devices.

That’s how it racked up $4.6 million in fees for mobile devices its workers were not using, according to a new state audit detailing wasteful spending at several government agencies.

The Employment Development Department’s excessive cellphone bills date to the COVID-19 pandemic, when it shifted call center employees to remote work and faced pressure to release benefits to millions of suddenly unemployed Californians.

It acquired 7,224 cellphones and wireless hotspots by December 2020. State auditors analyzed 54 months of invoices since then and found half the devices were unused for at least two years, 25% were unused for three years and 99 of them were never used at all.

The investigation, which auditors opened after receiving a tip, identified 6,285 devices that were unused for at least four consecutive months, and said the department spent $4.6 million on monthly service fees for them.

From the beginning, the department had about 2,000 more cellphones than call center employees, according to the audit. The gap widened over time after the pandemic ended and the department’s staffing returned to its normal headcount.

As of April, the audit said the department had 1,787 unemployment call center employees, but was paying monthly service fees for 5,097 mobile devices.

“Although obtaining the mobile devices during COVID-19 may have been a good idea to serve the public, continuing to pay the monthly service fees for so many unused devices, especially post-COVID-19, was wasteful,” the audit said.

Department officials told auditors they were unaware of the spending, but auditors pointed to regular invoices from Verizon that showed which phones were not being used.

“We would have expected EDD management to have reconsidered the need to pay the monthly service fees for so many devices that had no voice, message, or data usage,” the audit said.

The unemployment department began acting on the auditors’ findings in April, when it canceled service plans for 2,825 devices. It has since implemented a policy to terminate service plans for devices that go unused for 90 days.

The California state auditor highlighted the mobile devices in its regular report on “improper activities by state agencies and employees.” The audit also showed that the California Air Resources Board overpaid an employee who was on extended leave as he prepared to retire by $171,000.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.