Sunday Reads: Passing the torch at Alta Organic Coffee; California water wars through local novelist’s eyes

After 40 years, Alta Organic Coffee founder passes her legacy to a new generation

Founder Patti Spooner has passed Alta Organic Coffee, the Davenport-based roastery known for its dark roasts, to her granddaughter Lilly Spooner and “honorary granddaughter” Melia Spooner, ushering in a new generation for the 40-year-old family business. While committed to Alta’s organic certification and small-batch, old-school roasting style, the new owners plan to modernize the brand with events, food partnerships and subscriptions. Lily Belli has the story.

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OPINION: Water decides who wins in California – that’s why I wrote my new novel

After a decade of research and writing, Santa Cruz author Victoria Tatum is preparing for the release of her second novel, “More Than Any River,” which transforms California’s water wars into a human story rooted in the Central Valley. The novel focuses on the struggle among farmers, laborers and big business trying to install Delta tunnels and pushing the ecosystem to the brink. Some publishers doubted Tatum’s vision of the land as a main character. But she persevered. As long as California keeps gambling with water, the struggle, she believes, remains unfinished. Read her Community Voices op-ed here.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

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