Rakestraw Books has MOVED! Please visit us at 522 Hartz Avenue in historic downtown Danville. We will we open on April 1, 2009 -- our 36th anniversary!
Information
- Location:
- Danville, CA, 94526
- Phone:
- (925) 837-7337
- Mon:
- 9:00 am - 6:00 am
- Tues - Thurs:
- 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
- Fri:
- 9:00 am - 7:00 pm
- Sat:
- 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
- Sun:
- 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Photos
2 of 4 albumsSee All
Author EventsUpdated about a month ago
Facade Improvements - Spring 2009Updated about 5 months ago
No one has added fan photos.
Events
90 past eventsSee All
- Allison Hoover Bartlett Visits...
Rakestraw Books
Friday, November 20 at 7:00pm - Lidia Bastianich in conversati...
Rakestraw Books (& the Village Thea...
Tuesday, November 17 at 7:00pm - Michael Chabon Visits Rakestra...
Rakestraw Books
Friday, November 6 at 7:00pm - A. S. Byatt Visits Rakestraw B...
Rakestraw Books
Sunday, October 25 at 4:00pm - Timothy Egan Visits Rakestraw ...
Rakestraw Books
Friday, October 23 at 7:00pm - Judy Shepard & THE MEANING OF ...
Performing Arts at The Athenian School
Thursday, October 22 at 7:00pm - An Evening with Jeannette Walls
Diablo Country Club
Wednesday, October 21 at 7:00pm - Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenbe...
Rakestraw Books
Monday, October 19 at 7:00pm - Alicia Silverstone Visits Rake...
Rakestraw Books
Sunday, October 18 at 4:00pm - Rakestraw Books presents Willi...
The Athenian School
Thursday, October 8 at 9:45am
Notes
3 of 27 notesSee All
- Rakestraw's Readers Recommend 2:03pm Aug 1
- Rakestraw's Readers Recommend 10:29am Jul 2
- Rakestraw's Readers Recommend 1:08pm May 2|1 Comment
Rakestraw Books talked to Joey Altman yesterday. Next week's event with Lidia Bastianich and Joey Altman in conversation is going to be spectacular. And, best of all, it's all a benefit for the Food Bank!
Rakestraw Books is excited about this evening's event with Michael Chabon. Call the shop for details or to make reservation at (925) 837-7337.
Rakestraw Books
What would you do for the love of a good book? For John Charles Gilkey, the answer is: go to prison.
Unrepentant book thief Gilkey has stolen a fortune in rare books from around the country. Yet unlike most thieves, who steal for profit, Gilkey steals for love—the love of books. Perhaps equally obsessive, though, is Ken... Sanders, the self-appointed "bibliodick" driven to catch him. Sanders, a lifelong rare book collector and dealer turned amateur detective, will stop at nothing to catch the thief plaguing his trade.
Immersing the reader in a rich, wide world of literary obsession, The Man Who Loved Books Too Much exposes the profound role books play in all of our lives, the reverence in which these everyday objects are still held, and the craving that makes some people willing to stop at nothing to possess the books they love.
Rakestraw Books is thrilled to invite you to "An Evening with Allison Hoover Bartlett" on Friday, 20 November 2009 at 7:00 PM. Make your reservation today by calling the shop at (925) 837-7337.
A Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession
Time:7:00PM Friday, November 20th
Location:Rakestraw Books
Rakestraw Books
Rakestraw Books is delighted to present "An Evening with Lidia Bastianich." During her visit on Tuesday, 17 November 2009, the renowned chef and cookbook author will be joined in conversation with Emmy-award winning chef and television personality, Joey Altman.
Food. Wine. Travel. Friends. Lidia and Joey's wide-ranging... conversation will take place at the Village Theater (located directly behind Rakestraw Books in downtown Danville). A question-and-answer session with the audience will follow. The evening will conclude with wine tasting and book signing at Rakestraw Books.
Tickets are $50 (including a book!) and the proceeds will benefit the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano Counties. Make your reservation soon, this extraordinary evening is already half sold out. Phone the shop at (925) 837-7337 for more information.
This special event benefits the Food Bank of Contra Costa & Solano Counties
Time:7:00PM Tuesday, November 17th
Location:Rakestraw Books (& the Village Theater)
Rakestraw Books
We are delighted to welcome our friend, Pulitzer Prize-wining novelist Michael Chabon back to Rakestraw Books as we celebrate the publication of MANHOOD FOR AMATEURS.
A shy manifesto, an impractical handbook, the true story of a fabulist, an entire life in parts and pieces, MANHOOD FOR AMATEURS is the first sustained wo...rk of personal writing from Michael Chabon. In these insightful, provocative, slyly interlocking essays, one of our most brilliant and humane writers presents his autobiography and his vision of life in the way so many of us experience it: as a series of reflections, regrets, and reexaminations, each sparked by an encounter, in the present, that holds some legacy of the past.
It is our tradition here at Rakestraw Books to commission a special letter press broadside when Pulitzer Prize-winners come to read. The broadside for this evening will be printed by the Volta Press in Oakland. I've seen proofs, it's gorgeous. And, best of all, if you attend this event, you'll get a copy!
Tickets for this event are $6 (benefiting the collection of the Danville Library). Make your reservation today by calling us at (925) 837-7337.
Rakestraw Books is working on the November issue of "Bookpost." Watch this space, though, all November will be posted to Facebook this afternoon.
Rakestraw Books is looking forward to this weekend's Fine Arts & Crafts Fair in downtown Danville. It's going to be gorgeous: perfect weather; tasty street food; and lots of super people watching. And, you can visit Rakestraw Books -- neat, eh? Come join the fun!
Rakestraw Books Last night's event with Judy Shepard made the 11 PM news on ABC-7. We were up at The Athenian School in Danville. 200 people attended and we raised more than $1000 for the Working Group, an Oakland-based non-profit. Here's ABC's story:
abclocal.go.com
Matthew Shepard's mother Judy visits Danville and spoke about the hate crime bill.
Rakestraw Books
Here's
the Sully Sullenberger story from last night on KTVU-2. Nice shots of
the Rakestraw Books sign and doesn't the shop look nice at night?
www.ktvu.com
DANVILLE -- A packed house filled Rakestraw Books in Danville on Monday night as people lined up to met a real-life local hero, U.S. Airways Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger. Monday, October 19, 2009.
Rakestraw Books
Who: A. S. Byatt
What: Reading and signing her new book, The Children's Book
When: Sunday, 25 October 2009 at 4 PM
How much: Free -- Advance reservation is strongly suggested.
Why you should care: The Children's Book, a spellbinding novel, at once sweeping and intimate, from the Booker Prize-winning author of Possession, t...hat spans the Victorian era through the World War I years, and centers around a famous children's book author and the passions, betrayals, and secrets that tear apart the people she loves. Taking us from the cliff-lined shores of England to Paris, Munich, and the trenches of the Somme, The Children's Book is a deeply affecting story of a singular family, played out against the great, rippling tides of the day. It is a masterly literary achievement by one of our most essential writers. This is far and away the greatest novel I have read this year. Very, very highly recommended.
It is an honor for us to welcome you to a reading and signing with A. S. Byatt. And, watch the news on October 6, The Children's Book is up for this year's Man Booker Prize.
Rakestraw Books
Who: Timothy Egan
What: Discussing and signing his new book, The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America
When: Friday, 23 October 2009 at 7 PM
How much: $8 -- Advance reservation is strongly suggested. This event benefits the collection of the Danville Public Library.
Why you should care: On the afternoon... of August 20, 1910, a battering ram of wind moved through the drought-stricken national forests of Washington, Idaho, Montana, whipping the hundreds of small blazes burning across the forest floor into a roaring inferno that jumped from treetop to ridge as it raged, destroying towns and timber in an eyeblink. Forest rangers had assembled nearly ten thousand men -- college boys, day-workers, immigrants from mining camps -- to fight the fires. But no living person had seen anything like those flames, and neither the rangers nor anyone else knew how to subdue them. Egan narrates the struggles of the overmatched rangers against the implacable fire with unstoppable dramatic force, through the eyes of the people who lived it. Equally dramatic, though, is the larger story he tells of outsized president Teddy Roosevelt and his chief forester Gifford Pinchot. Pioneering the notion of conservation, Roosevelt and Pinchot did nothing less than create the idea of public land as our national treasure, owned by every citizen. The robber barons fought him and the rangers charged with protecting the reserves, but even as TR's national forests were smoldering they were saved: The heroism shown by those same rangers turned public opinion permanently in favor of the forests, though it changed the mission of the forest service with consequences felt in the fires of today. The Big Burn tells an epic story, paints a moving portrait of the people who lived it, and offers a critical cautionary tale for our time. It is an honor to welcome Timothy Egan, winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, to Rakestraw Books.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award
Time:7:00PM Friday, October 23rd
Location:Rakestraw Books
Rakestraw Books
In THE KIND DIET, actress, activist, and committed conservationist Alicia Silverstone shares the insights that encouraged her to swear off meat and dairy forever, and outlines the spectacular benefits of adopting a plant-based diet, from effortless weight loss to clear skin, off-the-chart energy, and smooth digestion. ...She explains how meat, fish, milk, and cheese -- the very foods we’ve been taught to regard as the cornerstone of good nutrition -- are actually the culprits behind escalating rates of disease and the cause of dire, potentially permanent damage to our ecology.
Yet going meat- and dairy-free doesn't mean suffering deprivation; to the contrary, THE KIND DIET introduces irresistibly delicious food that satisfies on every level -- it even includes amazing desserts to keep the most stubborn sweet tooth happy. Alicia also addresses the nutritional concerns faced by many who are new to a plant-based diet, and shows how to cover every nutritional base, from protein to calcium and beyond.
Whether your goal is to drop a few pounds, boost your energy and metabolism, or simply save the world, Alicia provides the encouragement, the information, and the tools you need to make the transition to a plant-based diet deliciously empowering.
Rakestraw Books is delighted to host a reception and book signing with Alicia Silverstone. Advance reservations are essential.
Celebrated actress and food activist
Time:4:00PM Sunday, October 18th
Location:Rakestraw Books
Rakestraw Books
William Kamkwamba was born in Malawi, a country where magic ruled and modern science was mystery. It was also a land withered by drought and hunger, and a place where hope and opportunity were hard to find. But William had read about windmills in a book called Using Energy, and he dreamed of building one that would bri...ng electricity and water to his village and change his life and the lives of those around him. His neighbors may have mocked him and called him misala -- crazy -- but William was determined to show them what a little grit and ingenuity could do.
Enchanted by the workings of electricity as a boy, William had a goal to study science in Malawi's top boarding schools. But in 2002, his country was stricken with a famine that left his family's farm devastated and his parents destitute. Unable to pay the eighty-dollar-a-year tuition for his education, William was forced to drop out and help his family forage for food as thousands across the country starved and died.
Yet William refused to let go of his dreams. With nothing more than a fistful of cornmeal in his stomach, a small pile of once-forgotten science textbooks, and an armory of curiosity and determination, he embarked on a daring plan to bring his family a set of luxuries that only two percent of Malawians could afford and what the West considers a necessity -- electricity and running water. Using scrap metal, tractor parts, and bicycle halves, William forged a crude yet operable windmill, an unlikely contraption and small miracle that eventually powered four lights, complete with homemade switches and a circuit breaker made from nails and wire. A second machine turned a water pump that could battle the drought and famine that loomed with every season.
Soon, news of William's magetsi a mphepo -- his "electric wind" -- spread beyond the borders of his home, and the boy who was once called crazy became an inspiration to those around the world.
Here is the remarkable story about human inventiveness and its power to overcome crippling adversity. THE BOY WHO HARNESSED THE WIND will inspire anyone who doubts the power of one individual's ability to change his community and better the lives of those around him.
Rakestraw Books is honored to host a talk and book signing with William Kamkwamba, and his co-writer Bryan Mealer, at Danville's Athenian School. Please call the shop at (925) 837-7337 if you are interested in attending this special event.
"A windmill means more than just power, it means freedom . . . ."
Time:9:45AM Thursday, October 8th
Location:The Athenian School
