I was born and raised in the San Joaquin Valley of California, and the longer I've been away the more I long to return and be closer to family. It's not a fully positive place though - over development, gangs, allergies, drought. However, I find my home region often as a subject in my writing and also in my reading.

Highway 99 is a diverse 545-page anthology of essays, short fiction, poetry and plays. It covers well-known explorers such as John Muir commenting on how the valley was one mass of wildflowers in the spring (alas, no more) to Mexican farmworkers and Hmong refugees. The quality is quite high. The more I read, the more I realized how ignorant I am. I enjoyed seeing my hometown mentioned a few times, and several essays on the reason my great-grandparents came to the valley - the discovery of oil a century ago.

Great book, and one I highly recommend for anyone in or from the Central Valley. ( )