Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s “Uncle Vanya” marks its first play from the theatrical canon since Johanna Pfaelzer became artistic director in 2019. Hugh Bonneville stars in “Paddington,” based on the ...

Whenever people tell me stories about themselves, I voice the inevitable (for me) question: So, what’d you eat? To me, the trivial-seeming question is everything. What smells and textures did you ...

Every great book is a gift in some way, an offering from author to reader in the form of knowledge, labor, entertainment, heart and wisdom. When considering books worth gifting for the upcoming ...

Reading Kate Christensen’s incisive eighth novel, a quote from 19th century author Ivan Turgenev came to mind: “A poet must be a psychologist.” As evidenced in her previous works (including 2008 ...

Beautiful books make classic gifts for a good reason. What better way to show you understand what delights, inspires or just plain occupies the minds of your loved ones than giving them a thoughtful ...

In the prologue to Safiya Sinclair’s astounding new memoir, she describes a turning point at the end of her turbulent teenage years in which she’s standing on the veranda of her family’s home in ...

If Anya’s memory, as she sings, is “glowing dim as an ember,” Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens’ song somehow conjures that image’s musical equivalent. The melody in “Once Upon a December” smolders ...

Bay Area author Betty Shamieh with a copy of her first novel, “Too Soon,” in her home workspace in Santa Clara. Photo: Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle If you’re at all involved in the theater scene, you may ...

German actor Max Schreck plays Count Orlok, an unofficial Dracula copy, in F.W. Murnau's 1922 horror classic, "Nosferatu." Photo: Cinequest Robert Eggers’ remake of “Nosferatu” is an atmospheric ...

In ‘The Book of Love,’ Kelly Link harnesses the surreal and the everyday in a tale of three teenagers learning to wield magic. “Book of Love” by Kelly Link. Photo: Random House Three teens have come ...

Who gets to be considered “a real American,” and how does that label shift based on the identity of the beholder? While reading Rachel Khong’s ambitious second novel, “Real Americans,” finding answers ...

Jeff Yang’s new book takes a look at both the good and bad movies that chart a community inventing itself. “The Golden Screen: The Movies That Made Asian America” examines creative works that have ...