{"product_id":"arroyo-9781644281628","title":"Arroyo","description":"\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA \u003ci\u003eCrimeReads\u003c\/i\u003e 2019 most anticipated\/best book \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSet against two distinct epochs in the history of Pasadena, California, \u003ci\u003eArroyo\u003c\/i\u003e tells the parallel stories of a young inventor and his clairvoyant dog in 1913 and 1993. In both lives, they are drawn to the landmark Colorado Street Bridge, or \"Suicide Bridge,\" as the locals call it, which suffered a lethal collapse during construction but still opened to fanfare in the early twentieth century automobile age. When the refurbished structure commemorates its 80th birthday, one of the planet's best known small towns is virtually unrecognizable from its romanticized, and somewhat invented, past. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWrought with warmth and wit, Jacobs' debut novel digs into Pasadena's most mysterious structure and the city itself. In their exploits around what was then America's highest, longest roadway, Nick Chance and his impish mutt interact with some of the big personalities from the Progressive Age, including Teddy Roosevelt, Upton Sinclair, Charles Fletcher Lummis, and Lilly and Adolphus Busch, whose gardens were once tabbed the \"eighth wonder of the world.\" They cavort and often sow chaos at Cawston Ostrich Farm, the Mount Lowe Railway, the Hotel Green and even the Doo Dah Parade. But it's the secrets and turmoil around the concrete arches over the Arroyo Seco, and what it means for Nick's destiny, that propels this story of fable versus fact. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhile unearthing the truth about the Colorado Street Bridge, in all its eye-catching grandeur and unavoidable darkness, the characters of \u003ci\u003eArroyo\u003c\/i\u003e paint a vivid picture of how the home of the Rose Bowl got its dramatic start.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eChip Jacobs\u003c\/b\u003e is an award-winning author and journalist. His books include the biography \u003ci\u003eStrange As It Seems: the Impossible Life of Gordon Zahler\u003c\/i\u003e; the environmental social histories \u003ci\u003eThe People's Republic of Chemicals\u003c\/i\u003e and the international bestselling \u003ci\u003eSmogtown: the Lung-Burning History of Pollution in Los Angeles\u003c\/i\u003e; the dark-humor true crime caper \u003ci\u003eThe Ascension of Jerry\u003c\/i\u003e; and the stories collection \u003ci\u003eThe Vicodin Thieves\u003c\/i\u003e. He also has contributed pieces to anthologies, most recently for \u003ci\u003eLos Angeles in the 1970s\u003c\/i\u003e: \"Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine\" about the attack on an idealist lawyer by a depraved cult. His reporting has appeared in the \u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eL.A. Daily News\u003c\/i\u003e, CNN, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBloomberg\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eLA Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e, among others.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Rare Bird Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50899386433810,"sku":"9781644281628","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_8a794e55-43df-4955-95d3-289d9ab827ed.jpg?v=1738352911","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/arroyo-9781644281628","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}