The Relaunch of La Palabra
On May 3rd, Avenue 50 Studio in Highland Park relaunched its signature open mic, La Palabra, with new host: poet Pam Concepcion, during an afternoon honoring the nearby neighborhoods impacted by January’s Eaton Fire. Continue reading The Relaunch of La Palabra

Avenue 50 Studio was packed with poets, folding chairs and powerful and difficult-but necessary-words. It was the third Sunday in December and Santa Ana winds sent a chill through Highland Park. But the front room inside the gallery dedicated to local Latinx art, with an emphasis on Chicanx artists, was a safe space filled with familiar faces. It was the final La Palabra open mic of the year.
Friday night at Book Show in Highland Park was a goodbye of sorts. Local poets from places such as Santa Clarita, Mar Vista and Long Beach gathered there as if moths drawn to a flame. Drawn to share their experiences. They’d been coming to Book Show on the third Friday of the month for the past two years to share in community at Friday Night Poetry: They’re Just Words, hosted by L.A. poet Ingrid Calderon-Collins.
After over five years in Highland Park, I am extremely sad to announce that Book Show will be closing our store here at the end of 2019.
A bustling York Blvd., with mouth-watering smells wafting in the air from food trucks parked curbside. Near the corner of York and Avenue 50 is Pop-Hop Books, one of L.A.’s many independent bookstores.