Amicus Books
Encyclopedia
Marysville, California
Marysville is the county seat of Yuba County, California, United States. The population was 12,072 at the 2010 census, down from 12,268 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, often referred to as the Yuba-Sutter Area after the two counties, Yuba and...
, is a privately owned literary arts center, funded by an independent bookstore
Independent bookstore
An independent bookstore is a retail bookstore which is independently owned.-Literary and countercultural history:Author events at independent bookstores sometimes take the role of literary salons. The bookstores themselves, "have historically supported and cultivated the work of independent...
. It presently serves a ten county region in California’s Sacramento Valley
Sacramento Valley
The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses all or parts of ten counties.-Geography:...
, focusing on programs for the area’s authors and writers. James and Kara Davis are its founders and current directors.
History
Amicus Books opened to the public on April 1, 2005 in Yuba City, CaliforniaYuba City, California
Yuba City is a Northern California city, founded in 1849. It is the county seat of Sutter County, California, United States. The population was 64,925 at the 2010 census....
, and within its first year produced Wordcolors, an anthology of poetry, short stories and photography, in collaboration with the members of its first literary program, Poetry from The Green Chair. Also during 2005, the center established The Literary Lounge, a consortium of the region’s authors, writers, publishers, illustrators and editors. The consortium has been showcased at the Yuba-Sutter Regional Arts Council
Yuba-Sutter Regional Arts Council
The Yuba-Sutter Regional Arts Council is the official Yuba County, California, USA and Sutter County, California, USA arts council.The YSRAC is the public agency designated by the counties of Yuba and Sutter as the local partner with the California Arts Council.The purpose of the California Arts...
and includes many published authors, notably Chris Enss
Chris Enss
Chris Enss is an American author and screenwriter. Enss has written more than 20 books on the subject of women in the Old West, and has collaborated with producer Howard Kazanjian on four books, including two about Roy Rogers and Dale Evans....
, author of several books on women of the Old West.
In March 2006, Amicus Books relocated to 413 D Street, in the historic downtown district of Marysville, California. Later that year, it founded the Downtown Marysville Art Chautauqua
Chautauqua
Chautauqua was an adult education movement in the United States, highly popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Chautauqua brought entertainment and culture for the whole community, with...
, collaborating with local businesses, artists and writers to provide a regular venue for the literary and visual arts. In July 2006, Amicus Books launched the Intrepid Press, a zine
Zine
A zine is most commonly a small circulation publication of original or appropriated texts and images. More broadly, the term encompasses any self-published work of minority interest usually reproduced via photocopier....
written, edited and directed by local writers and artists, ages 16 to 23. The center has also hosted several educational and literary events, including presentations by authors Candy Chand, Richard Beban, Selden Edwards, Lueza Gelb, Erica Ross-Krieger, and most notably, John Esam, a Beat Generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
poet and a chief organizer of the 1965 International Poetry Incarnation
International Poetry Incarnation
The International Poetry Incarnation was an event at the Royal Albert Hall in Londonon June 11, 1965.In May, 1965, Allen Ginsberg arrived at Better Books, London, and offered to read anywhere for free....
.