Here’s a quick roundup of six recent releases and soon-to-be published books by California writers.

Eco Barons by Edward Humes, the Pulitzer Prize-winning SoCal author. Says Harry Hurt III in The New York Times, “Eco Barons… offers encouraging, often inspirational, profiles of nearly a dozen would-be planet savers. Among the more compelling of these characters are Douglas Tompkins, a surfer, climber and private-plane pilot who founded the North Face and Esprit clothing lines, and his wife Kristine McDivitt, the former chief executive of the Patagonia outdoor wear firm…” Read more here. Listen to Eco Barons segment on WNYC’s Leonard Lopate Show.

Sunnyside by Glen David Gold. Author Junot Díaz calls Sunnyside “a breathless stupendous novel that recreates both a young brash America on the verge of becoming itself, and [Charlie] Chaplin, one of its most bewitching quixotic citizens.” The Long Beach writer’s new book isn’t out until May, but Powell’s Books is featuring a limited edition, autographed, hardcover chapbook of “A Day’s Pleasure,” the book’s opening section as part of the bookstore’s new subscription club.

The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice. The Orange County writer says her novel was inspired by a box of old manuscripts from her grandmother, a science fiction author. Booklist gave The Swallows Came Early a starred review, calling the book “a small, quiet story with an underlying message of forgiveness.”

The Women by T.C. Boyle. The best-selling novelist offers a fictionalized biography of architect Frank Lloyd Wright and his romances. Says Joanna Scott in the New York Times: “With his rollicking short fiction and with novels that include `The Road to Wellville,’ `The Inner Circle’ and `Drop City,’ Boyle has been writing his own fascinating, unpredictable, alternately hilarious and terrifying fictional history of utopian longing in America. `The Women’ adds a powerful new chapter to this continuing narrative, and it is Boyle at his best.”

This Day in California History by Carl Palm. This interesting volume unfolds California’s story in 365 daily capsules. Each page profiles a different historical event or character or cultural milestone. The entry for tomorrow, for instance, marks this memorable event on Feb. 27, 1902. “On this day in California history novelist John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, the county seat of Monterey County.”

Under the Blue Flag: My Mission to Kosovo by Philip Kearney. It’s the story of restless San Francisco DA who leaves a comfortable career to take to the lawless streets of Pristina, Kosovo, to bring criminals to justice. Coming in March.

Want more new books? Check out this week’s Top Shelf column in the San Francisco Chronicle featuring new release picks from the staff at Ink Spell Books in Half Moon Bay.