The Tyler Public Library offers up stories and music of the Great Depression and dust bowl years to Azalea Trails visitors on Saturday, March 27, from 2-5 p.m. at Azalea Tales.
Azalea Tales will feature visits from musician Jimmy LaFave, author Grace Lundmark and storyteller John Tatum. Additionally, The Big Read Essay Contest winners will be announced at Azalea Tales. All the speakers and performers plan to be on hand throughout the afternoon to bring the Depression era to life for Azalea Trails visitors and community members. The event is one of many this spring that coincide with The Big Read, which encourages community members to read or re-read “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck.
The novel, set in the midst of the Great Depression tells the story of the Joad family on their trek from Oklahoma to California, seeking work and a new home.
Critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Jimmy LaFave will be on hand for the event, performing music that includes a tribute to Woody Guthrie, the famed songwriter and folk singer known for the song "This Land Is Your Land," who inspired generations of performers. In his review of LaFave's Texoma for FAME David Schultz said, "LaFave's songs are reminiscent of the dust bowl heritage of Woody Guthrie, the early rock of Chuck Berry, the quiet folk reflections of Bob Dylan, and the rock anthems of Bruce Springsteen.”
LaFave performs at 4 p.m. on the patio at the Library (weather permitting). The Austin-based singer-songwriter mixes blues, jazz and country influences to form his unique sound. LaFave tours extensively in the United States and Europe and has appeared on the PBS musical series Austin City Limits.
He plays regularly at the annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival in Guthrie's hometown of Okemah, Oklahoma and tours with a Woody Guthrie tribute project he conceived entitled Ribbon Of Highway–Endless Skyway. The show features a rotating cast of notable musicians performing Woody’s songs interspersed with narrations from his many writings. In 1996, LaFave was hand-picked by Guthrie’s daughter, Nora, to appear at a tribute to Woody Guthrie held at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
LaFave will be joined by Longview author Grace Lundmark, who will be sharing the stories behind her new book, Chloe May: Daughter of the Dust Bowl. This afternoon event will also showcase John Tatum, Mission Tejas state park ranger, presenting “Toys, Tools and Tales of the Great Depression.”
Lundmark’s author talk begins at 2 p.m. Her book, Chloe May: Daughter of the Dust Bowl is based on the true story of her mother, Chloe May, and her family's frequent moves in, around and out of the Oklahoma Panhandle in the 1920s and 1930s. Laced with historical facts of the time, the book offers readers a glimpse into one of America's most difficult eras. Lundmark’s book will be on sale, and the author will be available all afternoon in Taylor Auditorium to sign her books and chat with Azalea Trails visitors.
At 3 p.m., Tatum, who is also a member of East Texas Storytellers Guild, will pass on tales of his grandfather who farmed in Oklahoma and Kansas during the dust bowl. Tatum’s extensive personal collection of antique tools and toys will be on view, and the Ranger will demonstrate to visitors how these tools were used. He often encourages listeners to try their hands at working and playing with some of the tools and toys of an earlier era.
Azalea Tales is a free event, open to the public.
Tyler is one of 269 communities nationwide participating in The Big Read during this grant cycle. The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. The NEA presents The Big Read in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest.
The Big Read Tyler program partners include: Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Discovery Science Place, East Texas Storytellers, East Texas Symphony Orchestra, Friends of the Tyler Public Library, Smith County Historical Society, Tyler Museum of Art, Tyler Civic Theatre, UT-Tyler, the Tyler Morning Telegraph and KLTV-Channel 7. Local businesses and organizations are encouraged to join this venture. For more information, please call (903) 593-7323 or email programs@tylertexas.com.
Information on this and other City of Tyler events is listed on our website at www.CityofTyler.org, on our Twitter page at www.Twitter.com\TylerEvents; or become a friend of The City of Tyler, Texas on www.Facebook.com.