Overview

In 1939, when John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath was published, it became an instant bestseller and a prevailing narrative in the nation's collective imagination of the era. But it also stopped the publication of another important novel, silencing a gifted writer who was more intimately connected to the true experiences of Dust Bowl migrants. In Riding Like the Wind, renowned biographer Iris Jamahl Dunkle revives the groundbreaking voice of Sanora Babb. Dunkle follows Babb from her impoverished childhood in eastern Colorado to California. There, she befriended the era's literati, including Ray Bradbury and Ralph Ellison; entered into an illegal marriage; and was blacklisted by the House Un-American Activities Committee. It was Babb's field notes and oral histories of migrant farmworkers that Steinbeck relied on to write his novel. But this is not merely a saga of literary usurping; on her own merits, Babb's impact was profound. Her life and work feature heavily in Ken Burns's award-winning documentary The Dust Bowl and inspired Kristin Hannah in her bestseller The Four Winds. Riding Like the Wind reminds us with fresh awareness that the stories we know--and who tells them--can change the way we remember history.

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Amber Dekkers is a biracial poet and actor from Dallas, Texas. She earned her BFA in theater from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Since graduating, she has performed on many stages, from comedy improv in NYC to elementary school read-alongs in Frisco, Texas. Amber's enchantment with storytelling, along with her southern warmth, infuses her readings with something familiar to the listener. Her voice has been described as warm, bright, and buttery and lends itself best to YA, romance, and cozy mysteries. Her southern roots bring a likeability to her characters, and she is well suited for memoirs and nonfiction. Amber is approachable and sincere. She loves volunteering as a Girl Scout leader, teaching new skills in the classroom, and spending time with friends and family. With a soulful ease, she sounds like home.

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