The Cupertino Courier
News
Silicon Valley Reads 2008 chooses Cupertino writer
By Cody Kraatz
The debut novel of a Cupertino author that tells the story of betrayal and reconciliation spanning several years across two continents has been selected for Silicon Valley Reads 2008.
The Distant Land of My Fathers by Bo Caldwell will be the subject of numerous programs throughout Santa Clara County in February 2008 when readers throughout Silicon Valley are asked to read the same book, at the same time, and discuss it.
This will be the sixth year of Silicon Valley Reads, which is co-sponsored by the Santa Clara County Office of Education, Santa Clara County Library, and San Jose Public Library Foundation. The goals of the program are to promote reading and literacy while building a sense of community through dialogue among widely diverse readers.
Silicon Valley Reads 2008 will be previewed on Jan. 17, at the Campbell Heritage Theatre with a free program featuring the author. Additional activities are now being planned for Silicon Valley Reads month that will appeal to a wide variety of community members--from avid readers to those with limited literacy skills. The book will also be incorporated into curriculum in some local high school and college classes.
The Distant Land of My Fathers opens in Shanghai in 1937 where an expatriate American couple lives a lavish lifestyle with their young daughter, Anna. War sends the mother and daughter back to the U.S. but the father, Joseph, will not leave the city he loves. Anna grows up halfway across the world from her father, and it is only over the years that she gradually learns his true story.
Caldwell, who grew up in Southern California, attended Stanford University and has lived in the Bay Area for many years. She has received multiple fellowships in literature and creative writing, and her short stories and personal essays have been published in a variety of magazines and literary journals. She is working on her second novel.
Further information is available at www.siliconvalleyreads.org, or call Diane McNutt at 408. 354.1242.
