1 April 2023
Colusa County Court House Lawn
547 Market Street
10:00-11:30, Santucci Leather & Garden Club of Colusa County
Participants created a leather bookmark using stamps and leather tools, supplied and designed by local leather artisan Kristy Santucci to commemorate the 2023 Read Day.
The Garden Club of Colusa County offered a Cacti & Succulent workshop, where participants learned how to propagate and care for these crowd pleasers. As part of the workshop, people were able to take home a plant or two to practice their new skills.
The Arts Council partnered with the Colusa County Free Library to offer a horseshoe decorating craft for those who came to view the art show, while the Friends Around the Block quilt shop created a no-sew wester themed heart for kids to create while their families viewed the Quilt Challenge entries.
11:00-1:00, Glenn-Colusa Cattlewomen's Victuals & More
We lunched and learned with the best! The Glenn-Colusa Cattlewomen's Association demonstrated horse grooming in honor of Little Blackie, supplied local beef jerky and other cattle byproducts as part of their outreach. They supplied a beefy chili and cornbread lunch that really hit the spot with the cool mid-day breeze.
Rocco's Meeting Hall
Main Street entrance
1:30, Cowboy Songs by Jim Dunlap
Local rancher and poet, Jim Dunlap, sang cowboy songs harkening back to the late 1800s and the tradition of cowboy storytelling by the campfire. He told a great story about seeing the original film adaptation feature John Wayne at the Colusa Theater as a kid, and how this book has continued to be one of his favorites! What a treat.
2:00, True Grit with Dr. William Handley
Expert in the literature and culture of the American West from the 19th century to the present, and former President and Executive Secretary for the Western Literature Association, Dr. William Handley delighted our guests with a talk about True Grit in the context of the history of Western Literature, the character development of Mattie Ross and Rooster Cogburn, along with the significance of the novel from the time it was written. His engaging and participatory talk rounded out the week of events and truley surpassed our expectations.
Dr. Handley teaches in the English Department of the University of Southern California. His primary interests concern the literature, film, historiography, and culture of the American West, past and present.
From the moment it was published, True Grit was a critically acclaimed classic. It has been enjoyed by readers of all ages and fans of all literary genres for more than 70 years.
True Grit tells the story of Mattie Ross, who at just fourteen years old seeks to avenge her father’s death with the help of one-eyed Rooster Cogburn, the meanest available U.S. Marshal. Joined by a Texas Ranger, the trio head off into Indian Territory after the killer.
Full of humor, inventive prose, and compelling characters, the multi-layered coming-of-age novel set in the Old West of 1870s Arkansas and Oklahoma explores the duality of human nature and how a young girl discovers the meaning of “true grit.”
People do not give it credence that a fourteen-year-old girl could leave home and go off in the wintertime to avenge her father’s blood but it did not seem so strange then, although I will say it did not happen every day.” –Mattie Ross
EVENTS
VIRGINIA READ DAY
Supporting Community Through Reading
Virginia Yerxa Community Read
Friends Around the Block Quilt Challenge
211 8th Street, Colusa
Quilters inspired by this year's community read created lovely samplers using a variety of fabric selected by the Friends Around the Block.
Colusa County Arts Council Western Art Show
151 5th Street, Colusa
The Arts Council show featured tooled leather, paintings and other art related to the West. Artists included Lillian Wilson, Juliann Cheney, Joella Wheeler, Donna Dutra and Kristy Santucci.
28 March 2023
Science Cafe featuring Save the Snakes
Colusa County Free Library
738 Market Street, Colusa
6:30pm
We were joined by an expert from the Sacramento non-profit organization, Save the Snakes who spoke about the importance of snakes to our ecosystem, debunked popular myths and fears about these often feared and reviled creatures. Slithery guests included Sunflower and Medusa, much to the delight of the audience!
30 March 2023
Family Story time featuring Stagecoach Sal by Deborah Hopkinson
Colusa County Free Library
738 Market Street, Colusa
6:30pm
A healthy dose of pioneer sass helps young Stagecoach Sal nab a notorious thief without firing a shot—she takes Poetic Pete onto the seat beside her, sings him to sleep and delivers him to jail. Based on the real Delia Haskett Rawson, the first and possibly only woman to carry the U.S. mail by stagecoach in California!
31 March 2023
Books, Boots and Beer
Tap Room, 121 8th Street
6:30pm
We gabbed well passed sundown at this lively "speed-dating" style round table discussion of True Grit.
Space is limited, register HERE.