Santa Clara, Calif. – January 18, 2005– David Mas Masumoto, well-known author and Central Valley organic peach farmer, will present a book talk at Santa Clara’s Central Park Library on Saturday, February 12, 2005 at 1p.m. as part of the Library’s National Semiconductor Authors & Speakers series. His book, Epitaph for a Peach: Four Seasons on My Family Farm, was chosen as the 2005 Silicon Valley Reads selection.

The book chronicles the values and struggles of a Japanese-American farm family trying to survive in a changing era dominated by “big agriculture” and land being converted to residential use. Mr. Masumoto’s many other books include: Harvest Son: Planting Roots in American Soil; Four Seasons in Five Senses: Things Worth Savoring; and his most recent, Letters to the Valley: A Harvest of Memories. As part of the Silicon Valley Reads program, during the month of February Mr. Masumoto will be appearing at several library locations throughout Silicon Valley.

In addition to hosting a discussion of Epitaph for a Peach, the Santa Clara Central Park Library, in partnership with the California History Center at DeAnza College, will present a discussion of our valley’s agricultural past on Wednesday, February 9th, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Deborah Olson will talk about the book Passing Farms, Enduring Values: California’s Santa Clara Valley, written by her aunt Yvonne Olson Jacobson. Beginning in 1931, the Olson family sold cherries and other fruit from a stand on El Camino Real. They are a fourth generation Santa Clara Valley farm family.

Call the Reference Desk at (408) 615-2900 to sign-up for either of these free events that are made possible by the generous support of the Foundation and Friends of the Santa Clara City Library and National Semiconductor.