Book Talk: ‘Color Capital of the World’ is tale written in crayon
John W. Kropf had a colorful childhood. As a descendant of the founders of the American Crayon Co., makers of Prang Crayons and other well-known brands, he recalls a home abundant in crayons. In “Color Capital of the World: Growing Up with the Legacy of a Crayon Company,” Kropf preaches the “gospel of the crayon.”
Kropf tells three parallel and inseparable stories: The company’s, the city of Sandusky’s and his family’s. It is actually three families who, through ingenuity and partnership, developed the products and found a market for them. In the 19th century, classroom chalk was crumbly and made an agonizing screech on the blackboard, and crayons came only in black and were used by carpenters and in factories. American Crayon began making color crayons and marketing them to schools.
Kropf and his sister had a constant supply of crayons at home, buckets full. When his class took a field trip to “his” crayon factory, he came home with the same sample box as his classmates and refrained from bragging about his family.
Kropf, an attorney in the Washington, D.C., area, is passionate about all of his stories and ends with a tribute to his hometown, hard hit by the recession and now showing signs of recovery. American Crayon Co. closed in 2002.
“Color Capital of the World” (134 pages, softcover) costs $25 from University of Akron Press. Kropf will sign copies of the book from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Fireside Bookshop, 29 N. Franklin St., Chagrin Falls, and from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday at Ashland Public Library, 224 Claremont Ave.
‘Travis, Texas’
“Travis, Texas” is a classic Western by Gary Harmon of Huron. Travis is a small town named for William Barret Travis, who died at the Alamo, but it’s far from imposing: It has one blacksmith, one saloon with low-stakes poker and one main street. The Broken Spur Ranch is the biggest employer, run by town founder Robert Trav and his senior hand Juan Garcia.
Meanwhile, two young women are working at a cabaret in St. Louis: Lisa deals poker and Jesse serves drinks and oversees the craps table. Jesse has occasionally turned to prostitution to put food on the table, but only when desperate. Jesse’s uncle has written to her about the first-class establishment he owns in Texas, so the girls decide on a new start in Travis.
No one knows that a small group of Comanche watches and plans, but Robert and Garcia are wily and resourceful.
“Travis, Texas” has a solid plot, but its strength is in Harmon’s aptitude for characterization and understanding of the genre.
“Travis, Texas” (218 pages, softcover) costs $18 from Bird Dog Publishing, a division of Bottom Dog Press.
Harmon, who is retired from the real estate field, also is the author of “The Broken Spur.”
‘Comeback Evolution’
Walter Delbridge had so much going for him, and so much against him. Editor Kate Tucker’s introduction to “Comeback Evolution: Selected Works of Walter K. Delbridge” tells of the Akron poet who was a stellar scholar in the late 1960s, having studied at Harvard, Yale and Morehouse.
He had planned to attend the Sorbonne in Paris on a scholarship but he was drafted, and the Army psychiatrist thought his qualifications were evidence of paranoid schizophrenia, so Delbridge was committed for three years to the now-closed Fallsview Psychiatric Hospital.
In the years since, Delbridge has produced a distinguished body of work that show deep erudition and reflect his dedication to study; Tucker includes a portion of Delbridge’s 1982 journal in which he records a formidable reading program of philosophy and psychology.
“Comeback Evolution” (235 pages, softcover) costs $20 from University of Akron Press. Kate Tucker is a writer and producer of “Tell It Like It Is,” a documentary based on Delbridge’s work.
Events
Mandel Jewish Community Center: The Cleveland Jewish Book Festival continues with Jonathan Dunsky, who talks about his historical mystery “A Death in Jerusalem” in a virtual event from 11 a.m. to noon Sunday; from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Bonobos menswear founder Andy Dunn talks about “Burn Rate: Launching a Startup and Losing My Mind.” From 11 a.m. to noon Monday, Bruce Henderson talks about “Bridge to the Sun: The Secret Role of the Japanese Americans Who Fought in the Pacific in World War II.” Register at mandeljcc.org.
Loganberry Books (13015 Larchmere Blvd., Shaker Heights): Frederic C. Craigie signs “Weekly Soul: Fifty-Two Meditations on Meaningful, Joyful, and Peaceful Living,” 1 p.m. Sunday. At 11 a.m. Saturday, Lauren Pacini and John Grabowski sign “Cleveland’s Cultural Gardens: A Landscape of Diversity.” Bay Village author Doug Cornett launches “Finally, Something Mysterious,” a middle-grade novel about a group of friends who solve a mystery, 1 p.m. Saturday. At 2 p.m. Saturday, Tricia Springstubb signs “Looking for True,” about two 11-year-olds who try to save a stray dog; at 3:30 p.m., Marie Vibbert signs “The Gods Awoke,” and at 4:30, Prince Shakur signs “When They Tell You to Be Good,” his debut memoir of immigrating from Jamaica and learning family secrets.
Visible Voice Books (2258 Professor Ave., Cleveland): John Carroll University instructor Jack Ricchiuto launches “Together: Kindness in Everyday Relationships,” 2 p.m. Sunday.
Appletree Books (12419 Cedar Road, Cleveland Heights): Brandi Larsen, who co-wrote Daniella Mestyanek Young’s “Uncultured,” a memoir of growing up in the 1960s Children of God cult, appears from 2 to 3 p.m. Friday. From 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday, Ruth Emmie Lang signs “The Wilderwomen,” about psychic sisters searching for their mother. From 2 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Lauren Pacini and John Grabowski sign “Cleveland Cultural Gardens,” and from 4 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sharon Hoffman signs “Aging with a Plan.”
Mac’s Backs (1820 Coventry Road, Cleveland Heights): Megan Whalen Turner signs her young adult fantasy “The Thief” series and “Moira’s Pen,” 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday.
Email information about books of local interest, and event notices at least two weeks in advance to BeaconBookTalk@gmail.com and bjnews@thebeaconjournal.com. Barbara McIntyre tweets at @BarbaraMcI.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: ‘Color Capital of the World’ is tale written in crayon
