Campaigns

The Grapes of Wrath? I can relate.

California Stories: Reading The Grapes of Wrath

The Challenge: The California Council for the Humanities wanted Californians to read The Grapes of Wrath as part of its mission to highlight the role of humanities in our lives. But how to convince people to read a 500-page novel about the Depression-era dust bowl?

Our Approach: Fenton broke free from the traditional “one city, one book” frame that had come to dominate similar initiatives in cities across the country. Instead of focusing on getting people to talk about a book, we focused on getting Californians to talk to each other, about the wildly different paths that brought them to the Golden State where the majority of the population, like the Joads, are from somewhere else. We created a campaign toolkit for the initiative’s partners and coordinated media relations for nearly 1,000 individual events, including 24-hour Read-a-Thons, cultural performances, art exhibits and discussion groups.

Progress, Accelerated: The media devoted more than 300 stories to the campaign over a six-month period, helping to drive more than 30,000 people to take part in the library events alone. The campaign was so successful, the Council decided to make its umbrella initiative, California Stories, which was originally envisioned as a three-year effort, an enduring framework for its programs today.