Monday, March 14th, 7:00 p.m.
It was a period when milkmen delivered milk in bottles to residential porches, icemen brought blocks of ice for the ice box, and the sound of steam locomotives echoed through the town. Come to Crowell Library on Monday, March 14th for a wonderful stroll down memory lane with author Charles “Norm” Stevens whose previous visits to Crowell delved into his life during World War II when he was a bombardier. His latest book, Seeking More of the Sky: Growing up in the 1930s, presents a plethora of stories covering his early years in Southern California during the Great Depression, when unemployment was affecting many, banks were closing, and the clouds of war were gathering in Europe. Older attendees may find a little of themselves in Stevens’ stories while the young may be amazed to learn how boys lived seventy-five years ago, creating toys out of old tires, bottle caps, and anything else they could find around the house.
Charles Stevens grew up in Inglewood, California. At 18 he joined the Army Air Corps, serving during World War II from 1943 until 1946. He is a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal. He flew a B-l7 in the 8th Air Force at Polebrook, England during the summer and fall of l944. His tour of duty consisted of 34 bombing missions over Germany, occupied France, Belgium and Holland. Following the war he graduated from UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He was a teacher in secondary schools for 32 years. He earned a master’s degree in English at California State University, Los Angeles, in English and American Literature. As an author he has published An Innocent at Polebrook: A Memoir of an 8th Air Force Bombardier, The Innocent Cadet: Becoming a WWII Bombardier, Back From Combat, as well as Seeking More of the Sky. Copies of Mr. Steven’s books will be available for purchase.
Come to Crowell Library and hear firsthand what the 1930s were like in Southern California.
