News
Author's talk focuses on history of the Hudson
By Andrew Amelinckx
Hudson-Catskill Newspapers
HUDSON - It was an afternoon full of Hudson Sunday at the Hudson Opera House in Hudson, where children's book author and illustrator Hudson Talbott discussed his newest book "River of Dreams" about the Hudson River.
Talbott began by telling the overflow crowd about a recent event in Rhinebeck in which he spoke with fourth graders. He was struck by one child's answer to a question he posed. He asked them what their dreams for the future were. "She said she wanted to be a writer and artist," he recalled her saying. Her reason, he said, was in order to make people who were depressed about the economy feel better.
"It made me realize where we are," he said. "We all need our dreams."
Talbott's new book is an illustrated history of the Hudson River. The story begins with how the river and valley were formed and continues through the river's historical importance in the American Revolution and as the country's first super highway and economic lifeline.
Talbott also describes the cultural importance of the Hudson Valley, inspiring both the first important American artistic movement, the Hudson River School, and the first home-grown literature from the likes of Washington Irving.
The book also describes how the river became a sludge filled sewer and how Scenic Hudson, a non-profit organization working to protect the Hudson River, led the fight to save Storm King Mountain. The mountain, located south of Cornwall-On-Hudson, was in danger of being destroyed by a proposed Con Edison power plant. Scenic Hudson's historic court battle and victory helped to usher in the environmental movement in the United States.
The book is dedicated to Scenic Hudson, whose president, Ned Sullivan was on hand Sunday to discuss his organization's goals and achievements.
He recalled kayaking on the Hudson with Talbott, who at that time was still in the midst of creating the book. "That's the place the story ends," said Sullivan of the book's final page in which Talbott is in a kayak on the river. "He looks around and says 'now it's my turn.'"
Sullivan said that Talbott asked him and Sullivan's daughter Annie to look at some early drafts of the book. "We got to make little tweaks around the edges," he laughed.
Sullivan said he was following in the footsteps of Fanny Reese, one of Scenic Hudson's founders and others "who stood up and said 'no'" to the destruction of the environment. He said Scenic Hudson's landmark court battle against Con Edison allowed the public to go to court and represent the environment and the river "that couldn't represent itself."
Sullivan also discussed the organization's plan to conserve 65,000 acres of the "most important land along the river" that "meet New York State's highest standards for ecological, scenic and agricultural values."
He said Scenic Hudson was working with 16 local land trusts and government agencies on the project.
According to Sullivan, General Electric will begin to clean up PCBs from the Hudson River in May. "General Electric fought it for two decades," Sullivan said of the clean-up. GE released PCBs - persistant organic pollutants linked to liver cancer in humans - into the river for 30 years beginning in 1947 from two capacitor manufacturing plants along the river, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Sullivan said the clean-up came about in part due to the efforts of Scenic Hudson, and two other similar organizations, Riverkeeper and Clearwater.
Sunday's event also included four songs form a musical based on the book and sung by student actors from Greene County schools and the show's composer, Frank Cuthbert.
The show's producer, Casey Biggs, said that the production currently has the involvement of 78 students from the Catskill Central School District along with students from schools in Cairo, Durham and Coxsackie .
The musical will premier at Catskill High School May 15.
To reach reporter Andrew Amelinckx please call 518-828-1616 or e-mail aamelinckx@registerstar.com.
HUDSON - It was an afternoon full of Hudson Sunday at the Hudson Opera House in Hudson, where children's book author and illustrator Hudson Talbott discussed his newest book "River of Dreams" about the Hudson River.
Talbott began by telling the overflow crowd about a recent event in Rhinebeck in which he spoke with fourth graders. He was struck by one child's answer to a question he posed. He asked them what their dreams for the future were. "She said she wanted to be a writer and artist," he recalled her saying. Her reason, he said, was in order to make people who were depressed about the economy feel better.
"It made me realize where we are," he said. "We all need our dreams."
Talbott's new book is an illustrated history of the Hudson River. The story begins with how the river and valley were formed and continues through the river's historical importance in the American Revolution and as the country's first super highway and economic lifeline.
Talbott also describes the cultural importance of the Hudson Valley, inspiring both the first important American artistic movement, the Hudson River School, and the first home-grown literature from the likes of Washington Irving.
The book also describes how the river became a sludge filled sewer and how Scenic Hudson, a non-profit organization working to protect the Hudson River, led the fight to save Storm King Mountain. The mountain, located south of Cornwall-On-Hudson, was in danger of being destroyed by a proposed Con Edison power plant. Scenic Hudson's historic court battle and victory helped to usher in the environmental movement in the United States.
The book is dedicated to Scenic Hudson, whose president, Ned Sullivan was on hand Sunday to discuss his organization's goals and achievements.
He recalled kayaking on the Hudson with Talbott, who at that time was still in the midst of creating the book. "That's the place the story ends," said Sullivan of the book's final page in which Talbott is in a kayak on the river. "He looks around and says 'now it's my turn.'"
Sullivan said that Talbott asked him and Sullivan's daughter Annie to look at some early drafts of the book. "We got to make little tweaks around the edges," he laughed.
Sullivan said he was following in the footsteps of Fanny Reese, one of Scenic Hudson's founders and others "who stood up and said 'no'" to the destruction of the environment. He said Scenic Hudson's landmark court battle against Con Edison allowed the public to go to court and represent the environment and the river "that couldn't represent itself."
Sullivan also discussed the organization's plan to conserve 65,000 acres of the "most important land along the river" that "meet New York State's highest standards for ecological, scenic and agricultural values."
He said Scenic Hudson was working with 16 local land trusts and government agencies on the project.
According to Sullivan, General Electric will begin to clean up PCBs from the Hudson River in May. "General Electric fought it for two decades," Sullivan said of the clean-up. GE released PCBs - persistant organic pollutants linked to liver cancer in humans - into the river for 30 years beginning in 1947 from two capacitor manufacturing plants along the river, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Sullivan said the clean-up came about in part due to the efforts of Scenic Hudson, and two other similar organizations, Riverkeeper and Clearwater.
Sunday's event also included four songs form a musical based on the book and sung by student actors from Greene County schools and the show's composer, Frank Cuthbert.
The show's producer, Casey Biggs, said that the production currently has the involvement of 78 students from the Catskill Central School District along with students from schools in Cairo, Durham and Coxsackie .
The musical will premier at Catskill High School May 15.
To reach reporter Andrew Amelinckx please call 518-828-1616 or e-mail aamelinckx@registerstar.com.
Copyright © 2010 - The Register Star Online