Good afternoon everyone and welcome to another edition of The Avid Reader. Our guest today is Miriam Pawel author of The Browns of California: The Family Dynasty that Transformed a State and Shaped a Nation, published by Bloomsbury this month.

Miriam is the author of the award winning The Crusades of Cesar Chavez.

Here, she has tackled the Brown family father and son, studying them from their roots in California and their effect over generations on the state, the sixth largest economy in the world and most populous state in the country. Governing it is more like being a President.

However, here on the East coast, just as with Cesar Chavez, we know who Jerry is and can tell you a few facts about him, and perhaps, for those of us old enough, we remember Pat Brown, but that is about it.

Now with this book we learn the nature and extent of their involvement with the state and its transition and evolution to the most progressive and fair-minded state in the country.