On Tuesday, February 11, the Friends of the Bruton Memorial Library in Plant City will present an Evening With Patrick Smith, Jr. (Rick), son of author, Patrick Smith. The show will begin at 7 p.m. and is free to the public thanks to a grant from the Florida Humanities Council.
The evening will have an action-packed multimedia presentation about the life and writings of Smith, Sr., author of the historical novel, A Land Remembered.
A Land Remembered focuses on the fictional struggles of the MacIveys. The family migrated from Georgia to Florida in the mid 19th century. A Land Remembered covers the period from 1858 to 1968. After settling, the family struggles to survive in the harsh Florida environment. First, they make a living from the land. Then they learn to round up wild cattle and drive them to Punta Rassa to ship to Cuba. Over three generations, they amass more holdings and money and move further from their connection to the native, untamed land. A Land Remembered was published in 1984.
Patrick Smith is an award-winning author. He was born in Mendenhall, Mississippi and moved to Florida in 1966. A Land Remembered is Smith’ sixth published novel. Smith was inducted in the Florida Artists Hall of Fame in 1999.
Gil Gott of the Plant City Photo Archives said, “Few, if any books, have captured the spirit and colorful history of Florida as has Smith’s beloved novel, A Land Remembered. It has been said many times that people should be issued a copy of the novel when they cross the Florida state line. Here is your opportunity to get to know the author and his work as Smith’s son takes the stage to delight the audience with a multimedia show about his father and the extraordinary experiences he had which were necessary for him to write with such authority of Florida pioneers, the Seminoles, migrant workers, river rats of Mississippi, the social injustices of the South and the challenges of the present.”
The Bruton Memorial Library is located at 302 McLendon St. in Plant City. For more information, please call 757-9215.
