News        from ABAC

Michael D. Chason Director of Public Relations ABAC 30 -- 2802 Moore Highway Tifton, GA 31793-2601 Phone 229-391-5055 Fax 229-391-4781 mchason@abac.edu

IMMEDIATE OCTOBER 23, 2007

HARUF TO SPEAK AT CORDELL LECTURE ON OCTOBER 30

TIFTON - National Book Award finalist Kent Haruf will be reading from his award-winning novel, Plainsong, at the annual Tom M. Cordell Distinguished Lecture Series on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. in Howard Auditorium on the campus of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.

Haruf, who also authored Eventide, was born in Pueblo, Colo., the son of a Methodist minister. As his family moved from church to church, the plains of northeastern Colorado became the setting for Holt, the fictitious town where most of his work is set.

He studied literature at Nebraska Wesleyan University. For two years he taught English in Turkey as a member of the Peace Corps. He has been a teacher for almost 30 years in Wisconsin, Illinois, Colorado and Nebraska.

Plainsong was the winner of the Mountains & Plains Booksellers Award and the Maria Thomas Award in Fiction. Plainsong was also a finalist for the National Book Award in 1999, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and The New Yorker Book Award.

Cordell, who passed away in 1991, was the former Dean and Director of Continuing Education at ABAC for 39 years. The lecture series in his honor began in 1985. Speakers have included former Attorney General Griffin Bell, former Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Doyle Conner, and Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy. Sponsored by the ABAC Foundation and the Division of Humanities, the lecture is open to anyone who would like to attend at no charge.

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