January and February, 2025
The Cold Millions by Jess Walter is a critically acclaimed, nationally bestselling novel set in Spokane, Washington, about two brothers who are swept into the turbulent class warfare of the early 20th century. An intimate story of love, sacrifice, and betrayal set against the dawn of the labor movement, this “vivid, propulsive” novel (USA Today) offers a vibrant portrait of a nation grappling with the chasm between rich and poor, the vulnerable and the powerful. Walter weaves fiction and history into “…a work of irresistible characters, harrowing adventures, and rip-roaring fun” (Washington Post). “It’s often said that a novel contains the world; Walter brings new meaning to this phrase, peopling The Cold Millions with vaudeville stars, hobos, suffragists, tycoons, union agitators, policemen, and dozens of other vibrant characters. Warm and deeply humane, this transporting novel is a staggering achievement” (Esquire).
The Big Read Schedule of Events
KICKOFF – Songs of the People
Thursday, January 9
7:00pm at Fishtrap – 107 W. Main St. Enterprise
Tickets: $10 suggested donation at the door
The Big Read kicks off with a joyous interactive musical event from early 20th century Vaudeville and the Labor Movement hosted by the Wallowa Valley Music Alliance. Meet characters from The Cold Millions, dress in your best 1900 garb, and join in.
Screening of the Disney musical, Newsies
Friday, January 17
4:00pm at Cook Memorial Library – 2006 Fourth St, La Grande
Unabashed, Unafraid, Unashamed: Women Fighters on the Front Line of Oregon’s Labor Movement with Moe Bowstern
Wednesday, January 15
7:00pm at Fishtrap – 107 W. Main St. Enterprise and online at fishtrap.org
Labor activist and historian Moe Bowstern offers a look at the remarkable and brave lives of union writer Julia Ruuttila, who Jess Walter included as a character in The Cold Millions, and her long time partner and women’s rights champion, Dr. Marie Equi.
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Screening of the documentary film, The Wobblies
Saturday, January 18
2:00pm at Fishtrap – 107 W. Main St. Enterprise
The Wobblies (1979) is a documentary about the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), a union that opposed World War I and sought to overthrow capitalism.
Wallowa Love: The story of a love song written by a jailed Wobblie in Centralia
Tuesday, January 21
Noon at the Josephy Center for Arts and Culture – 403 Main St, Joseph
Join Jennfier Gibbs of the Wallowa History Center as she unfolds the fascinating story of Eugene Barnett, the man who wrote a song to his wife from jail in 1919 titled, “Wallowa Love” and the surprising story behind it of a shooting in Centralia between labor workers and the American Legion.
Book Discussion – Enterprise
Wednesday, January 22
2-3pm at Enterprise Public Library – 101 NE 1st St. Enterprise, OR
Industrial Workers of the World 1905-1935 with Aaron Goings
Thursday, January 23
7:00pm online at fishtrap.org
Founded in 1905, the Industrial Workers of the World captured the imagination of a generation with its fiery rhetoric, daring tactics, and program of revolutionary industrial unionism. Join Aaron Goings, author of The Red Coast: Radicalism and Anti-Radicalism in Southwest Washington and The Port of Missing Men: Billy Gohl, Labor, and Brutal Times in the Pacific Northwest for an online discussion of the times and people who led to this movement.
Screening of the documentary film, The Wobblies
Thursday, January 23
4:30pm at Eastern Oregon University – Ackerman 210
The Wobblies (1979) is a documentary about the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), a union that opposed World War I and sought to overthrow capitalism.
Book Discussion – La Grande
Friday, January 24
5:00pm at Cook Memorial Library – 2006 Fourth St, La Grande
Book Discussion – Wallowa
Wednesday, January 29
1-2pm at Wallowa Public Library – 201 E First St. Wallowa
Book Discussion – Enterprise (Fishtrap)
Thursday, January 30
Noon at Fishtrap – 107 W. Main St. Enterprise
Book Discussion – Joseph
Thursday, January 30
2-3pm Joseph Public Library – 201 N. Main St. Joseph
“The Chinese Are No More in Tacoma”: Tragedy, Resilience, and Memory in a Pacific Northwest Community
Friday, January 31
5:30pm at Cook Memorial Library – 2006 Fourth St, La Grande
History professor Ryan Dearinger explores Tacoma, Washington’s 1885 expulsion of its Chinese residents, a mass deportation that found widespread support among Tacoma’s white workers and labor unionists, many of whom helped carry it out. (more…)
Big Read Finale with Jess Walter
Wednesday, February 5
7:00pm at Fishtrap – 107 W. Main St. Enterprise and online at fishtrap.org
Meet Jess Walter, author of The Cold Millions and learn how he was inspired to write the story and find inspiration for its characters.
Tickets: $15 General Admission $12.50 Fishtrappers $5 Students
Online tickets are available at the same price.
A conversation with author Jess Walter
Thursday, February 6
10:00am at Cook Memorial Library – 2006 Fourth St, La Grande
Thanks to our Big Read sponsors:
Since 2006, Fishtrap has presented an NEA Big Read or Fishtrap Reads program as a way to bring a great work of literature to our communities by providing public events, discussions, and free books to Wallowa and Union County schools, libraries, as well as the general public. The NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. The program broadens our understanding of the world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book. The program is supported locally by neighborhood businesses, foundations, and organizations including The Bookloft and Oregon Arts Commission, Eagle Cap Vacation Rentals, and Pacific Power plus program partners in Cook Memorial Library, Art Center East, The Josephy Center for Arts and Culture, Wallowa History Center, The Wallowa Valley Music Alliance, and Eastern Oregon University Library.