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Author Interview: Selma's Berry Family Goes "Beyond Luck" In Rags To Riches Story

West of the West Books

The San Joaquin Valley is filled with remarkable stories about families, fortunes and fame. But while names like Boswell and Kearney grace the history books, the remarkable tale of the Berry family of Selma has largely been overlooked. 

Now the new book "Beyond Luck: The Improbable Rise of the Berry Fortune Across A Western Century" by author Betsy Lumbye tells their story.

Lumbye follows the life of 19th century pioneer Clarence Berry from the canals and farm fields of Selma, California to the Klondike Gold Rush where Berry first made his fortune. The story continues in the oil fields of Kern County where Berry truly made his fortune. In between, he and his heirs encountered a remarkable slice of the American West, from Jack London to Ansel Adams, Hollywood stars and baseball icons. 

Valley Edition Guest: Betsy Lumbye

Joe Moore is the President and General Manager of KVPR / Valley Public Radio. He has led the station through major programming changes, the launch of KVPR Classical and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership the station was named California Non-Profit of the Year by Senator Melissa Hurtado (2019), and won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting (2022).