Book recounts history of California rice

A group of Richvale, California, residents - the Richvale Writing Group - has compiled a history of California rice and the role Richvale played in the emergence of a western rice industry.

Richvale is often called the birthplace of California rice because early settlers pioneered the beginnings of the state's rice industry, which now generates a half-billion dollars a year in commerce.

Ching Lee, a reporter for California Farm Bureau's Ag Alert newsletter, filed a report on the book this week.

The title: Richvale: A Legacy of Courage, Dedication, and Perseverance.

Several members of the writing group are farmers or descendants of local rice farmers.

"Most of us who had done the writing for the book grew up with the farmers," said Denny Lindberg, a Richvale native and rice farmer who chaired the writing group. "We thought this should be captured now while we're here to be able to express it or they're going to be memories lost forever."

The 294-page book is suppose to be for sale at Amazon.Com, although when we checked today it was not yet available.

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