The King Of California: J.G. Boswell and the Making of A Secret American Empire

Description

J. G. Boswell is the biggest farmer in America. Mark Arax and Rick Wartzman of the Los Angeles Times have teased from this notoriously reclusive business titan the fascinating tale of how his family transplanted themselves from plantation Georgia to gain control of the center of California, converting lush wetlands into vast cotton fields. Critically acclaimed and a Times bestseller, the paperback edition of The King of California is ripe for discovery by a whole new audience eager to learn of one of the great untold stories of the American West. Hailed by Joan Didion for its "masterful reporting, invigorating narrative, a deep understanding of California and how it works-this is a flat-out wonderful book about growing cotton and making a fortune in the San Joaquin. "

Mark Arax is a contributing writer at Los Angeles magazine and a former senior writer at the Los Angeles Times. He is the author of West of the West. Rick Wartzman is the Director of the Drucker Institute at Claremont Graduate University in California, a fellow of the New America Foundation, and the author of Obscene in the Extreme. He was formerly the business editor for the Los Angeles Times and a reporter for the Wall Street Journal.