Saratoga Sampler

Hulme's book based on Ora Davis' life published

By Mary Ann Cook

NEW BOOK: Just out is Joy Hulme's new children's book, Through the Open Door. The book is being promoted as a Mormon Little House on the Prairie by publisher Harper-Collins. It's targeted for those in grades 4 to 6 and is based on the real-life adventures of the late Ora Davis, who lived in Los Gatos.

"It's her experiences, combined with my feelings and research. Her life was an odyssey of ingenuity," Hulme says. Ora Davis' daughter, Mary Lou Irwin, lives in Saratoga. The Hulme book traces the adventures of the fictional Dora and her family on their move from St. Louis to New Mexico to homestead in 1910.

They traveled with nine other families, a trip that took nearly two months and was full of tribulations. Hulme and her husband Mel retraced the covered wagon journey while Joy was doing research for the book. The Hulmes opted to go by car rather than wagon.

Ora (and the fictional Dora) was born with her tongue attached to the roof of her mouth, so was unable to speak and thus was excluded from school. A doctor finally realized what the problem was, cut her tongue free, and she was then able to learn to speak.

Thus, she was finally allowed, to her great joy, to attend school, one that she could enter "through the open door." The second book in the series--To the Schoolhouse--has already been sold. Hulme's previous publications were chiefly picture books.

CONTEST WINNER: Ludmilla Alexander (a.k.a. Millie Bobroff) of Saratoga recently won second place in the travel column category of the Society of American Travel Writer's 1999 Travel Writing Contest. The articles that won her the award appeared in the San Francisco Nob Hill Gazette.

Her writing was called graceful, historical prose and she was commended for being a cultured, well-traveled writer. Titles in the series were Holiday in Venice, Cruising through Life and Bliss at Bilbao.

More than 150 entries were submitted in 13 categories. Alexander, a freelance writer, has also written for the Saratoga News under her other name, Millie Bobroff, and is a 20-year staff member and travel editor for South Bay Accent magazine.

Two years ago she won honorable mention and certificates for two articles she wrote for Accent--Peak Performance, about skiing at Whistler, B. C., in Canada and Close Encounters of the Wild Kind, about a trip through Ecuador's Amazon Basin.

Alexander/Bobroff writes regularly for newspapers--the Oregonian and the Dallas Morning News--and two slicks--Porthole Magazine and Mountain Living. Husband Dimitry Bobroff usually travels with her, and takes the photos that accompany the articles.

She adopted the name Alexander--a shortened version of her middle name--when Parents Magazine, where she was working, considered the name Bobroff too ethnic for a writer. How times change.

ON EXHIBIT: The paintings of Saratoga artist Hugo Lecaros will be on display at the Labor Day Kings Mountain Art Fair, Sept. 2-4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Lecaros works in both oils and watercolors, and his paintings reflect the people and landscapes of his native Peru.

Some 130 artists in dozens of different categories will be on display. Hiking trails surround the site and a Kiddie Hollow crafts and play area will keep the young ones busy. An outdoor pancake breakfast starts at 8 a.m. and is served until 10:30 a.m. Other food is available during show hours.

Proceeds benefit the KM Volunteer Fire Brigade and the elementary school. The center is on Highway 35, six miles south of Highway 92. Parking is on Skyline Boulevard with a free shuttle available. For more information, call 650.851.2710.

SCHOLARSHIP WINNER: Minyang Mao, son of Yuehkuei (Laura) Mao won a scholarship from Tenet Healthcare Foundation. Tenet Healthcare Corporation owns Community Hospital of Los Gatos and awards scholarships to children of employees. Laura is a pharmacist at the hospital.

Minyang will attend Northwestern University in the fall, majoring in medicine. He attended Stockdale High School in Bakersfield.

OPERA PREVIEWS: Here's more on the Thursday morning lecture series at 10 a.m. at the Los Gatos History Club, sponsored by San Jose Opera Guild. On Sept. 7, Mary Jane Phillips-Matz will talk about San Francisco Opera's production of Luisa Miller by Verdi.

On Sept. 14, Richard Taruskin will speak on The Czar's Bride by Rimsky-Korsakov; on Sept. 21, the speaker is James Koelker on Ballad of Baby Doe by Moore. Others in the series: Oct. 5, Dead Man Walking by Heggie; Nov. 2, Semele by Handel; and Nov. 16, Der Rosenkavalier by Strauss.

BOOK READING: Former Saratogan Helen MacKinlay will read from her new book and sign copies at the Thunderbird Bookstore in Carmel at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 8. The bookstore is in the Barnyard Shopping Center off Highway 1.

The book is titled Second Skin and is a compilation of MacKinlay's photos and poems. The National Writers Union is the sponsor of the reading. MacKinlay and her husband now live in Pebble Beach.

West Valley Safe Rides program under new managment

The Hakone Foundation holds its annual meeting

California considers 'right to know' legislation

Photos: The jazz quartet Fourplay & Triton Museum sculpture exhibit

Youth Talk

Sports Briefs

Saratoga Palomino baseball team wins crown

Bartels brothers each win tennis titles in Alpine Hills Fall Classic

NJB basketball tryouts, signups coming up for boys, girls teams

Local teams in field hockey jamboree

Photos: Courtside Tennis Club