Sanora Babb — Whose Names Are Unknown with Iris Jamahl Dunkle

Send us Fan MailGrowing up on the Great Plains and witnessing the struggles of migrant workers in California made Sanora Babb uniquely qualified to write the story of the Dust Bowl. Her novel Whose Names Are Unknown was slated for publication by Random House in 1939 until The Grapes of Wrath beat her book to the punch. John Steinbeck actually used Babb’s notes and research to write his Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel, but did he get the story right? Iris Jamahl Dunkle, author of a new biography on Babb, joins us to explain why this long-lost “Dust Bowl” novel (finally published in 2004) deserves more recognition.Mentioned in this episode:Riding Like the Wind: The Life of Sanora Babb by Iris Jamahl DunkleWhose Names Are Unknown by Sanora BabbCharmian Kittredge London: Trailblazer, Author, Adventurer by Iris Jamahl DunkleWest: Fire: Archiveby Iris Jamahl DunkleThe Grapes of Wrath by John SteinbeckLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 152 on  Janet LewisLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 27 on Charmian Kittredge LondonThe Dust Bowl a film by Ken BurnsThe Girl by Meridel Le SeuerThe Lost Traveler by Sanora BabbAn Owl on Every Post by Sanora BabbTom CollinsRalph EllisonWilliam SaroyanCarlos BulosanRay BradburyTillie OlsenLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 69 on Margery Latimer with Joy CastroKen BurnsDayton DuncanJoanne DearcoppPauline HodgesSupport the showFor episodes and show notes, visit: LostLadiesofLit.comSubscribe to our substack newsletter.Follow us on instagram @lostladiesoflit. Email us: Contact — Lost Ladies of Lit Podcast