Author of ‘Flags of Our Fathers’ to speak at Asheville School on April 26

From the press release:

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (March 26, 2012) Bestselling author of Flags of our Fathers, James Bradley, will speak at Asheville School on Thursday, April 26, at 7:15 pm in the Graham Theater during the school’s Founders’ Day Convocation. This presentation is part of the Asheville School Pope Series for the Humanities and is free and open to the public, but with limited seating available on a first-come-first- served basis. After his presentation, Bradley will lead a short question and answer session, followed by a book signing outside of the theater.

John Gregory, Chair of Asheville School’s Humanities Department, says, “We are trying to contribute to the intellectual culture of the Asheville community by bringing in speakers. It’s neat for parents and alumni to be able to come see what students are learning about.”

Bradley will focus his talk on his first best-selling book, Flags of Our Fathers, released in 2000. Flags of Our Fathers is about the six American soldiers who raised the American flag on Iwo Jima, pictured in the now iconic photograph and Iwo Jima memorial. One of the soldiers was Bradley’s father, John Bradley. John Bradley never wanted to talk about his experiences after he had returned from war, so James Bradley decided to share his father’s story. Flags of Our Fathers was also released in 2006 as a movie produced by Stephen Spielberg and directed by Clint Eastwood. Gregory noted that the Asheville School Pope Series for the Humanities focuses on core works of Western civilization. He says that Flags of Our Fathers approaches American history and identity in a personal way that students will be able to connect to. “We are excited to try something new. Textbooks can seem dry, but his story makes it very personal, and it is a way to get students hooked and help them learn about Iwo Jima,” he said.

James Bradley went on to release Flyboys: A True Story of Courage in 2003, which follows the story of eight American prisoners of war held on the Pacific island of Chichi-jima during World War II. In 2009, Bradley released The Imperial Cruise, a book that covers foreign policy in the Pacific during Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency.

James Bradley is the president of the James Bradley Peace Foundation, whose mission focuses on “fostering understanding between America and Asia by sending American students to Japan and China to study” (jamesbradley.com). Asheville School and the Asheville School Pope Series for the Humanities are able to bring speakers like James Bradley because of support from The John William Pope Foundation.