"There is a way in which the arts serve humanity and are not just entertainment. That seems to be the drift at the moment, that the arts are there to entertain us, but that's not why human beings became dedicated artists. Even if they were driven by individual artistic vision, there's a social impulse behind the desire to create art." Barry Lopez
The San Francisco Chronicle has called the American writer Barry Lopez "the nation's premier nature writer." He is the author of Arctic Dreams, for which he received the National Book Award, Of Wolves and Men, a National Book Award finalist, and numerous other works of fiction and non-fiction.
Mr. Lopez is one of the several writers appearing at the second annual San Antonio Book Festival on Saturday, April 5 at the main branch of the San Antonio Public Library. I had an opportunity to speak to him recently about the magic of words, falling in love with a character you have created, and the importance of art in our modern world.
