Peggy Lamb (second from left) with a group while visiting Bhutan
Peggy O’Toole (Lamb), an alumna of UC Santa Barbara’s Teacher Education Program, will sign her recently published memoir Then I Won’t Seem So Far Away on Tuesday, February 17 at 7 pm at Chaucer’s Bookstore, 3321 State St. in Loreto Plaza. The event is free and open to the public and light refreshments will be served.
The story of O’Toole’s time studying abroad in France in 1970, Then I Won’t Seem So Far Away gathers her letters home, while offering annotations on what really transpired across the Atlantic in the freewheeling, hitchhiking culture of the early seventies. Leaving for France on the heels of her father’s death, O’Toole was compelled to report only the top notes to her grieving, Catholic mother. Her rousing aérogrammes made no mention of illicit drugs, heated liaisons, and more than a few sticky situations.
With her wide-eyed, winsome correspondence, O’Toole paints a universal coming-of-age story, as well as an evocative portrait of an era now firmly fixed in the past. Those who recall the heady days of sex, drugs, and thumbing for rides are sure to enjoy a quick dip back in, while others who are curious about this strange, old world will be equally transfixed.
Peggy O’Toole Lamb (M.Ed.,’87) is a teacher who spends most of her time traveling extensively and writing memoirs that she shares at local readings. Married with three grown daughters, she lives in Santa Barbara with her husband Richard. During her years as a student at UC Santa Barbara, Peggy Lamb worked as a recreation counselor and teacher at Devereaux Schools. She went on to teach in a Special Day class at Franklin Elementary School in the Santa Barbara School District. Most recently she worked as a Resource Specialist for the Hope School District. She also served as long-term chair of the Dean’s Ambassadors Circle for the Gevirtz School. The Dean’s Ambassadors Circle members serve as a resource of ideas and connections to potential partners who are vital to furthering the vision and the values of the Gevirtz School.