Spotlight Lecture: Steven Kurutz and Tobias Carroll Discuss “American Flannel”

Join Portland Public Library and its partners for a conversation between author Steven Kurutz and fellow author, Tobias Carroll about Kurutz’s new book American Flannel.

About American Flannel

For decades, clothing manufacture was a pillar of U.S. industry. But beginning in the 1980s, Americans went from wearing 70 percent domestic-made apparel to almost none. Even the very symbol of American freedom and style—blue jeans—got outsourced. With offshoring, the nation lost not only millions of jobs but also crucial expertise and artistry.

Dismayed by shoddy imported “fast fashion”—and unable to stop dreaming of re-creating a favorite shirt from his youth—Bayard Winthrop set out to build a new company, American Giant, that would swim against this trend. New York Times reporter Steven Kurutz, in turn, began to follow Winthrop’s journey. He discovered other trailblazers as well, from the “Sock Queen of Alabama” to a pair of father-son shoemakers and a men’s style blogger who almost single-handedly drove a campaign to make “Made in the USA” cool. Eye-opening and inspiring, American Flannel is the story of how a band of visionaries and makers are building a new supply chain on the skeleton of the old and wedding old-fashioned craftsmanship to cutting-edge technology and design to revive an essential American dream.

About the Author

Steven Kurutz has been a features reporter for The New York Times for more than a decade. His magazine article “Fruitland,” about the music of Donnie and Joe Emerson, was adapted for the feature film Dreamin’ Wild. He is also the author of “Like a Rolling Stone: The Strange Life of a Tribute Band.” Born and raised in rural Pennsylvania, he currently lives in New England with his family.

About the Interviewer

Tobias Carroll is the author of five books, including Political Sign and the novel In the Sight. He is a board member of the National Book Critics Circle and writes a column about books in translation for Words Without Borders.

This Spotlight Lecture is presented by Portland Public Library with Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance, A Gathering of Stitches, and Back Cove Books.

Portland Public Library Spotlight Lectures bring authors into engaging conversation with their peers. This year, these conversations follow the theme “Fashion + Sustainability”. Hear about the effects of fast fashion and how what you wear has can have impacts on society, the economy, and the environment.

Conversations are followed by audience Q&A and a book signing.

The series is presented by Portland Public Library with Back Cove Books, MECA+D, and A Gathering of Stitches.