Jack London (1876-1916) is best known now for his adventure stories such as The Call of the Wild, White Fang, and The Sea Wolf. Born in San Francisco, he grew up on farms and ranches in California and attended school in Oakland, worked both menial and adventurous jobs, and spent one semester at the University of California. He joined the Socialist Labor Party, but resigned just before his early death "because of its lack of fire and fight, and its loss of emphasis on the class struggle." Kevin Starr is California State Librarian and author, most recently, of The Dream Endures: California Enters the 1940s (1997).