She captivated readers of The Atlantic in 1920 with the journal of her early life. Opal Whiteley, a child from the logging town of Walden, outside of Cottage Grove, claimed to be the orphaned daughter of Henri d’Orleans, a Bourbon prince and naturalist. At five years old, she wrote that she was mysteriously abandoned and then exchanged for a child of the Whiteleys. At the age of six and seven, she wrote that she could talk to animals and plants. Those six excerpts from The Atlantic became the basis of her 1920 memoir Opal: The Journal of an Understanding Heart, a best seller in 1920. The journal also fascinated Elizabeth Peterson and Lance Troxel, a husband-wife team who have put together Opal Reads Opal July 18 and 19 at the Opal Center for Arts & Education in Cottage Grove. Peterson, the writer and director, notes that the reading will encompass 30 sections of Whiteley’s journal, some full chapters and other smaller passages. “I tried to capture the spirit of the diary,” she says. Most of all, Peterson and Troxel want to display the writing of someone so young. “It’s very polished,” Peterson says. “It’s a sophisticated piece of literature.” Opal Reads Opal is a multi-media performance featuring seven readers as well as slides and biographical information. “It’s a way for people to engage in the text, which is extraordinary,” Peterson explains. “It felt important for us. We hope it will be an annual thing.”

Opal Reads Opal is 7:30 pm Friday, July 18, and Saturday, July 19, at the Opal Center for Arts & Education, 513 East Main Street, Cottage Grove. $10 suggested donation. The seven readers are Laurel Merz, Nikki Pagniano, Serene Zamora, Marc Siegel, Moura Stewart, Phil Dempsey and Elizabeth Peterson.