Book Signing on September 19th

I will be selling and signing copies of my new book:

Last Hand A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era

at the St. John’s 35th Annual Flea Market and Craft Fair, September 19th from 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.

Location:

St. John United Church of Christ

1475 W. Algonquin Road

Palatine, IL (The southwest corner of Algonquin and Roselle roads)

Video Trailer of Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era with reviews

The video trailer provides a glimpse into the world of my book, Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era.

Book Signing at Local Art Fair

I will be signing copies of my new book, Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era at the Arlington Heights Art Guild’s 38th annual art fair "A Walk in the Park" at North School Park on Sunday, August 23rd.

The book, Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era, is a tale of the life and death of an American Cold War family living in Arlington Heights. The book takes the reader on a journey back to a bygone era before laptop computers, digital TV, and cell phones. The reader experiences the carefree summer days of the 1970s, attends public school, enjoys holiday traditions, rides along on a summer road trip, and sits in on a game of the all-but-forgotten (but once popular) game of pinochle.

The book is a blend of family memoir with social and cultural history. It portrays the changes occurring around greater Chicago, as the book recounts the migration from the city to the suburbs after World War II and the growth of the Chicago metropolitan area as the new expressways, shopping centers, and subdivisions appeared. In addition to family lore, the story is infused with the music, entertainment, customs, and local recreation of the time, making it clear why this era was so unique in American history.

You can learn more about the book and read excerpts at the book's website: http://www.lasthandthebook.com/

Special Edition being sold at Frontier Days on July 4th and 5th (Arlington Heights)

Special editions of the new Chicagoland memoir, Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era, will be available at Frontier Days in Arlington Heights on July 4th and 5th.

Last Hand looks back at a lifetime of relationships lost to the passage of time in this witty memoir of family life in the northwest suburbs of Chicago during the Cold War. The book provides a snapshot of American life of a bygone era as the reader takes a journey back to a time before laptop computers, digital TV, and cell phones and experience the carefree summer days of the 1970s, attends public school, enjoys holiday traditions, rides along on a summer road trip, and sits in on a game of the all-but-forgotten (but once popular) game of pinochle.

Because the story takes place in Arlington Heights, a one-time Special Edition of the book has been printed for the Festival and will be sold at a 25% discount for those people visiting Frontier Days.

Copies of the book, as well as free bookmarks, will be available at booth 40 of the Craft and Marketplace area of the festival. You can find more information about the book, including excerpts, at the book's website, http://www.lasthandthebook.com/

Beginning After the Finish

This is my first entry into the world of blogging. The idea of blogging came to me after finishing my book, Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir of Cards and the Cold War Era. I intend for the blog to be an extension of some of the themes and topics I discuss in the book. Those topics will include; childhood in the 1960s and ‘70s, suburban life around Chicago—both past and present, family life, ’70s culture, and maybe some material that didn’t make the book. Like the book, I hope it will provide a glimpse into an American past, which may be recent, is nevertheless gone forever.

I hope as I address these topics you’ll join in with your thoughts, opinions, and memories. And if you haven’t already, perhaps you’ll take a look at my book and join my family, if even just for a moment.