Stephen H Provost

West Virginia - and Charleston, in particular - has a distinctive beauty to it that's unlike any other. Its mixture of meandering rivers, rolling hills, and lush greenery is unlike almost any other. And then, there's the history. As you drive into town on U. S. Highway 60, you can't miss the sight of the golden Capitol dome. It's every bit as majestic as the Capitol building in D. C., but it's even more spectacular when the sun is shining. Its rays reflect off the golden dome and the Kanawha River in the foreground, providing a glorious scene that's sure to widen the eyes of any first-time visitor. I know it did mine. There is, of course, a lot more to Charleston's story than its role as the state capital. It's the birthplace of the nation's petrochemical industry. An oil field near Cabin Creek supplied the raw material that made the Pure Oil company a leader in the field. And speaking of Cabin Creek, if that name sounds familiar, it's probably because an NBA Hall of Famer went to high school there. Jerry West, aka "Zeke from Cabin Creek," became an pro basketball star, top executive, and the inspiration for the league's iconic logo. The Shoney's restaurant chain got its start in Charleston as the Parkette Drive-In. And one of the nation's most mysterious unsolved murders happened in the city. Country music star Kathy Mattea was born in South Charleston, and the city had an undefeated pro football team seven years before the Miami Dolphins pulled off the feat. Charleston was the site of a Civil War battle, and it became the state capital in 1875. More recently, in 2003, it became home to the Clay Center for Arts and Sciences and has continued to evolve into a 21st century city. Charleston Century is the story of what happened in between.

From the Mission to the Madonna Inn, from Ozzie Smith's heroics to Weird Al's weirdness, San Luis Obispo saw its share of landmarks and highlights in the 20th century. It's home to the world's first motel and one of the West Coast's most vibrant classic theaters. It's a university town that's the hub of a coastal community and a gateway to the most scenic stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway. Former Tribune columnist and Cambrian editor Stephen H. Provost takes you on a journey through the 20th century in San Luis Obispo, once dubbed "The Happiest Place in America." San Luis Obispo Century is part of his Century Cities series, which was created to celebrate and preserve the history of midsized and smaller American cities from 1900 to 1999. San Luis Obispo Century contains a wealth of anecdotes, nearly 100 contemporary and historic images, and details of familiar stories you thought you knew, all in an easy-to-read timeline format. You'll find out about the building that housed a garage, William Randolph Hearst's personal taxi service, a hotel annex, and newspaper offices before it was torn down to make room for Mission Plaza. You'll learn about the raceway where speed records fell, and about Ah Louis and the history of U. S. 101. You'll visit one of nation's the few surviving drive-in theaters, and relive traditions like Riley's Department Store, Scrubby and Lloyd's Burgers, and Foster's Freeze. And that's just the beginning. The pioneer years of the 19th century boom and recent developments in the new millennium hold many tales of their own. San Luis Obispo Century tells the story of what happened in between.

For a little village, a lot has happened in Cambria. It's on the road to Hearst Castle and the most scenic stretch of Highway 1, where you can see zebras roaming beside the freeway and elephant seals lounging in the sun. But it's also a destination in its own right, where a rare stand of Monterey pines meets the sea, and where dozens of lively shops and galleries lie nestled at the base of the green Santa Lucia foothills. Former Cambrian editor Stephen H. Provost takes you on a journey through the 20th century in Cambria, one of California's favorite places to relax, retire, and sometimes have a lively debate. Cambria Century is part of his Century Cities series, which he created to celebrate and preserve the history of midsized and smaller American cities from 1900 to 1999. It contains a wealth of anecdotes, some 150 contemporary and historic images, and details of familiar stories you thought you knew, all in an easy-to-read timeline format. Find out about the quicksilver mines and old saloons that made Cambria part of the wild, wild West. Learn about rodeos of the past and the birth of Pinedorado, Cambria's annual Labor Day weekend celebration. Visit San Simeon, at the doorstep to Hearst Castle, and Harmony, the town that's had 18 residents for as long as anyone can remember. Did you know Cambria once had its own movie house and (despite an aversion to national chains), a tiny park on Main Street, and an A&W drive-in? Cambria Century will take you to William Randolph Hearst's castle and Art Beal's anti-castle overlooking the West Village. You'll return to the Toy Soldier Factory, the Pewter Plough Playhouse, the Chuck Wagon, Exotic Gardens, Lyons' Red & White store, Comozzi's, the Rigdon Building, Bank of America, and the Bluebird Inn. And that's just the beginning. The pioneer years of the 19th century boom and recent developments in the new millennium hold many tales of their own. Cambria Century tells the story of what happened in between.

How did we get here? Why did evangelical Christianity stray so far from the teachings of Jesus? And how has that decision helped divide us more than ever? In the Gospel of Matthew, the devil offered Jesus "all the kingdoms of the world" if he would bow before him. Jesus refused. But many have taken the devil up on this offer. They've traded Jesus' invisible kingdom of heaven for a tangible empire here on earth. They've done it in the name of nationalism, school prayer, the unborn, and, yes, segregation. But more than anything else, they've done it to preserve their favored status as "the chosen" even as their numbers decline. Today, many evangelical activists place loyalty above character and blind faith ahead of principle. They've abandoned Jesus for a different kind of savior: a militant messiah like King David, who slept with his friend's wife, then arranged to have him killed - but who established a theocratic kingdom on earth. That's what they want. Not a democracy or a republic, but the rule of God. Their impulse to empire dates back to the fifth century, when the African bishop Augustine argued that faith should be compulsory. Their blind faith has birthed scams by televangelists, and conspiracy theories, from the Salem witch hunts to social media. They consider themselves a chosen people, a "moral majority," and they've used this special status to justify racism, conquest, and oppression. Jesus, You're Fired explores the history, theology, and motives behind the movement to exchange the kingdom of heaven for an earthly empire. And to replace Jesus with a different kind of messiah.

What if death isn't what we think it is? Allen Hembridge, a physicist entering middle age, has been happily married to the love of his life for two decades when things start to go terribly wrong. She's slowly becoming a different person. Getting headaches. Becoming more forgetful. Lashing out at him as though he were a stranger. There's an old saying that life's a journey, not a destination. What if the same is true of death? Allen Hembridge is scared to ask that "what if" question. He should be. The answer will scare him a thousand times more. From the author of "Nightmare's Eve" comes another reality-bending tale in the classic tradition of "The Twilight Zone." Settle in under a warm blanket on a cool autumn night. Or any time you're ready to have your fears brought to life, your assumptions tested and your perceptions turned upside down. It's time to find out what it feels like to be on Death's Doorstep.

YOU'LL NEVER READ ABOUT MUSIC THE SAME WAY AGAIN. Pop metal burst onto the scene in 1980s along with Reaganomics, video games, and Apple Computers. You either loved it or you hated it, but it was impossible to avoid. Bands like Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, and Poison were all over MTV, vying with Madonna and Michael Jackson for musical supremacy. And then, in a flash, it was gone: as suddenly obsolete in 1992 as disco was in 1980. But there's a lot more to this music than meets the ear. It didn't appear out of nowhere, and it didn't vanish, either. Pop Goes the Metal traces the musical and cultural phenomenon that came to be known, both derisively and affectionately, as "hair metal." Musically, it was rooted in the British Invasion, power pop, and early heavy metal. Visually, it began with Bowie and Sweet and T. Rex, and kept right on going through Kiss and Alice Cooper to Poison and Twisted Sister. Travel to L. A.'s Sunset Strip scene that gave birth to Van Halen, M tley Cr e, Guns N' Roses, and halfway around the world to explore the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Revisit the early years of MTV, the era of heavy metal magazines, the "Satanic Panic," and the PMRC; read about overdoses, car crashes, unscrupulous managers, and concert chaos. Growing up in the suburbs meant playing air guitar to vinyl and cassettes, or waiting for the DJ to play your favorite songs on album rock radio - which never happened often enough. Pop Goes the Metal captures an era and a musical movement indelibly impressed, for better or worse, in the souls and memories of millions. It served as the soundtrack to our youth and it's still playing in our heads. So Cum on Feel the Noize as you relive the memories of this gone-but-not-forgotten time. Even decades later, it's still all about the music.

50 Undefeated expands the author's book Undefeated with a new preface, updated information, new photos and five more stories of people who have overcome prejudice, bullying and oppression. This collection tells the true and inspiring stories of 50 individuals who have triumphed in the face of daunting challenges. Dismissed because of their religion, demeaned because of their gender, or persecuted for their race, they come a variety of backgrounds. A Christian in one nation's majority may be persecuted in another land. The same applies to a Jew or a Pagan. What of the atheist and transgender individuals? Their stories are drawn from past and present, from the realms of history, sports and politics. They testify that bigotry, a false attitude based on false distinctions, in truth knows no bounds ... but neither does the human spirit. Join the author on a journey through a diverse spectrum of stories that spotlight our shared humanity and celebrate the courage of women and men who sought to defend it, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.

A fun-filled look at the history and attractions of California's legendary Highway 101. Now the road has the utilitarian designation of U. S. Route 101, but originally it had a name of romance and mystery--El Camino Real, or the King's Highway, built on the trail pioneered by the Spanish friars and marked by mission bells on the roadside. Illustrated throughout with historic photographs, Highway 101: The History of El Camino Real tells the picturesque story of this great highway and the restaurants, motels, gas stations, and roadside attractions that made it memorable to generations of travelers. From Disneyland to the historic Madonna Inn to the Avenue of the Giants, Highway 101 catalogs the great landmarks along the road, plus the fascinating personalities, from Dorothea Lange to Jelly Roll Morton to Cecil B. DeMille, whose lives intersected with the history of the route. A colorful history of Americana, commerce, travel, and fun, Highway 101 captures the magic of the open road.

Before the era of the interstate highway, before there was even a Route 66, there were auto trails. For a brief period in the early 20th century, these privately funded roads bridged the gap between the era of the stagecoach turnpike and the age of the federal highway. With names like the Yellowstone Trail, the National Old Trails Road and the famed Lincoln Highway, they offered the newly unshackled American tourist a way to hit the open road - even if that road was dirt or gravel, and you were liable to get lost along the way. The visionaries who built those roads and the carmakers who made it all possible. Did you know Henry Ford once set the land speed record ... on a frozen lake? Or that the National Football League was founded in an auto dealership? Or that the man behind the Lincoln Highway built the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and made Miami Beach a winter resort? You'll read about the first person to drive from coast to coast in an automobile (with a goggle-wearing bulldog) and the around-the-world contest that inspired the movie The Great Race. You'll also find stories of Dwight Eisenhower's 1919 cross-country trip that helped convince him of the need for an interstate highway system; and the auto camping craze that led to the first motels. But most of all, you'll learn about the auto trails themselves: How they came into being, their role in paving the way our federal highways, and their eventual demise. It's all here in a single volume packed with details and more than 200 historic and modern images. America's First Highways is a companion to Yesterday's Highways and Volume II in the America's Historic Highways Series.

Relive the history of the American highway from its origins in the era of the covered wagon through the age of the interstate. Illustrated with more than 400 images from roads across the country, Yesterday's Highways takes you back to the old auto trails that paved the way for the first federal highway system. You'll visit the diners, motels, filling stations and quirky roadside haunts of yesteryear. From White Castle to Howard Johnson's, learn about how the American road served up burgers and coffee and blue-plate specials to weary truckers and vacationing families. Journey back to the age of auto camps and revisit the time when mom-and-pop motel courts ruled the side of the road. Before the advent of off-ramps and car-pool lanes, highways zigzagged through downtowns, turning at stop signs and following rail lines. Cars chugged along at 15 mph over gravel roads and narrow, concrete ribbons with dozens of hairpin turns. Drivers were treated to barn ads and billboards and Burma-Shave signs. The Lincoln Highway. Route 66. Highway 99. El Camino Real. The Great Valley Road. Travel back in time and experience what made these roads and so many others the lifeblood of the American experience. Yesterday's Highways is the first in the America's Historic Highways series. A companion volume, America's First Highways, is also available.

The earth lies shrouded in endless night. A girl and a boy must work together to save the world. But that's not as easy as it seems: They live thousands of miles and a hundred years apart. Two orphans caught in a magical maze must find their way home, or all is lost. The labyrinth they've wandered into, in different years and from different directions, is filled with wonders and mortal dangers. Talking dragons and flying reindeer. An evil sorcerer who can bend time to his will. A tree-man who guards the Black Forest. The captain of an airborne pirate ship with a secret weapon he stole from heaven. Even death itself. But they have one hope to find their way home and save the world: seven magical artifacts called the Talismans of Time. And they have a secret ally: the headmistress of an Academy for magically gifted students who knows how to travel through time - and who has visited the labyrinth before. Can she help bring these two lost orphans together and repair a fateful flaw in history? The world is depending on them. If they can't accomplish their mission, the Academy will never even exist in the first place. And the Academy is everything. Will they succeed? Time will tell. And it's running out. Fans of Academy novels, Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and The Labyrinth will love this fanciful and thrilling adventure through the Lost Labyrinth. Pick it up today

ACADEMY of the LOST LABYRINTH, Book 2: The thrilling sequel to The TALISMANS of TIME The engines whined as the nose of the jumbo jet dove toward the ground below. Cassidy watched, helpless, as her best friend got sucked toward the gaping hole in the side of the plane. In an instant, she was gone." Stefani "The man who had been sent to bring them to their new life at the Academy sprang out of his seat. He wasn't just being sucked toward the hole-he was running toward it. Cassidy screamed as she saw him jump after Stefani......and disappear. "I am not the Pathfinder of Destiny-whatever that means," Cassidy said." It means," said Gamela, "that the fate of the world depends on you." Cassidy hadn't asked for this. She was a loner. An asthmatic, claustrophobic C-student from Detroit with one real friend and no real talent. Or so she thought. But the kindly and mysterious Mrs. Giles knows better. She knows Cassidy has a special gift, and that she needed a special school to develop it. Now, Cassidy finds herself at the Academy of the Lost Labyrinth, surrounded by other students who can travel through time, walk through dreams, change shapes and manipulate memories. But she feels more alone than ever, because something is going terribly wrong at the Academy, and only she can fix it. The problem is, she has no idea how. Fans of Academy novels, Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and The Labyrinth will love Book 2 of this fanciful and thrilling adventure through the Lost Labyrinth. Pick it up today

Martinsville isn't your typical Virginia town. It's been the plug tobacco capital of the world and the sweatshirt capital of the world. It hosts two stock-car races each year at the oldest speedway on the NASCAR circuit. And Patrick Henry once lived just down the road. Martinsville is a place of verdant beauty and blue skies a few miles north of the North Carolina state line, in the Goldilocks zone: seldom too hot in summer or too cold in winter. It has thrived as the town with the nation's most millionaires per capita and struggled through factory closures during the era of globalization. Packed with more than 300 images and chock full of details, Martinsville Memories is a look at a diverse town built on tobacco, textiles and furniture that occupies a unique place in the nation's fabric and history. From its the town's historic beginnings through its 20th century heyday, this volume offers a nostalgic trek through time, with stops at drive-ins, old hotels and iconic storefronts along the way. Martinsville Memories doesn't stop at the city limits, but gives the reader a tour of surrounding communities such as Collinsville, Ridgeway, Bassett, Axton, and Spencer as well. With a foreword by author and Martinsville native Stephen Mark Rainey, Martinsville Memories captures the triumphs and struggles of a city at the heart of the South and the soul of America.

She was the first player to sign a contract in the first women's professional basketball league, paving the way for the WNBA. She set records for the most points in a season, in a game, and in a playoff game that still stand four decades later. Yet few people know the story of Molly Bolin. Her shooting stroke evoked comparisons to Stephen Curry and earned her the nickname "Machine Gun Molly." She appeared in a movie with Pete Maravich and in a poster that made her the sports world's answer to Farrah Fawcett. But perhaps most impressively, she overcame the odds time and again through hard work and dedication. This is the story of a young girl from a small town in Iowa who had a dream, pursued it and made it come true. This is the legend of Molly Bolin.

They dared to be different: to shoot three-point shots, play football in the summer and baseball in skirts. They fielded teams with names like the Chicago Whales and Virginia Squires in leagues like the ABA, AAFC and WHL. They were innovators and outlaws, playing in rundown arenas and without TV contracts but making the kind of memories you don't find in prime time. You'll read stories of: - The high-scoring basketball star who was so volatile an opposing team once hired five boxers to stand guard at courtside - and who disappeared, never to be heard from again, on a trip to Africa.- The Hall of Famer who came out of retirement at age 45 to play alongside his two sons, leading his new team to a championship and winning the MVP Award.- The first superstar of women's basketball, who had a jump shot like Stephen Curry's and even wore his number. - George Steinbrenner's first big signing: the two-time college basketball player of the year.- The NBA legend whose poor eyesight led to him to design the ABA's red-white-and-blue basketball.- The man who built Wrigley Field and the team that played there before the Cubs called it home.- The hard-partying skater who signed the richest contract in pro sports but wound up sleeping on a park bench after he lost it all.- The team owner who warned Donald Trump he'd have "no regrets whatsoever" punching him "right in the mouth." - The batting champion who hit like Ty Cobb but was banned from baseball. (No, it's not Shoeless Joe Jackson.)- The team that was supposed to bring NFL football to Los Angeles nine years before the Rams moved west from Cleveland. Illustrated with dozens of photos and filled with statistics, "A Whole Different League" brings these memories and much more together in a single volume that covers everything from bowling to Negro League baseball. It's a look at the "other" leagues that helped shape the way our favorite sports are played today, even if they themselves are all but forgotten.

Have you ever wanted to plug your ears and scream after hearing a newscaster, politician, sports announcer or your boss use THAT word again? You know the one: that buzzword or cliche that sets your teeth on edge because you've heard it so often? It doesn't really mean anything. It's just there. On people's lips. In the newspaper. On television. Everywhere, all the time. Well, chances are, it's here, too, in this irreverent look at some of the things people say far too often while giving them far too little thought. Consider this book your last line of defense against the banal inanities that assault your ears on a daily basis. Its purpose is to poke fun at them, which is really all most of them are good for: poking fun at. "Please Stop Saying That " is a no-holds-barred, sarcastic look at the catch phrases used in politics, religion, sports, business, pop culture and elsewhere. You'll never look at (or listen to) jargon quite the same way again.

Journey back into the mists of time and discover a new myth about an ancient legend. Meet an old wizard caught between two ambitious kings who discovers and unexpected visitor on the doorstep of his woodland home - a visitor who will change his life forever. Join that visitor, Tara, as she flies to the ends of the earth to seek help from another kindly wizard and his acolyte, who have harnessed the magic of fire. That magic has fallen into the wrong hands, and Tara must race against time to save her friend's woodland home from disaster. She will need help from an insightful gray tabby named Argentus and a mysterious woman who is more than she appears. Where did our stories of dragons originate? How did this mighty creature come to breathe fire, and whose treasure did it guard? Why does the dragon figure so prominently in the legends lands 5,000 miles apart: feared in the West but beloved in the East? Learn what Tara and her friends learn as she becomes The Only Dragon. The answers to all these questions and more lie within ... if you believe.

Somebody wanted Minerva Rus dead. They succeeded. But Minerva isn't letting a little thing like death stop her. After the dangerous adventure that killed her in Memortality, Minerva Rus has reconciled herself to being dead. She and her also-dead boyfriend Raven share an amazing gift that allows them to bring the dead back to life--including each other. Now that Jules, their most dangerous enemy, has been banished from reality and trapped inside her own mind, Minerva and Raven plan on enjoying the eternity of their unnatural lives. But immortality isn't safe. Minerva and Raven's life-giving powers mysteriously fade, forcing them to take refuge in The Between, a shadowy realm of memories that lies between life and death. What's more, their old adversary Jules is on the loose, partnered with a resurrected Nazi scientist planning a monstrous experiment that will change the destiny of the human race. And now it's up to a 21-year-old dead girl to save the world--again.

This volume is a compilation of three previously published works - The Osiris Testament, The Way of the Phoenix and The Gospel of the Phoenix - which together make up a new vision of ancient myths across the diverse cultures whose lore and legends, when woven together, make up the tapestry of Western mythical tradition. The Osiris Testament corresponds roughly to the Pentateuch, The Way of the Phoenix to the Book of Proverbs (and the parables of Jesus) and The Gospel of the Phoenix to the canonical gospels. Each presents familiar material, together with more obscure traditions, in a fresh presentation. Among the myths and historical accounts incorporated are those from ancient Mesopotamia, Canaan and Egypt, together with legends from Scandinavia and the Celts. Somewhat obscure traditions from the Gnostics and the Ebionites, as well as apocryphal material from early Christianity, also served as source material for this volume. Each of the three volumes contained here is also available separately, with more illustrations and, in the case of The Gospel of the Phoenix, an author's commentary on the text. A comprehensive analysis of these and other traditions can be found in my expansive companion work, The Phoenix Principle, available in two volumes as Forged in Ancient Fires and Messiah in the Making. Much of the research conducted for that work is reproduced her in poetic form.