Tom Blair

A Modern-Day Profiles in Courage from New York Times Bestselling Author Tom Blair In Letters to America, Tom Blair conjures up mini-memoirs of twelve fictional historical characters--spanning four centuries, from the first settlers in Jamestown to a 21st century billionaire. Whether going West in a wagon train or off to war to defend the nation, these past Americans suffered and sacrificed to achieve monumental goals. The events of the book ricochet between funny and sad, hopeful and doubtful, but a common theme runs through the letters: personal struggles to build a better life in America. Do we, modern Americans, have the work ethic and perseverance of our forefathers? By revealing the lives of these twelve indelible characters, Blair hopes to inspire readers to strive to gain personal success. The stories in each chapter reveal what it has meant to be an American throughout history--ranging from a single year in the life of Milly's sister, an unsophisticated and confused young girl toiling in a sweatshop, to an entire lifetime for John, a sharecropper's son who goes on to fight Nazis and ends life witnessing integration in the South. The events of the book ricochet between funny and sad, hopeful and doubtful, but a common theme runs through all the letters: personal struggles to build a better life in America. Blair's Letters to America is a compilation of voices each entirely distinct, weaving "an imaginative, sobering, and instructive message to contemporary Americans," according to Tom Brokaw. Featuring a brand-new foreword from the author, together their stories tell a history that is both humbling and deeply affecting, filled with hope for a future that can be as inspirational as our past.

Kreisler's Credenza Switch-Hitters Such a deal Toofer the price of one. Take a break from that pricey best seller or ghosted toe wrapped in gushing one-liners. Relax with these fine novellas by two unknowns whose modest goal between work shifts is the lonesome journey of personal creative fulfillment. The two novellas of this present offering were written in the creative writing class Where You Been Hidin? that was created and taught by Desmond Scott Rubinstein. Mr. Rubinstein (1940-1074) was a prolific ghostwriter for Brown & Shoe in the early '70s. Melville House acquired the manuscripts from his son Aaron (1966-2018), who graciously donated them and many more from his father's oeuvres located in the boiler room of his alma mater, Mundane University. George Chadwick (1950-1985) and Joseph Gannon (1945-2001) demonstrated a stylistic flair remarkably echoed in later works by Guy Tuckwell (Casino Dreams); Malcolm Lender (I Break for Death); and Grace Potamis (Homely Daughters), which are all well-published graduates of Scott Rubinstein's famous class.

Letters to America was written to energize Americans at a time of economic stress and self-doubt. By reading of the sacrifices the previous American generations – that often endured everyday hardships beyond the comprehension of those of us with running water – challenges confronting individual modern Americans pale in comparison. Starvation and hardship was a given for the early settlers, and yet somehow they persevered and through the fruits of their labors and the tenacity of subsequent immigrants and their descendants, the United States of America grew and flourished. Do we have the work ethic and perseverance today of our forefathers? Do modern Americans even know what true suffering is? Tom Blair believes that Americans can come together to solve this country’s problems, but they will need to be able to sacrifice and work like those who have come before us. A blending of Forrest Gump, Roots and a Profiles in Courage populated by characters from the country’s past. Letters to America is a compilation of twelve letters, each a chapter told in first person, by fictional Americans about their everyday lives. The voices are entirely distinct—men, women, and children; white, black, Native American, Jewish—spanning four centuries, from early American settlers in Jamestown in the 1620s to modern day corporate lunches in mid-town Manhattan. Yet the stories are loosely linked by subtle resonances; and the letters have a cumulative effect that is both humbling and deeply affecting, filled with hope for a future that can be as inspirational as our past.

For decades, Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack provided sage advice and commentary on eighteenth-century America. Now, a modern businessman reflects?writing as Benjamin Franklin?on what America has become. Federal and personal debt are ballooning beyond sustainable levels. Our futures are being jeopardized. Partisan bickering and the entrenched powers of special interests have made it nearly impossible for a real leader to lead. Where is a good American to turn? How about to the man who wrote this timeless observation: ? A small leak will sink a great ship”? Ben is back! With his signature intelligence and wit (not to mention a good sprinkling of aphorisms both old and new), Benjamin Franklin, through Tom Blair, moves from the national deficit to Wall Street, from health care to marital bliss. The result is electrifying.