I write about whatever interests me, and I never know when inspiration is going to strike. I had never written a tall tale until a group organizing a celebration of the Kansas River asked me (a childen's librarian at the time) for books about the river for children....and there weren't any. Step right up, Johnny Kaw - The Pioneer Spirit of Kansas. I had never written a ghost story, or even considered it. Then, while sitting in a French restaurant in Estes Park, Colorado, having lunch with my husband, suddenly a ghost was whispering her story in my ear. I jotted down notes on the proverbial paper napkin as fast as I could. Her story became The Secret of Whispering Springs. I wrote Gifts for a Newborn King because, as a child, I always wondered what frankincense and myrrh really were!
For more information about me and my all of my books, check my author page on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/author/jerrigarretson
Snurpa of Stoughton
This is both a tribute to my extraordinary mother, and inspired by her memoir of her first 22 years, which is the backbone of the book. I have edited it, added over photos, chapters summarizing the rest of her 100-year-long life, and completed it with an index and list of images.
Marion’s delightful and charming memoir of growing up in the small town of Stoughton in southern Wisconsin with her loving extended Norwegian American family shines with details and is enhanced by over 500 photos she, her father and other family members took. The life of the 1920s and 1930s, her experiences at the University of Wisconsin in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and her determination to complete her education are enriched by an account of the latter 78 years of her long life as a mother, biologist and world traveler.
Her stories of school, church, play, friends, neighbors, and her feisty fights with a host of bothersome boys are entertaining. Her account of dorm life, dating, and studying to be a medical technologist offer a view of college life around 1940. Also included are a map of Stoughton, her neighborhood and home floorplan; a selection of her mother's beloved recipes; and a list of the Norwegian words her family used daily, often unaware of their origin. This book is a historical treasure.
Donald G. Kundiger
1913-1960
A Life Remembered
When Don Kundiger was a child, he was riding in a horse drawn buggy, yet lived to see Sputnik shock the world. His childhood was itinerant until high school, as his father repeatedly sought to find longer term work as a small Wisconsin cheesemaker. Don was intelligent and talented, studying to be a concert pianist and ultimately becoming a research organic chemist with 29 patents to his name. He lived in Wisconsin, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Manhattan, Kansas. Each added to his life. This narrative details his family life and travels, his research and teaching, and is complemented by over 400 photos and documents.
The story of his rise and ultimate death at forty-six, probably driven by what we now know as traumatic brain injury, a diagnosis that was not recognized in the 1950s, is a tragedy. His family details the devastating effects of his suicide with love and candor.
This is a companion book to Snurpa, the biographies of both my parents.
https://www.amazon.com/Donald-G-Kundiger-1913-1960-Remembered/dp/B0FF2M3PYH
Note: Ebook versions of the two books below are only available on Apple Books or Google Books, at the links below. All others are available on Amazon.com and other online bookstores.
Poems & Pictures ebook on Apple Books
http://books.apple.com/us/book/id6457989065
No Place Like Home ebook on Apple Books.
http://books.apple.com/us/book/id6458592906
Poems & Pictures ebook on Google Books
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Poems_Pictures/z0rPEAAAQBAJ
No Place Like Home ebook on Google Books
https://www.google.com/books/edition/No_Place_Like_Home/pv7REAAAQBAJ