Minnesota Books

For a good book from the perspective of death row: "A Checkered Past" by William Van Poyck, on death row in Florida. The book is available at amazon.com.

Jerry Layne Rogers, Sr. -- wrongfully convicted and innocent. From 1989 - 1992, I was his investigator at CCR.

Mr. Rogers' case consisted in 1992 of at least 80 boxes of documents, from court files, prosecutor and law enforcement files, trial and evidentiary hearing transcripts, etc. Mr. Rogers's case was the largest and most complicated that CCR [The Office of Capital Collateral Representative -- a state agency in the judicial branch of Florida government] has ever represented that I am aware of.

The second largest and most complicated was that of Mr. Gerald Stano, whose lead attorney during most of the development of his case was Mark E. Olive.

In 1995, Mr. Rogers began receiving pro bono representation from the Washington, D.C. law firm Covington and Burling. The result was an unanimous Florida Supreme Court (FSC) 26 page opinion ordering a new trial in Mr. Rogers' case due primarily to prosecutorial misconduct, in particular Brady v. Maryland violations.

To read the opinion, go to the FSC website, then at "Public Information", to the recent opinions, to the year 2001, then toward the bottom at February 15, 2001, one will find the FSC opinion.

During the summer of 2002, Mr. Rogers was re-convicted, however sentenced to life upon the jury recommendation. Now twice Mr. Rogers has been wrongfully convicted.

In 2004, the Florida 5th District Court of Appeal denied relief. The FSC declined to accept jurisdiction and thus denied the petition for review.

Mr. Rogers' case is pending Federal review.




For those interested in reading the narrowly decided by four to three vote Florida Supreme Court opinions regarding two more death sentenced persons whose innocence is an authentic issue, please go to the FSC website, then go to the recent opinions, then chose the correct year and scroll down to the following two cases:

Roy Swafford: April 18, 2002

Peter Ventura: May 24, 2001


Additionally, the issue in the below cases is DNA testing that proves that Roy Swafford did not rape Brenda Rucker:

Roy Swafford: March 26, 2004 Case Nos. SC03.931 and SC03.1153

From 1986 - 1992 I was employed as an investigator at the Office of Capital Collateral Representative (CCR) in Tallahassee, Florida, where Scharlette Holdman worked as the supervisor of the investigators from October 1985 - March 1988. Scharlette Holdman is cited in approving comments by Mello in at least two of his books.

I have known Scharlette since the mid-1970s death penalty debates at Florida State University, including the debate between Professor Richard L. Rubenstein (author of "After Auschwitz", "My Brother Paul", "The Cunning of History: Mass Death and the American Future", "The Age of Triage", "Religion and Eros", and other books) vs. Baptist Minister and Philosopher Will Campbell (the debate was circa 1977).

Her office, the Clearinghouse on Criminal Justice, was in the same wing of the Petroleum Building as my office at Common Cause in Florida (where I was a full-time volunteer during the day and worked at the Brown Derby Restaurant at night from 1981 - 1986).

The Petroleum Building was next to the State Capital, the Florida Supreme Court and the State Archives and Library. When it was torn down, the space and the space for the first CCR office became the Mary Brogan Art and Science Museum storm water retaining pond. The Petroleum Building was called by those of us who worked or volunteered there the "Forces of Good" (FOG) Building -- as opposed to FOE -- Forces of Evil, such as Associated Industries, the Chamber and other big business interests in Florida. The FOG building also included (not an exhaustive list) the Clean Water Action Project, the ACLU, NOW, Florida Legal Services, Migrant Farmworker's Organization (directed by Cliff Thaell, who has more recently been a Leon County Commissioner for about ten years or more), Mike Vasilinda's television news service.

About every two years at CCR there was a Marxist-Leninist-Stalinist-Maoist purge due to the pressures and dysfunctions of the work and the people. I survived two such purges. With the third, I was the first to go in the spring and summer of 1992.

When Scharlette had essentially declared war upon CCR in 1987 and thereafter, some of us decided to investigate her background given some things that we had heard. Low and behold, Scharlette's claim of a PhD in anthropology from the University of Hawaii and a Master's Degree from Memphis State (now University of Memphis) don't exist. A claimed undergraduate degree from Memphis State: I no longer recall if this was confirmed by the university.

We used Scharlette's Social Security number, her maiden name and her married name -- with all this information, both universities had no record of Scharlette having received any degrees from these institutions.

As I understand Scharlette, she needed the "degrees" to confer upon her "credentials" that she really never needed as she is indeed then and now a national expert on capital mitigation, litigation, etc. However Scharlette can be deceptive, as her lack of a PhD and Masters so demonstrates. Even today she claims to have the degrees as when she gives presentations regarding capital cases, she is identified as "Dr." A key word search of her name will bring up some of the presentations that she has made in the past several years with the title "Dr." preceding her name.

If she has received any honorary or other degrees since 1990, that would be new information for me. If anyone can assist in this matter, please contact me at paul_d_harvill@yahoo.com or my mailing address: P.O. Box 38458, Tallahassee, FL 32315-8458. Thank you.

Michael Mello, who used to represent death sentenced persons in Florida with the Office of Capital Collateral Representative (CCR) and the Palm Beach County Public Defender's Office in the early to mid-1980s, writes an excellent analysis of eleven Florida capital cases.

Both David Von Drehle and Michael Mello's books are excellent and very well describe what life is like for those on death row and those representing death sentenced persons, particularly at the old CCR [Office of Capital Collateral Representative]. However there is more:

After Mark E. Olive voluntarily resigned from CCR about March 1988, Billy H. Nolas became the next Chief Litigator. It is extremely odd that neither Mello nor Von Drehle even mention Nolas nor the next Chief Litigator Martin or Marty J. McClain. For important reasons they should have.

Billy H. Nolas is an excellent litigator like Olive. Nolas was the Chief Litigator for the last two years of the Gov. Martinez "regime", which was the most difficult time in CCR history [during my employment there] with Martinez signing death warrants as if he was at a Republican Party event signing autographs.

Nolas resigned at the end of 1990, after Martinez had been defeated by former U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles and former U.S. House of Representatives member Buddy MacKay.

Nolas was completely drained from the years he endured and litigated while at CCR, due to the huge case load and the internecine warfare within the agency. McClain and his faction within CCR did their best to cause Nolas to leave -- eventually they were successful -- and THAT is when clients' cases began to suffer.

Martin J. McClain is an excellent litigator, however his strategic decisions in various cases are questionable. When Mello writes on page 245 of the hardcover version of "Dead Wrong" regarding CCR, "Look beneath the surface of CCR's 'success rates', however, and you'll find an artifice typical of hack public defender officers. CCR has in the past farmed out the hardest cases to outside lawyers (by finding that it has a 'conflict of interest')". The period of time that Mello is referring to is when Martin J. McClain was the Chief Litigator and Michael Minerva was the executive director of CCR.

As the premier example of McClain alleging a "conflict of interest" [and I can only assume with the consent of the director of CCR at the time, Michael Minerva] is the client Jerry Layne Rogers, Sr. -- a wrongfully convicted and innocent man -- Mr. Rogers' case in 1992 consisted of at least 80 boxes of documents, from court files, prosecutor and law enforcement files, trial and evidentiary hearing transcripts, etc. Mr. Rogers' case was the largest and most complicated that CCR has ever represented [during my employment there].

The second largest and most complicated was that of Mr. Gerald Stano, whose lead attorney during most of the development of his case was Mark Olive.

McClain simply didn't want to have such a complicated case as a CCR case, so McClain, in my considered insider opinion as Mr. Roger's only investigator from 1989 until my involuntary departure in 1992, alleged in a misrepresentation to the Florida Supreme Court (FSC) that he had a "conflict of interest" with Mr. Rogers -- while Mr. Rogers' case was pending at the FSC.

As a result, Mr. Rogers had no counsel for an extended period of time until the Washington, D.C. law firm Covington and Burling became his pro bono counsel in 1995. The result was an unanimous FSC 26 page opinion ordering a new trial due primarily to prosecutorial misconduct, in particular Brady v. Maryland violations.

To read the opinion, go to the Florida Supreme Court website, to recent opinions, to the year 2001, scroll down to February 15, 2001.

During the summer of 2002, Mr. Rogers was re-convicted, however the jury recommended and Mr. Rogers received a life sentence. Thus for a second time Mr. Rogers has been wrongfully convicted.

Another wrongfully convicted Florida death row inmate, who is now a free man, Juan Melendez, testified about his neighbor on death row, Mr. Rogers. Mr. Rogers taught him how to speak, read and write in English as well as assisting him in coping skills while on death row.

In 2004, the Florida 5th District Court of Appeal denied relief. The FSC declined to accept jurisdiction and thus denied the petition for review.

Mr. Rogers' case is pending Federal review.

Reading this book, and taking a graduate course as a non matriculated graduate student in the Fall of 2004 with Briankle, were very special experiences for me. His ability to make the nearly incomprehensible theories (for an American non philosopher)of Heidegger, Husserl, Derrida, Baudrillard, Foucault...comprehensible was a transformative experience for me. He is a courageous, uncompromising theoretician who is much loved and respected by his students and colleagues.
This work is essential reading in understanding the origins and vicissitudes of deconstruction methodology. My only regret is that Briankle hasn't imparted more of his wisdom, and I never had an opportunity to study with him further. Compared to professors I have studied with before and after, including well known names at Harvard,
Chicago, and the New School, Briankle remains the most inspirational
and authentic thinker and teacher I have had the pleasure to learn from.

Thanks Briankle

Michael S.
Cambridge, Ma
Advancement@Comcast.net

Don't let the title of this book intimidate. This is a must-read for anyone looking to get a handle on deconstruction and its inseparable relation to classical philosophy, phenomenology, and the study of communication. Chang challenges some of the most cherished assumptions and pretenses of communication theory, and he does so in straight-up language that manages, brilliantly, to de-mystify tough material while at the same time bending the mind.

What a find! Simply put, the one indispensable book on communication theory. With surgical precision, Chang tears into the heart of the discipline's theoretical corpus to reveal not only that there's no there there, but that there would be no communication, and no theory of communication, without its not being there. Along the way, the book provides a clear and elegant introduction to the work of Derrida and Heidegger, among others. This alone makes it worth the price of admission.

What a find! Simply put, the one indispensable book on communication theory. With surgical precision, Chang tears into the heart of the communication discipline's theoretical corpus to reveal not only that there's no there there, but that there would be no theory of communication, and no communication generally, without its not being there. Along the way, the book provides a clear and elegant introduction to the work of Derrida and Heidegger, among others. This alone makes it worth the price of admission.

I think this book was great. It was so great because it told a true story of courage. I recommend it to anyone who wants adventure.

"Distant Fires" was published in 1990 and is the true account of a summer canoe trip from Duluth Minnesota to Hudson Bay Canada by two men in their early 20's. More than anything else, this book speaks to the modern charisma and abilities of the author, who planned and accomplished the journey, then, wrote such a wonderful and humorous account of it. Chapter by chapter, the reader is taken to the water, along the route, and into the perspective of the adventure. This book is testomony to what's in the future and beyond the horizon. It cannot be over-recommended for young and old. Thank you Scott Anderson for sharing your uncommon knowledge and insight of "Distant Fires" on earth and in our lives.

This is an astonishing book about two young men who want so much to have a great adventure experience before they get too old and can't go. So, they set out in their canoe to recreate an adventure 50 years ago, by Eric Sevareid, to canoe 2000 miles, from Duluth, Minn. to the Hudson's Bay. Every step along the way they encounter adversity, bugs, hardship, danger- yet they press on with a determination and will to complete this task, and win. They do so with much humor and dry wit. I found myself laughing out loud in many places. Where else can you read about two young men moving at the speed of a canoe paddle, going upstream, battling headwinds, eight foot waves that could easily swamp their canoe, rapids, portages through dense growth, beaver dams, and of course, mosquitos, mosquitos and more....?

It seems that they must have never been dry or warm over this journey that took them over three months to complete. But they never lost their sense of humor and never gave up, even though the odds were immense.

I greatly reccommend this book. It reads easily, and will be an excellent choice for young as well as older readers who enjoy a good travel adventure. It is a wonderful inspiration to all who read the book.

This is the book I read when I feel "displaced" from wherever the Air Force has me at the present time. If you are familiar with the outdoors lifestyle of northern Minnesota, this book will refresh any memories you have of trips up "The Shore" (north shore of Lake Superior) or the Boundary Waters. The author is a Duluth, MN native who tells his story of an extended canoe trip that started at his home and ended in Hudson Bay. The reading is light, and is enhanced with a lot of local color humor.

Concise and interesting. A wonderful link between the anecdotes of folklore and the juggernaut of scientific research. The photos make this book possible possible for use in the field, albeit a bit bulky for travel.

Excellent, not limited to Minn and Wis. An excellent overview of 100 plants from the Prairies and forests of the upper midwest. In-depth review of historical uses balanced with the author's own clinical experience and practical how-to informaiton. Good safety data and recommendations. Most of these plants grow around me in Colorado, and everywhere in the 1500 miles to the authors home, so the book's title is too limited.

I wouldn't say this is the one and only book you'll ever need. But it certainly is a GREAT addition to anyone's herbal library. It's relatively easy to use, because the plants are listed in alphabetical order by their common names. The food qualities and health benefits of the plants are thorough and informative, as well as their habitat and visual description. Points of interest are easy to find and there is a listing of plants that are good for certain illnesses. Plus short descriptions of how to use and prepare them.

This book is very scientific and seems to cover it all in an up-to-date fashion. But if you're not familiar with terms in botany and biology you'll find this book a little difficult to understand. It has a good glossary but a dictionary is still handy at times.
None the less the book has true to life color photos, which are the best I've seen for wild plant identification. Considerably this just may be the answer book for this topic. It's defiantly worth the price, if you desire to take wild herb collecting seriously.

A disclaimer at the beginning of Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Of Minnesota & Wisconsin warns that some wild plants are toxic or even deadly; though the author Matthew Alfs has made every effort to completely describe safe ways to recognize, harvest, and prepare edible wild plants, they cannot be held liable for any adverse effects. With that sober caution in mind, Edible & Medicinal Wild Plants Of Minnesota & Wisconsin is a truly impressive compendium of information and lore about the art of foraging. A beautiful section of color photographs aptly illustrates the many species of edible plants discussed and described herein. User-friendly introductions to using wild plants for food and health benefits are written in clear, concise text easily accessible to the lay reader. A glossary, exhaustive list of references and comprehensive index round out this superbly presented and very highly recommended guide.

I had to read this book for my State and Local Government class. I'm not from Minnesota (although my roommate is and insists that he was voted in as a joke - but whatever), but this book gave lots of background and plenty of information for Non-Minnesotans. Writer Jacob Lentz gives a short background before going into the story of Jesse Ventura's campaign, and then analyzing Ventura's victory in the last chapters. This isn't a "celebrity" book. You won't find any information about Ventura's wrestling career here. But for those interested in political science and why Ventura got elected, this book makes for a fascinating read.

Having been a fan of Lentz for years, I feel that this book is the pinnacle of his writing achievements to date. As another member of the "Jacob Lentz Official Fan Club" put it, "This book will hurt your brain and make you weep". Lentz has established himself as one of the pre-eminent American authors of the mid-late 1990's era and hopefully, will continue to impress the American public with his eloquent verbosity. Bravo.

This is a great book. Read it and weep over the beauty of the prose, the breadth of the insight, and the joy of being a human alive and reading.

As somewhat of a pundit and a native Minnesotan I had been waiting for ANY analysis of Ventura's victory beyond our abysmal newspapers' and Ventura's own "We shocked the world." After having just begun this remarkable book I wondered why I had no other works by Mr. Lentz in my library. This smart, crisp analysis is extraordinary in both its breadth and depth. Simply page through the bibliography and footnotes and you will understand what I mean. This would be a perfect addition to any class (or individual) interested in the rising third party movements in our country, and will pleasantly surprise both the novice and the seasoned pundit with it's readability.

This is an excellent English-Dakota dictionary, but be aware that it does not include a Dakota-English section. The Dakota-English volume is sold separately (ISBN 0873512820) and is also high quality. The English-Dakota volume does include a pronunciation guide and clear grammatical overview.

John P.Williamson married my Great Great Aunt Sarah, my great great grandmothers sister. I recently pulled out of my trunk of family heirlooms a book about him and started reading it. I am not yet finished but close. What a man. I can only imagine what a good job his translation is. For his day and time, for the modes of transportation they did not have, he sure got around and met quite a few important people.

this is a good dictionary but lacks some words (like full list of names for uncles) and doesn't give a full transcription regarding stops series

After searching libraries, the net, and schools for an accurate, good Dakota dictionary, I finally found this book. I was, to be blunt, amazed! Not only does it have a great listing of words (that you can actually use), but it also includes a short introduction of grammar and usage.

I got to test my new skills at a recent Powwow in Minnesota, where I had an entire conversation (although slow!) with a Dakota man. Although he needed to correct me on a few words and some grammar, he was impressed. He was shocked when I told him I had only begun learning within the last six months! I could not have done it without the aid of this book! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Seems very thourough... very excited to go test out the advice in the boundary waters!

This book has given me the tools I need to plan my first wilderness canoe camping trip with my family. The maps and route recommendations have been particularly valuable. Its not the only piece of information I'll collect, but it is a great, comprehensive start.

This is a good place to start planning your trip. The author has actually been to almost all of the areas reviewed.

Exploring The Boundary Waters: A Trip Planner And Guide To The BWCAW is a no-nonsense guide written especially for canoe enthusiasts with an interest in the one million acres of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Offering an overview of each entry point, meticulously detailed accountings of one hundred routes covering difficulty level as well as pros and cons, fifty-one maps showcasing major waterways, portages, and designated campsites, and much more, Exploring the Boundary Waters is the resource to consult before planning a canoe getaway in the BWCAW. Written by a frequent visitor and Boundary Waters expert Daniel Pauly with assistance from the U.S. Forest Service, the Minnesota DNR, and local outfitters, Exploring The Boundary Waters is a "must-have" resource on everything from obtaining a permit to maintaining the ecological integrity of the wilderness to planning one's route, discovering historic sites on one's trip, and much more. Highly recommended.

Very detailed and accurate route descriptions. Portage difficulty and lengths were helpful in planning for "trip newbees" we had on our recent trip. Many geologic points of interest usually missed were well described.

This forgotten book deserves attention. Critics have always loved it, but the unfortunate title ("Fast Company: How Six Master Gamblers Defy the Odds--And Always Win") confused the reading public. It never sold well. It is NOT a collection of get-rich-quick drivel. It's a group of incredibly poignant, expertly delivered portraits of some of the most colorful professional hustlers of the 20th Century.

At once informative, funny, and deeply moving, Fast Company is one of two favorite books on my extensive shelf of gambling titles. If you're at all curious about the subject, you must buy it.

Not really a travel book, like the rest of the Vintage Departures line, but an examination of another culture just the same. Bradshaw profiles six men with something in common--they are all hustlers, that is, gamblers who make a living by their wits. The range here is great, including the tennis player Bobby Riggs and backgammon great Tim Holland, as well as more "traditional" gamblers Minnesota Fats (pool), Pug Pearson and Johnny Moss (poker), and Titantic Thompson (proposition). But these were just what these men were best at--they all exceeded at almost every game they undertook, golf being an extremely common one for each. Bradshaw was a gifted writer. His style makes this book difficult to place down; the subject makes it nigh impossible.

I'm sitting here and recalling some of my favorites of the nearly hundred poker/gambling books I bought between 1999 and 2002 while learning the ropes. Looking through my collection I find not one but three copies of Fast Company. The memories come flooding back!
I have three copies because back then it was out of print and I bought every used copy I could find online, just to be sure I always have a copy. It is that good.
Bradshaw was a truly gifted essayist and observer and was never out to sell the gamblers here as heroes. What he did instead was get inside their heads like a master poker player, and then show us what made them tick. Add to that their own reminiscences of many of the other greats and you get one of the most in-depth of all books on gamblers and their passion. (Those who judge gamblers as somehow unholy might learn a thing or three from this book, and might consider that our entire global economy is run by Wall Street gamblers who have recently made some of the worst wagers in history...though when you keep your billions in profits but your debts are picked up by the taxpayer, it's always a good bet!)
The extra stroke of genius of Fast Company is that Bradshaw was able to meet and chronicle the lives of some of America's greatest gamblers (and what country is more based on gambling?) before they died, and before most in the mainstream realized how special they really were. Each of the six portraits is a masterpiece.
It's hard to pick a favorite as each article is so fine, but the pieces on Johnny Moss and Titanic Thompson are truly legendary, as were their subjects. I won't go into detail other than to say that I just reread the last paragraph and got a chill up my spine remembering what I felt when I first read this book. I learned a lot about poker and life from Fast Company, lessons that have served me well and made me money ever since. Never underestimate the power of a great book!
No hyperbole could match how far beyond other gambling writers Bradshaw was/is. He understood how complex and incredibly sharp and funny and wise and foolish these men were, because he was in their league. He doesn't lionize them nor does he demean them. He shows full respect for their incredible lives and exploits (and is willing to slyly point up their hubris, as with Fats) and by the time you've read about these six gamblers (three of the greatest poker players included, Moss being perhaps the finest of all time) you have a true feel for what being a real road gambler back in the day meant.
There's also wry laughs aplenty, as in the Bobby Riggs tale, and so many great anecdotes. So many! The Gods of Gambling made sure that a writer of Bradshaw's calibre was able to meet Moss and Thompson et al before they (and he) died, so that we would have a book that finally reveals the depth and breadth (as well as the shallowness) of the life of a world-class gambler. These are not always the greatest of men but they are all great characters, with all that implies.
For some reason I've never loaned this book to any friends; it's always felt like my own little secret world in some strange way, a hidden canyon full of dapppled sunlight and dark corners that shows how glorious and venal life can simultaneously be. Read it and you'll see why. It is a very special book indeed, and it amazes me that it has never received anywhere close to the acclaim it deserves. Only two reviews five years after the second reprint in three decades? (Blessings to the reprinters, by the way! Few books are more worthy.) Truly incredible, especially in light of the poker boom and resultant poker book boom (most of which are trash and not worthy of sitting on a shelf next to this tome).
And a dime for a used copy? Deal of the century! Buy a copy for everyone you know who appreciates great writing when they read it, or who has ever stayed up all night in a game trying to get unstuck.
Thank you Jon Bradshaw, wherever you are, for writing the definitive book on what it means to be a gambler, warts and all. You are in the same class as Thompson and Moss: the best in your field, and sadly underappreciated by history. That will change. (One day you will hear this book mentioned and quoted by every lame tv poker commentator out there. Everyone tells the Moss/Greek story, but this is the only version in Johnny's own words.) This book will also sooner or later be accorded its just position atop the gamblers' literary pantheon beside Dostoyevsky and friends.
Then again, true greatness is its own reward. As any real gambler knows (and who amongst us is not gambling every day, even just by driving on the highway or eating genetically modified "food"?), it's living the peaks to the fullest that counts, and then surviving to scale them again. Some of the finest and most interesting people I have ever met were at a poker table. Beauty is oft found in the most unlikely places.
Fast Company has my highest recommendation for those who respect men who live life the way they want to, and love to slip back in time to a world before plastic was invented.

This book helped me incredibly understand the odds and help beat the casino at their games. I recommend it.

This is an excellent book. The book is written in such detail that it is easy to imagine yourself being there. This is a great book for those of any age. It will bring back some good memories of your childhood.

Paulsen writes about seasons in his hometown being determined by types of fish caught down by the dam, under the Ninth street bridge, or in frozen lakes, and not by dates on calendars. When fishing ends, hunting is the obsession for Paulsen and friends he calls "orphans of the woods." He explains, "When we were in the woods or fishing the rivers and lakes our lives didn't hurt."

This book is a nature lover's choice. Paulsen writes of growing up in a small Minnesota town and he intertwines this town's life with stories of adventurous boys. Two of my favorite essays are "Running the River" and "Bow Hunting." The first is a hilarious tale of an overplanned camping trip gone wrong when the boat, full of supplies and boys, sinks, forcing the boys to walk back to town. "Bow Hunting" is a coming of age essay in which a boy, after killing his first doe, poignantly describes his realization that while his life will continue, hers will not.

This is one of the best books I have read about outdoors. The stories were exellently written and engulfed me in the happnings. I felt as if I could smell the crisp morning air on the first day of hunting season.I would give this book 50 stars but there is only five on the sheet.

This book truly brings nature to your fingertips. As a reader, I felt as if I was out in the wild, experiencing everything of which Paulsen wrote. With the descriptive settings and easy-to-relate-to tales, Paulsen makes the reader feel as if they have entered the woods along with the characters in the story. The essays on fishing and hunting in the northern woods are definitely his best work yet! This book is easy to follow, yet has very deep and interesting accounts.
I recommend this illustration to anyone who enjoys the great outdoors. If you want to learn about cold, winter morning fishing excursions, or hot, summer days in the woods, this is the perfect book to help fulfill your curiosity. Father Water Mother Woods is worth your time of reading and is definitely a classic.

At the height of this champion's popularity, crowds of 100,000-plus would jam venues throughout the nation for a chance to view him in action.

During the years when records fell as fast as he set them, endorsement deals were a-plenty, with annual earnings topping $1 million. In retirement, he "penned" an autobiography through the use of a ghost writer and never took the time to read the final draft before it went to print. But you can't blame the legend for overlooking his book. You see, this superb athlete was the natural pacer, Dan Patch.

Author Tim Brady does a marvelous piece of research in bringing to life the truly forgotten history of this great Standardbred and owner/promoter Marion W. Savage in the early years of the 20th Century.

The pair rode to tremendous heights, but suffered tragic falls in the years after the last race was paced. It was a wild ride when it was at its peak, with Savage shrewdly parlaying the athletic prowess of Dan Patch into great wealth, which faded away when the franchise fell apart.
And Dan Patch went from touring the nation in his own railroad coach to dying in obscurity, being buried in an unmarked grave.

The nine-minute DVD contains archival footage of Dan Patch, which is an extremely rare look at the racer. There is very little recorded material available.

Time and age not only erodes the talent of a superior athlete, but it can disintegrate from the public consciousness the feats that seemed like they would live on forever. Brady blows away the dust of a century past and delivers a remarkable distant replay.

I love the book but I have noticed several errors in the years. Some of the pages show 2003 instead of 1903. some show 2000 instead of 1900. Not sure who proof read this book before it was released, but they missed allot of errors.

Written by Tim Brady, whose many credentials include frequent contributions to the "History Channel" magazine, The Great Dan Patch and the Remarkable Mr. Savage is the true story of an exceptional racehorse and its equally exceptional rags-to-riches owner. Did the man make the horse, or did the horse make the man? Set in the early 1900's, The Great Dan Patch and the Remarkable Mr. Savage follows equine champion Dan Patch's remarkable career from county fairs to competitive "brushes" between farm wagons on rural roads to nickelodeon films distributed for public viewing. A handful of vintage black-and-white photographs and nine-minute DVD of rare film footage of Dan Patch racing round out this enjoyable glimpse of a gifted horse and a genius entrepreneur at the turn of the century.

Dan Patch was race horse that pulls a two-wheeled cart carrying a driver who weighs 150 lbs. max.

Patch was an unknown pacer in Indiana in 1901 and nationally known in 1902 because of his results in the Grand Circuit. That year he won so many races his owner decided to race him only against the clock. In 1903, Minnesotan W.M. Savage paid $60,000 for him!

Savage is a rags-to-riches story of a man who owned International Stock Food Company. He had big plans for Dan Patch, and for horse breeding in Minnesota. His company made nutritional supplements for farm animals--and when he built his fabulous breeding stables on 700 acres across the Minnesota River from the village of Bloomington, they named that area Savage.

Dan Patch almost died in 1904 from impacted bowels (his recovery may have been helped with Savage's products), and this showed the world Patch was vulnerable-making it all the more important to see him race.

After one race, the newspaper said, "The crowd broke forth in a burst of applause that would have overpowered a mere czar or emperor." Patch broke the two-minute mile numerous times--even achieving a 1.55 time. At his first appearance at the Minnesota State Fair, 30,000 people came from surrounding areas and filled the grandstand, the infield and hills surrounding the track.

Savage was a smart businessman, negotiating Dan Patch's success. But Patch's value wasn't only winning races. In spring 1904, he "serviced" 57 mares, earning Savage $300 stud fee for each, or $17,000--and the race season hadn't even started. Business genius, Savage used Patch's likeness on every one of his products and advertising.

The wonderful photos, and the accompanying DVD show the stable and Patch racing in the early 1900s.

He was a well-loved sports hero of his time. "He had won American's heart and on the day he died, the nation mourned," a newspaper wrote when he died at age 20 in 1916. The ill Mr. Savage died a few days later.

Armchair Interviews says: Well-written, this will keep your interest and teach you facts about horses, racing and smart businessmen--and make you admire a fabulous horse long gone.