UNSTABLE TIMES-UNLIKELY OUTCOMES: THE SPELLBINDING ADVENTURE OF TWO WAYFARING BROTHERS

by Jack M Van Hooser, Garrett Williams (Foreword by)

Overview

This is a factual account of a man and two young sons who hitchhiked throughout the Southeastern United States from 1939 to 1944. They lived in rooming houses and relocated every few weeks because of the father's work. The boys rarely attended school but learned priceless lessons on the streets of dozens of towns and cities in which they lived.

The author and only remaining survivor lived with four different families prior to his high school graduation in 1951. Each setting was environmentally different and unique in terms of expectations, lifestyle, socioeconomic status, and degree of regimentation. Many believed the challenges of continual adaptation and on-going instability during his formative years would doom him to failure. Conversely, he overachieved profoundly as an athlete, student leader, model family head, community volunteer, and public servant in a mission and purpose career. Fortunately, he continues to serve and is willing to share this inspiring tale—the strangest and most gripping saga you will ever read.

 

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780692062241
Publisher:	Jack M Van Hooser
Publication date:	03/01/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	54
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	15 - 18 Years

About the Author

Jack M. Van Hooser is a humble man-considerate, gentle, and unpretentious. His unflappable attitude and disposition seem out of character for a person whose formative years were unstable and challenged by every imaginable disadvantage. He grew up in the midst and under the influence of an economic depression, a major world war, and a fragmented family. Seemingly, on every path and at every step he was thwarted by obstacles, barriers, and pitfalls; yet, he overcame the clutch of defeat to become a fierce competitor and superlative achiever in every domain he entered. Seemingly, he used every roadblock as a stepping stone. As a high school student, he was the president of his student body; as an athlete in high school and college, he was all-state, all-southern and ultimately was recruited by three NFL teams; as a coach, his teams were consistent winners-on and off the playing field; as a business and professional leader, he rose to the level of State Assistant Commissioner. He is a mission and purpose man of faith, committed to his spiritual beliefs, his family, and community.
Garrett Williams is a retired educator and author of two books. He assisted the author in editing UNSTABLE TIMES-UNLIKELY OUTCOMES.

Table of Contents

This true account begins in 1939 chronicling the author's young life as a vagabond traveling with his father and brother throughout the Southeastern United States. It flows uninterrupted without a table of contents or chapters. The Great Depression, World War II, and a divorce provide the context in which this incredible "rags to riches" account occurs. The episodes include daily adventures exploring new towns and their notable features, inordinate movie-going, attending wrestling matches, and occasionally enrolling and attending school. The father was a good provider and, in spite of some questionable habits, taught the boys many enduring life lessons. Their exciting and carefree daily routine mirrored that of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer but in real-time and nonfiction.

The teenage years are contrasted by examples of extreme challenge and incredible achievement, both heart-throbbing and heart-warming. The outcomes will inspire and encourage people of all ages to embrace the notion that a path to overcoming hardships and handicapping conditions always exists. It is a spellbinding tale, bizarre and unusual, that quickly captures the reader's attention and interest.