Dick Wolfe is a nuclear engineer, a vintner and a dreamer who makes his dreams come true.
Born in Sophia, West Virginia, the son of a coal miner who died of the effects of black lung, Dick Wolfe developed a passion for clean coal technology. Dr. Wolfe earned his BS degree at Virginia Tech in Chemical Engineering and MS and Ph.D. degrees in Nuclear Engineering at the University of Cincinnati. He has spent over 50 years in the energy business: first working with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission on the energy supply system for the Apollo Moon Mission and secondly, working in nuclear waste management and clean coal technology with the US Department of Energy in Washington, D.C. He is the founder and president of his own clean coal technology company for the past 20 years, and recently patented a new process to remove 100 percent of the mercury pollutants from coal.
Dick Wolfe learned wine-making from Italian immigrants as a boy in West Virginia. He is a vintner who traveled the world to vineyards at the same altitude as his home in Banner Elk, North Carolina, (4000-5000 ft.) to bring back grape vines to create a wine industry in the high country of North Carolina. He established the first commercial winery in this region of the Appalachian Mountains, the Banner Elk Winery. At present, 35 vineyards owe their genesis to his work.
This memoir touches on both these passions. However the focus is the fulfillment of a long-standing dream of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. Like his other passions, this one comes from boyhood experience. Wolfe was the projectionist in the small-town movie theater, and as a teenager in 1957, showed the movie The Snows of Kilimanjaro (and watched it "about 40 times.) He vowed them, to someday "climb that mountain." Little did he realize that "someday" would be when he was seventy years old.
Indeed, Dick Wolfe celebrated his 70th birthday on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro, January 11, 2010 - on the way to the top.
Author Profile: Richard A. Wolfe Author Website: Click to Open Link to Purchase: AmazonBarnes & Noble *Links to Websites leading away from www.IngallsPublishingGroup.com are to Websites that are not necessarily under the management of Ingalls Publishing Group and may not represent the interests or intentions of Ingalls Publishing Group.
Faster Pastor A Comic Southern Novel
Although Faster Pastor's official publication date is April 2010, when it will be available bookstores and libraries, hardcover copies are available now for $23.95 from this web site only.Click to Order.
Sharyn McCrumb's first co-authored novel, written with NASCAR driver Adam Edwards, will be published in April 2010 by the Ingalls Publishing Group. Adam, who was the model for the character Tony Lafon in Once Around the Track, has driven in the ARCA/REMAX national racing series, managed and spotted for a NASCAR Nationwide racing team, and worked as an race car driving instructor at the Fast Track School of Racing. When he gave her technical advice during the writing of Once Around the Track, Sharyn suggested that they try to write a novel together, loosely based on Adam's experiences teaching race car driving.
Together they devised the plot for the novel:
Camber Berkley, a young stock car driver, wrecks his car on a winding mountain road, landing right in the midst of the funeral of an elderly NASCAR fan. As punishment for his spectacular car wreck, the local authorities of the small Tennessee town of Judas Grove give him a choice: serve three months in jail for reckless driving, or spend two weeks teaching the local ministers to drive stock cars, so that they can compete in race whose prize is the $2 million legacy left by that deceased NASCAR fan.
Sharyn says, "When we started the project, I was thinking We’ll never pull this off. I know race car drivers. They have the attention span of a ferret on crack. They can’t write books. But Adam is not your average NASCAR guy. I told him, I’ll write the first thousand words, and send it to you via e-mail, and we’ll just go back and forth. I thought, If he doesn’t do his thousand words, we’ll just forget the whole thing. But he did. A thousand words came back, well-written and promptly sent. Warily now, I sent him another thousand words. Again, he sent another thousand back. We kept going and in a year's time we had finished Faster Pastor, found a publisher, and now the real adventure begins… "
Readers can get a copy signed by both Sharyn and Adam from our Marketplace page, and of course bookstores will have it, too. The co-authors will be touring at book festivals and regional booksellers in 2010.
Reviews of Faster Pastor "Faster Pastor is a warm and witty collision between an also-ran NASCAR driver and the clergy of Judas Grove, TN, who need to learn the catechism of stock car racing. Blessed are those who teach, for they shall learn the most." - Jane Hicks, Award-winning poet, author of Blood and Bone Remember
"If McCrumb and Edwards could put together a race team as well as they did this novel, they could win the Daytona 500 ! It has all the ingredients to be a fast read as well as a winner." - Jamie Bishop, NASCAR gas man to Cale Yarborough
Virginia author and educator Becky Mushko, who got an Advance Reading Copy of Faster Pastor at Sharyn & Adam's November 17 program at Center in the Square in Roanoke, wrote the first advance review of the novel:
"The book, based on the 'what if' premise of a group of ministers racing for a $2-million prize, is a hoot. Several hoots, actually. The book is full of numerous laugh-out-loud moments." - Becky Mushko, The Peevish Pen, Read Full Review
The Secret of the Bradford House Albert A. Bell, Jr
Albert A. Bell, Jr is author of The Blood of Caesar, an adult historical chosen as one of five Best Mysteries of 2008 by Library Journal. What is that light in the attic window of the spooky old Bradford House? Could it be a ghost? Hidden stairways and secrets from World War I draw Steve and Kendra into investigating the mysteries of this small town in Kentucky’s Land Between the Lakes. What they find is beyond any of their imaginings. Praise for the series:
"Strong, thought-provoking read ... entertaining story that tackles controversial, difficult and painful topics in meaningful, age-appropriate ways." -3Rs Reading Den "Entertaining mystery that even adults could enjoy ... while they learn, kids are treated to a great can’t-put-it-down mystery." -MyShelf.com "Gripping, powerful and genuine. ... pacing and engaging plot all while the author incorporates history, family values and new friendships formed. Bell’s characters are well defined and believable. ... interesting and entertaining read ... 4 plus stars." -Armchairreviews.com "Masterpiece for 9-11-year olds. The reader will not be able to set down this gripping and fast-paced tale ... As a parent, teacher and writer, I give this book an enthusiastic thumbs-up; it’s a must-read!" -Karen Hoenecke, author of 30+ children’s books Author Profile: Albert A. Bell, Jr. Author Website: Click to Open Link to Purchase: AmazonBarnes & Noble
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