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Lake of the Ozarks : my surreal summers in a vanishing America / Bill Geist.

Van Pelt Library F472.O93 G45 2019
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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Geist, William, author.
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Geist, William--Childhood and youth.
Geist, William.
Youth--Employment.
Summer employment.
Manners and customs.
Teenagers.
Teenage boys.
Ozarks, Lake of the, Region (Mo.)--Social life and customs--20th century.
Ozarks, Lake of the, Region (Mo.).
Summer resorts--Missouri--Ozarks, Lake of the, Region--Anecdotes.
Summer resorts.
Missouri--Lake of the Ozarks Region.
Missouri.
Teenage boys--Missouri--Biography.
Teenagers--Missouri--Social life and customs--20th century.
Missouri--Social life and customs--20th century--Anecdotes.
Summer employment--Missouri--Anecdotes.
Youth--Employment--Missouri--Anecdotes.
Youth.
Coming of age.
Teenagers--Social life and customs.
Genre:
Anecdotes.
Biographies.
Autobiographies.
Physical Description:
xii, 195 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm
Place of Publication:
New York : Grand Central Publishing, [2019]
Summary:
"Bill Geist reflects on his coming of age in the American heartland of the Midwest and traces his evolution as a man and a writer, in the summers between high school and college, before he went off to Vietnam and the country went to Hell."--Provided by publisher.
"Before there was 'tourism' and souvenir ashtrays became 'kitsch,' the Lake of the Ozarks was a Shangri-La for middle-class Midwestern families on vacation, complete with man-made beaches, Hillbilly Mini Golf, and feathered rubber tomahawks. It was there that author Bill Geist spent summers in the sixties during his school and college years, working at Arrowhead Lodge--a small resort owned by his bombastic uncle--in all areas of the operation, from cesspool attendant to bellhop. What may have seemed just a summer job became, upon reflection, a transformative era where a cast of eccentric, small-town characters and experiences shaped (some might suggest 'slightly twisted') Bill into the man he is today. He realized it was this time in his life that had a direct influence on his sensibilities, his humor, his writing, and ultimately a career searching the world for other such untamed creatures for the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, and CBS News. In [this book], Emmy Award-winning CBS Sunday Morning correspondent Bill Geist reflects on his coming of age in the American heartland and traces his evolution as a man and a writer. He shares laugh-out-loud anecdotes and tongue-in-cheek observations guaranteed to evoke a strong sense of nostalgia for 'the good ol' days.' Written with Geistian wit and warmth, Lake of the Ozarks takes readers back to a bygone era, and demonstrates how you can find inspiration in the most unexpected places."--Dust jacket.
Contents:
The drive down/ now and then
The strip
The tourist trappers
Uncle Ed
The Chili Pond
Extreme dishwashing
Another day, another dollar
Amateur night in the kitchen
The great salad bar debate
Ozark bellhops
The Pow Wow Room
La Noche de la Larry Don
Sisterhood of servers
I don't get it
Night desk
The Ozark outback
Getting to the point
Cross-cultural exchange
The best laid plans
Autumn leaves.
ISBN:
9781538729809
1538729806
OCLC:
1048944619

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