Hosted
by:
Waynesboro
Police Department
&
The City of Waynesboro, VA
Sponsored
by:
Central
Shenandoah Crime Stoppers;
Friends
of the Library - Staunton, Augusta County, Waynesboro;
Shenandoah
Valley Reading Council
Proceeds
used for increasing literacy rates, decreasing crime, and helping
police solve unsolved crimes
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Russell A. Vassallo
from Danville, Kentucky |
Russell A. Vassallo, retired lawyer and cancer survivor, has
written two animal related books, namely,
Tears and Tales and
The Horse with the Golden Mane (recently
released). He commenced his writing career while undergoing
chemotherapy treatments and tested the market for his stories by
telling them to other cancer patients.
Tears and Tales has thus
far won two awards, USA Booknews Best Book Finalist and
Honorable Mention in the Readers Views Reviewers Choice
competition. His books have yet to receive less than five star
reviews by any of his readers. Vassallo has a unique insight
into the soul of both people and animals and he knows how to
intertwine his storytelling with lasting lessons from life's own
book. Outside the United States,
Tears and Tales has sold in Canada, England,
Switzerland, France, Germany and Kenya. His stories tend to last
in the reader's minds and thus he coined his own slogan: read it
today...remember it tomorrow. |
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Virginia G. Vassallo
from Danville, Kentucky |
Guy T. Viskniskki was the founder and first editor-in-chief of
The Stars and Stripes, the newspaper for the American
Expeditionary Forces during World War I. Virginia G. Vassallo is
his granddaughter and based much of her book upon his
unpublished memoirs and family history. This is a book that
weaves the struggles to establish The Stars and Stripes with a
portrait of the man who was dynamic enough to accomplish the
task. Guy was a complex man and the author grew up with many
competing images of him. In writing this book she feels that she
found her grandfather - a man she never knew. |
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Matthew Warner
from Staunton, Virginia |
I’m a horror writer from Staunton, Virginia. My latest novel,
Eyes Everywhere, is
about a young father suffering from paranoid schizophrenia who
believes his wife is conspiring with a bioterrorist to conduct
experiments on their children. Past books include
The Organ Donor,
about China’s organ trade, and Death
Sentences, a collection. I also write a
quarterly column for
HorrorWorld.org. Readers can keep tabs on me at
www.MatthewWarner.com. |
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Rhonda Winfield
from Stuarts Draft, Virginia
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Rhonda Winfield is a new author who lives
on a farm in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia with
her husband, Scott, and their two sons, Courtland and Carter.
Rhonda’s oldest son, SGT Justin Redifer, (United States Army
Reserve) resides in West Virginia with his wife and daughter.
Rhonda is also the mother of LCPL Jason Redifer (United States
Marine Corps) who was killed in action on January 31, 2005 while
serving with the 1st BLT 2nd Marine
Division in Iraq.
Rhonda is an ardent supporter of the United
States military family. She recognizes the sacrifices that
those in service to our nation, as well as their families, must
make daily and has dedicated herself to reminding our country
that FREEDOM ISN’T FREE.
After having written her son, Jason, on a
daily basis since boot camp, Rhonda began to seek a way to
continue to convey what was in her heart after she was no longer
able to write her son. To help fill the void, she began to write
on her computer about the loss of her son and subsequently the
year in her life following his death. Eventually, she compiled
her writings into manuscript form and her first book,
When Johnny Doesn’t Come Marching
Home; A Mother’s Story of the Price for Freedom
was released in July.
Rhonda worked many jobs while her oldest
sons were growing up and when her husband decided to expand the
family farming business to include a dairy operation, she quit
working off the farm in order to assist him. She and Scott were
able to run the operation together until after Courtland and
Carter were born. Eventually, due to the inability to support
their family on the farm income only, Rhonda reentered the work
force. She was hired by the United States Postal Service in 2001
and until recently, was a full-time mail carrier on a route that
ran eighty-five mountainous miles per day.
Rhonda enjoys writing, romping with her
five dogs, riding her dirt bike ( yes, I do mean the motorcycle
type), playing with her family and being outdoors. She enjoys
any time she can spend that won’t require shoes or a telephone.
A portion of the proceeds from the book
will go to the Jason Redifer Memorial Fund at Stuart Hall School
in Staunton, VA. These funds help provide tuition assistance to
deserving young men and women, of exceptional character, who
seek a path of academic excellence. |
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L. Diane Wolfe
from North Carolina
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The author of an inspirational fiction
series, The Circle of Friends,
L. Diane Wolfe’s books focus on the pursuit of dreams and the
overcoming of obstacles. The stories intertwine as the
characters learn that with belief and encouragement, they can
achieve anything. The author averages over eighty appearances
and interviews each year, manages an online writer’s group,
maintains a website & blog for her series, and contributes
articles for several other sites. She conducts seminars on
publishing & goal setting and works with writer’s groups. Meant
to inspire as well as entertain, Wolfe’s books have been
described as “encouragement personified”. The author loves
people and does not believe in the word impossible. Residing in
North Carolina with her husband, she is self-employed and a
professional photographer. “When the dream’s big enough, the
facts don’t count!”
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Della A. Yannuzzi
from Nellysford, Virginia |
I've been a freelance writer for many years and have published
articles and stories in Highlights
for Children,
Cobblestone Magazine,
My Friend, New Moon, and others. I've also
written eight biographies on
Southern Writer, Zora Neale Hurston, Native American Cherokee
Chief, Wilma Mankiller, Writer, Ernest Hemingway, Mae Jemison,
Astronaut, Madam C.J. Worker, African American Businesswoman,
Aldo Leopold, Environmentalist, Gregor Mendel, Genetics Pioneer,
and Marie Curie, Scientist. The Hemingway book
was included in the 1999 New York Library's notable book list
for teenagers. I also have an Early Childhood Degree from Kean
College, Union, N. J. I'm a member of the SCBWI (Society of
Children's Book Writers and Illustrators') and a book reviewer
for an online database service, Children's Literature.
I live in Nellysford, Virginia with my husband Michael, and
naughty, but lovable cat J.D. Our daughter Cara is attending
Medical School at UVA Medical School in Charlottesville. |
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