Motor City Legends explores the rich history of Detroit area and Michigan related competitive sports and individual athletes through the careers of old-time greats as Al Kaline, Doak Walker/Bobby Layne, Gordie Howe, Joe Louis and George Yardley. Also recent legends Barry Sanders, Isiah Thomas, Steve Yzerman, Chauncey Billups, Miquel Cabrera, the Fab Five, defunct teams Michigan Panthers and Detroit Shock, goalie fights, odd Tigers' trades in the 1959/60 seasons, Benton Harbor's House of David baseball teams, and Lions Alex Karras squaring off against pro wrestling bad man Dick the Bruiser. The messy results of Gates Browns' unusual slide into second base. There's the time a rival ball player stole home against the Tigers twice in a single game. Countless items of trivia are presented in this stroll down Michigan Sports Memory Lane. Much of the book centers on a large Who's Who section of many athletic personalities who were raised in Michigan, attended a local school, or played on an athletic team.

Navy service school buddies ship off to Vietnam and find themselves temporarily abandoned upon their arrival. It's an ominous welcome to Da Nang. The young men are eventually assigned to a security police unit protecting Navy interests within the city. A tight knit group in the beginning, as time passes personalities clash and tension increases. Frequent rocket attacks and grueling shifts keep the men on edge. Personal differences cause dissension within the group.Financial opportunities within the country's thriving black-market prove tempting for some. An out of country visit only increases a risky involvement in the Southeast Asian underworld and an encounter with U.S. military and Vietnamese law enforcement authorities. Unforeseen events lead to a series of misfortunes and a sudden, unexpected conclusion. Outlast the Rain is a gripping, authentic tale of military life overseas; camaraderie and friendship, replete with greed, crime and betrayal in the exotic Far East during the Vietnam War era.

The 4 Seasons & Frankie Valli, rank among the top American vocal acts of all time. Collectively, they amassed seven #1 hits, 18 Top Ten, and an incredible 61 singles in the Hot 100. They also placed 32 LPS on the top albums charts. Their hit making years spanned more than a half-century. Their hits include: Sherry, Big Girls DonÕt Cry, Walk Like a Man, Rag Doll, Working My Way Back to You, CanÕt Take My Eyes Off of You, My Eyes Adored You, December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night), GreaseÉ Their stardom was no overnight success, as they struggled through lean years and recorded many flops while searching for that elusive hit record. The rag-to-riches story has been told via an award-winning Broadway musical & a Clint Eastwood produced motion picture. Learn about the hits, misses, obscure album tracks and B-sides as they sang their way from delinquents to esteemed members of the R&R Hall of Fame. The book examines the music they made famous and tells of all the glorious years that passed between.

Luck was with Bobby Goldsboro when Roy Orbison came through the area on tour. Orbison took on Goldsboro's band and Bobby stuck with him for the next three years. Bobby went solo and soon scored a modest hit with "Molly," a song that he despised. A short while later, however, he scored a top ten song with his own "See the Funny Little Clown." Other hits followed but his superb "Broomstick Cowboy" was mistakenly seen by many radio stations as a Vietnam War protest songs and they refused to play it. Going against the grain, a Detroit station did air it and it became #1 in that area. His "Honey" was the top record for 1968 reaching #1 on every chart. "Watching Scotty Grow" was also a big hit. The early 70s saw the excellent "Summer (The First Time)" make waves. England voted it the best summer song ever. Bobby hosted a top-rated TV variety program, The Bobby Goldsboro Show, wrote and produced an Easter special for Disney and took up oil painting, of which his art is highly regarded.

In the 1950s, country music merged with the rising new fad called ""rock and roll"" to form what would become known as ""Rockabilly."" In short, Rockabilly was fast paced, guitar and bass driven ditties with thundering rhythms. The songs were often less than memorable made up with a conglomeration of silly lyrics and phrases like ""bop,""""shake,""""mama,"" and""go cat!"" Cars, especially Cadillacs, and colors, pink and black, were prevalent in many of the songs. Songs like ""Oobie Doobie,"" ""Ubangi Stomp,"" ""Be Boppin' Baby,"" and ""Rockin' In the Congo"" were common record chart contenders. Many up and coming country crooners would go on to achieve widespread acclaim as names like Presley, Holly and Orbison conquered radio station playlists. They, among others, would become R&R legends. Others like Jack Scott, Boyd Bennett, and Dale Hawkins, found success to a lesser degree in the new genre. It's many of these ""lesser knowns"" that Hepcats & Rockabilly Boys explores. Here are some of their stories...

Michigan's historic Mackinac Island is considered the gem of the Great Lakes. Victorian-style homes, historic military forts and limestone formations grace the island. Michigan Highway M-185 circles the island even though its only traffic are horse-drawn carriages and bicycles--motorized vehicles are prohibited.Mackinac Island is peaceful, serene and a major summer vacation destination. The story: Two hundred years before, a fortune disappeared when American colonial forces recapture Mackinac Island from British occupiers. Through chance encounters, a modern day trio of ne'er-do-wells come together to share a house. Summer tourist season arrives and with it come scores of island visitors. Devious, tough-as-nails Josie, invites companions Wayland and Diggs to visit the island. The men happen upon a life-altering discovery. Companionship soon declines into primal instincts, greed and cruelty. Double crosses abound, sinking readers to unforeseen depths in this thrilling island mystery.

Founded in 1887, the Detroit Athletic Club left an indelible stamp on the city even as it was helping that city find its place in the country at large. Always a powerhouse for individual and team amateur athletics, the DAC helped give its members the strength to serve as soldiers and compete as Olympians. They fueled the manufacturing frenzy that created the Motor City and brought home the professional sports teams that were its due. In this chronicle of the DAC's long history, readers will discover the unique world of a private club that remains one of the finest in the world, an enduring home to community leaders, amateur athletes and one of Detroit's architectural jewels.