For nearly all of its existence, Vallejo was a blue collar, lunch pail city where the destinies of the town and its shipyard were inextricably linked. In his first collection of short stories, C.W. Spooner tracks the lives of a handful of characters as they grow from childhood to adolescence and beyond in a hard place where everyone fought to keep what was theirs and children created their own adventures. Spooner begins with the tale of Nicholas, a terrified four-year-old who is ready to start his first day of nursery school. Nicholas knows he must adhere to his fathers advice to always be a good sailor, but when the first day does not go as planned, Nicholas discovers the true meaning of friendship. Fourteen-year-old Nicks dog, George, has gone AWOL. But just when he is ready to give up, hope arrives. When Carols past shows up at her door with wild hair and a Walt Whitman beard, she is thrilled. His war is finally ending, but it is the gift he leaves with her that finally gives her peace. This compilation of short tales shares a compelling glimpse into what it was like to grow up in a shipyard town during an uncertain time when no one took life for granted. These stories will touch your life no matter where you are from. Thomas R. Campbell, author of Badass: The Harley-Davidson Experience