Böcker av Mark Vaughn

Samuel 'Sammy' Von Burger is about to graduate high school. His graduation day will not only symbolise the end of his schoolboy days, but it will also mark the beginning of a challenging tumultuous adulthood.Because soon, Sammy will have to leave his peaceful life in Chicago and face the rumblings that are abroad.Set in the 1960s, a decade which is defined by the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights movement, Oils of Arizona follows the journey of a young man who has his adolescence ripped away from him, and his adulthood forced upon him. It also explores the trials and tribulations of the Von Burgers and the Becker family, as their normal way of family life becomes threatened by war. And above all, amongst this part domestic and historical drama, it is a tribute to the unsung heroes of the Vietnam War.

This novel is historical fiction based around the legend that is Annie Moore, a teenager in the late 19th century who is said to be the first immigrant to pass through Ellis Island. Annie escapes the troubles in Ireland with her two brothers and travels aboard a ship to America. Her adventures inspired many and there is a song written in her honor, 'Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears', by Brendan Graham and Sean Keane. There are also statues of her in Ireland and New York harbor.Annie herself was inspired by a Portuguese poet who visited Ireland, Emma Lazarus, some of whose poems are recounted in this book. Other poems are included that were written by the distinguished authors, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Robert Frost, who were Emma Lazarus' contemporaries. The author also recounts poems by other, predominantly, 19th century American poets such as Walt Whitman's 'Drum-Taps', amongst others.