STUART MURRAY
VITA (partial):
December, 2002
Four book-of-the-year
finalist placements:
2000: White Fire
1999: America's Song (two)
1997: Rudyard Kipling in Vermont
AUTHOR
Nonfiction:
Encyclopedia of War & Weaponry, by Grolier, fall 2002.
Eyewitness Guide to the Revolutionary War, by Dorling Kindersley and Smithsonian
Institution; young adult reference; 2002.
Eyewitness Guide to the Wild West, by Dorling Kindersley and the Smithsonian Institution;
young adult reference; 2001.
The Cornell Steamboat Company, by Purple Mountain Press; the story of a great
Hudson Valley passenger boat and tugboat company based in Rondout/Kingston, New
York; 2001.
A Time of War, by Berkshire House; Berkshire County, Massachusetts, in the Civil War;
spring 2001.
America's Song: The Story of "Yankee
Doodle," 1999, by Images
from the Past, Bennington, Vermont. Third-place winner in the history category
of ForeWord Magazine's Book of the
Year for 1999; Top Ten finalist, music category, Booklist Magazine's Book
of the Year, 1999; starred review, Booklist.
Washington's Farewell, 1999, by Images from the Past, Bennington,
Vermont; George Washington's farewell in 1783 to his officers in New York City.
Rudyard Kipling in Vermont, the story of Kipling's four years in
Brattleboro, where he wrote the Jungle Books; by Images from the Past,
Bennington, Vermont, 1997. Top-five finalist, Independent Publishers biography Book of the Year in 1997; audio,
Books on Tape.
The Honor of Command, General Burgoyne's Saratoga
Campaign, by Images from the
Past, Bennington, Vt., 1997.
Norman Rockwell at Home in Vermont, 1939-53, Images from the Past, Bennington,
Vermont, 1996.
Go for the Goal! youth-soccer coaching, Simon & Schuster,
1994.
Norman Rockwell's "Four Freedoms," co-author with James McCabe; Berkshire House,
Publishers, 1993, a Literary Guild selection, recommended by American Library
Association; reprint rights to Random House: Gramercy Books.
America's Shaker Heritage, Golden Hill Press, 1993, recommended by Library Journal.
Fiction:
White Fire, Images from the Past, historical adventure, set in southern Africa;
June 2000; Book of the Year finalist, fiction, ForeWord Magazine.
Judith's Dime Novel, Avalon, 1998; an idealistic young eastern woman
on her way by stagecoach to meet her fiancée in San Francisco, discovers that
the real Wild West is nothing like the dime novels she loves to read--or is it?
The Land of Gray Wolf, by Thomas Locker; rewrote and edited this
illustrated children's book; Dial Press, 1991.
ALA Pick of the List.
As Oliver Payne: Northwest Territory Series of eight
historical novels by Berkley Books, 1981-87; set in Revolutionary War America.
The titles: Warpath; Conquest; Defiance; Rebellion; Conflict; Triumph; Betrayal; Honor
As Hank Mitchum: Virginia City, Western, Bantam, 1982.
BOOK EDITOR, PROJECT
EDITOR
(Selected books)
1979-86: Historical
fiction author/editor for book producer Book Creations, Inc., Canaan, N.Y. Edited 20 works of paperback original
fiction; publishers included Bantam, Berkley, Ballantine, and Dell. These
include works by John Jakes, Dana Fuller Ross, William Stuart Long, and Hank
Mitchum as well as others.
1986-01: Edited and/or
packaged fiction and nonfiction books, from history to collectibles, to
memoirs. These books include:
The Quotable Calvin Coolidge; editor/compiler Peter Hannaford; wisdom and
folk philosophy from one of the most underrated presidents; Images from the
Past, Bennington.
The Essential George Washington; editor/compiler Peter Hannaford; quotes about
Washington throughout two centuries; Images from the Past, Bennington, 1999.
Letters to Vermont; compiler, Donald Wickman; Civil War letters
from Vermont soldiers; Images from the Past, Bennington, 1998.
My Heart Goes Home, by Thomas Lossing; a memoir of life in the
Hudson Valley by the son of the historian, Benson J. Lossing; Purple Mountain
Press, 1997.
Pushing My Shadow, by Helen Tank; World War II memoirs, diary, and
letters; Lily Productions, 1995. House Histories, by Sally Light; a guide to
tracing the genealogy of your home; Golden Hill Press, 1988.
EXCERPTS FROM REVIEWS OF
BOOKS WRITTEN BY STUART MURRAY:
AMERICA'S SONG: The
Story of "Yankee Doodle" 1999, Images from the Past, Bennington, Vt.
Third-place winner in the history category of ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year for 1999; Top Ten finalist in
the music category for Booklist Magazine's
Book of the Year for 1999; starred review in Booklist.
"America's Song is
perhaps the best small history since John Hershey packed the bombing of
Hiroshima into one hundred pages and won a Pulitzer. The two works are similar
in that they concentrate on the extremely human side of
history. . . . America's Song is an outstanding work in
that it is extremely accessible to all that can read with a modicum of interest
about our country's past.... [Murray]
writes with a lyrical quality at some points, and at others like a fast-paced
adventure novelist." ForeWord Magazine
"[This book] is a
biography of the tune [and] is everything one wants a good biography to be,
vivid, colorful, brimming with anecdotes and a rich sense of the times and
places through which 'Yankee Doodle' traveled, changed, and grew." The
Boston Globe
"A Yankee Doodle
Dandy: [America's Song] takes the
reader through the many reincarnations of the tune -- it was set with new words
in the War of 1812, the Mexican War, and the Civil War -- right up to modern
times, in which George M. Cohan's 'Yankee Doodle Dandy' is still sung. [His]
delightful little book . . . reminds us of the significant,
though near-forgotten, contributions of Dutch settlers to American
history. America's Song is also full of
fun and surprises." Yankee Magazine
"The latest proof
that good things come in small packages traces the history of the song 'Yankee
Doodle.' . . . Copiously illustrated, the pocketbook-size
volume is terrifically entertaining and informative popular history, written
with great panache." Booklist; American Library Association.
A TIME OF WAR
Berkshire House, 2001
"Murray is a
prodigious researcher who uncovers the nitty gritty of what goes on during
great events as well as the stories that make the headlines. His organization and brilliant storytelling
give you a real feel of what it was like. . . ." The
Berkshire Eagle
"A Time of War is a
thoroughly engaging book that sheds light on the changing conditions of life on
the home front. [It] should interest
not only the people of western Massachusetts, but all who are curious about the
interactions between the northern home and battle fronts." Civil
War Book Review
RUDYARD KIPLING IN
VERMONT
Birthplace of the Jungle
Books
Images from the Past,
1997
Top-five finalist for
Book of the Year, Independent Publisher,
biography.
"[A] masterful job
of weaving together Kipling's writing, biographical details, and source
material from the time, including newspaper articles, court records, and
photographs taken without Kipling's knowledge. Part history, part biography,
part literary criticism, this book reads like a novel and remains in the mind.
Rudyard Kipling in Vermont: Birthplace of the Jungle Books may well begin a
complete reexamination of Kipling's life and work." Independent Publisher
"Delightful. . . . [The
author] tells this bittersweet story with vigor and
clarity. . . . A substantive, meaty dish flavored with
juicy tidbits." Boston Book Review
"Good use of
Kipling's diaries, his poems, and family illustrations, to produce a
fascinating chapter in American literary history and insight into Kipling's
life and affairs." The Word (U.K.)
"As much a
description of a collision of cultures, with Kipling as protagonist and
observer, as it is a personal biography." The Bloomsbury Review
WASHINGTON'S FAREWELL
Images from the Past,
1999
"[This] compact
narrative about Washington's 1783 farewell to his officers in Fraunces Tavern
in New York adds excellently to popular literature of the American
Revolution. Accessible for a wide range
of readers. . . " Booklist
"Murray uses a
writer's touch to make history come
alive." ForeWord
Magazine
WHITE FIRE
Images from the Past,
2000
Finalist for fiction
book of the year, 2000, by
"Skillful use of
plot and characters. . . . Murray has written another
winner." Library Journal
"Murray . . . proves
his skill with useful explanations of vernacular phrases and historical
background for the 1828 setting. In
straightforward language, Murray also keeps an even pace and alternates easily
between Dirk's racing adventures and Rachel's descriptions of the family
trek." ForeWord
"Author,
journalist, and editor Stuart Murray has written a superbly crafted historical
novel, capturing the yesteryear feel of 1828 in southern Africa. White Fire is a stirring, very highly recommended,
action-adventure oriented historical novel which is enhanced for the readers
pleasure with a meticulous attention to accurate detail throughout." Midwest Book Review
"[An]
historical . . . novel that will please fans of
historical fiction and romances." Booklist
"Murray's portrayal
of nobility and honor among each group strikes a chord. His clashes between
Zulus and other African tribes, and his interdependent relationships between
Boers and native servants, illustrate how the violence of South Africa never
was as simple as black versus white. . . . This book
becomes a wonderful adventure. . . . Librarians should
eagerly add this title to their collections." Today's Librarian
THE HONOR OF COMMAND
Images from the Past,
1997
"A most handsome
book [with] the best illustrations I have ever seen for the Saratoga
campaign." Vermont History
"Murray possesses a
keen eye for detail and a novelist's sense of pace and color. He brings this momentous campaign to life
[and] captures the character of the British military leader in all his
complexity." Brattleboro, Vermont, Memorial Library