Pennsylvania Stories--Well Told
With a biting mix of wonder and pride, William Ecenbarger observes that in the quirky state of Pennsylvania, the town of Mauch Chunk changed its name to Jim Thorpe -- even though the famous Indian athlete never set foot in it.
In Pennsylvania Stories--Well Told, Ecenbarger has collected a dozen of his fascinating articles showcasing the Keystone State. He provides a history of the pencil, and considers why the first day of Pennsylvania's deer hunting season -- the world's largest participatory sporting event -- is an unofficial state holiday, closing schools and state offices.
Ecenbarger also profiles George "Boom Boom" Zambelli, the internationally renowned pyrotechnic king, and goes driving with Pennsylvania native John Updike in rural Berks County, PA.
Other fascinating tales unfold in Pennsylvania Stories, from an inspiring tale of Governor Bob Casey's double organ transplant, to darker essays on the electric chair and the Ku Klux Klan, to a mile-by-mile appreciation of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
In these weird and wonderful stories, Ecenbarger highlights just what makes Pennsylvania both eccentric and great. His book is a delightfully intriguing read for natives and curious outsiders alike.
In Pennsylvania Stories--Well Told, Ecenbarger has collected a dozen of his fascinating articles showcasing the Keystone State. He provides a history of the pencil, and considers why the first day of Pennsylvania's deer hunting season -- the world's largest participatory sporting event -- is an unofficial state holiday, closing schools and state offices.
Ecenbarger also profiles George "Boom Boom" Zambelli, the internationally renowned pyrotechnic king, and goes driving with Pennsylvania native John Updike in rural Berks County, PA.
Other fascinating tales unfold in Pennsylvania Stories, from an inspiring tale of Governor Bob Casey's double organ transplant, to darker essays on the electric chair and the Ku Klux Klan, to a mile-by-mile appreciation of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
In these weird and wonderful stories, Ecenbarger highlights just what makes Pennsylvania both eccentric and great. His book is a delightfully intriguing read for natives and curious outsiders alike.
Praise for Pennsylvania Stories -- Well Told
"If Pennsylvania had a poet laureate, it would be Bill Ecenbarger. Throughout a long career as one of the most distinguished journalists in the state, he has captured the Commonwealth's unique spirit -- in all its glory and all its eccentricity. Pennsylvania Stories -- Well Told pulls together the best of his best stories, each impeccably researched and beautifully written. Learn about the literary great John Updike, the role of the Ku Klux Klan, a popular governor's very public fight for life, and the notorious state mental hospital known as Burberry. These tales and others create a rich mosaic of Pennsylvania culture and history. I heartily recommend this book."
--Former Governor Richard L. Thornburgh
"Bill Ecenbarger -- to regular Inquirer readers, one need say no more. Put that name on a story, and they know that what awaits them is a small masterpiece of writing, wisdom, and wit. To editors at the Philadelphia Inquirer, Bill Ecenbarger is a godsend -- a writer who covers an inordinately wide range of topics and turns in colorful, provocative stories that you want to read out loud to anyone who will listen."
--Fred Mann, editor, Philadelphia Inquirer
"If Pennsylvania had a poet laureate, it would be Bill Ecenbarger. Throughout a long career as one of the most distinguished journalists in the state, he has captured the Commonwealth's unique spirit -- in all its glory and all its eccentricity. Pennsylvania Stories -- Well Told pulls together the best of his best stories, each impeccably researched and beautifully written. Learn about the literary great John Updike, the role of the Ku Klux Klan, a popular governor's very public fight for life, and the notorious state mental hospital known as Burberry. These tales and others create a rich mosaic of Pennsylvania culture and history. I heartily recommend this book."
--Former Governor Richard L. Thornburgh
"Bill Ecenbarger -- to regular Inquirer readers, one need say no more. Put that name on a story, and they know that what awaits them is a small masterpiece of writing, wisdom, and wit. To editors at the Philadelphia Inquirer, Bill Ecenbarger is a godsend -- a writer who covers an inordinately wide range of topics and turns in colorful, provocative stories that you want to read out loud to anyone who will listen."
--Fred Mann, editor, Philadelphia Inquirer
Kids for Cash _______
One of the biggest courtroom frauds in U.S. history.
—CBS NEWS
In a shocking case that was covered by ABC’s 20/20, CNN, and CBS News, among others, two judges were convicted of accepting millions of dollars in bribes from the owners of privatized juvenile detention centers in exchange for sentencing thousands of kids—some as young as eleven years old—to jail.
William Ecenbarger, a Pulitzer Prize and George Polk award–winning investigative journalist who covered the case for the Philadelphia Inquirer, now gives us the first book-length account of the scandal. In the tradition of true-crime legal thrillers from The Executioner’s Song to A Civil Action, Ecenbarger exposes a deeply compelling political controversy that ruined the lives of many children and ultimately led to the judges’ convictions on charges of racketeering, fraud, tax violations, money laundering, extortion, and bribery.
Kids for Cash offers an inside look at a legal system that is closed to public scrutiny, offers little or no oversight of judges, and allows children to be sentenced without benefit of legal counsel, opening our eyes to the twisted and haunting realities of juvenile justice in America today.
REVIEWS ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"A harrowing tale, lucidly told by a journalist with a good eye for detail. . . . [Kids for Cash reveals]
the deep gap between cherished ideals and harsh reality in a country addicted to
incarceration." --The New York Times Book Review
"The story is incredible: Thousands of children wrongfully sentenced to juvenile detention centers, many without legal representation and after cursory hearings, by two rogue judges in northern Pennsylvania who received millions of dollars in bribes from the private institutions’ owners. . . . William Ecenbarger, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist, has brought this stunning story to book form in a deeply researched, compelling tale." --The Boston Globe
"The worst stain (so far) on Pennsylvania, a state with more than its share of stains, is that of the Luzerne County judges who sent thousands of children to private prisons in exchange for millions of dollars in kickbacks. . . . Bill Ecenbarger offers a detail-packed, sickening account of the scandal and its
impact. Anyone caring about courts, justice or children should read it." --The Philadelphia Inquirer
“If only this were fiction. William Ecenbarger deserves our gratitude for shining the brightest of spotlights on a tragic, scandalous situation that brought pain and devastation to the lives of countless children and their families. Kids for Cash demands the attention of everyone who cares about justice.”
—Bob Herbert, Distinguished Senior Fellow at Demos and former New York Times Op-Ed columnist
“A chilling account of how two Pennsylvania judges traded children's freedom for personal profit while the rest of the Commonwealth looked the other way. Parents will tuck their children in a bit tighter after reading
this true-crime heart-stopper.”
—Nell Bernstein, award-winning journalist and author of All Alone in the World: Children of the Incarcerated
“William Ecenbarger exposes Pennsylvania’s recent juvenile justice disgrace wherein thousands of youth were illegally sentenced to a private detention facility in exchange for millions in kickbacks for the
judges who sentenced them. His heartfelt, articulate outrage raises disturbing and critical questions about the destructive power of greed in our criminal justice system, and the legal and social systems that support it through silent acquiescence.”
—Tara Herivel, attorney, author and co-editor of Prison Profiteers: Who Makes Money from Mass Incarceration and Prison Nation: The Warehousing of
America's Poor
“A gripping and inspirational ‘must read’ for anyone concerned about the health and well-being of children.”
—Liz Ryan, President and CEO of Campaign for Youth Justice
“A gripping story of judicial incompetence, a system that ignored it, and the thousands of
kids scarred for life—a story that begs for juvenile justice reform across America.”
—Steven C. Teske, Chief Judge, Juvenile Court of Clayton County, GA, author of Reform Juvenile Justice Now
“An unimaginable story of abuse, greed, and corruption that also reveals the broader problems with our society's failure to protect some of its most vulnerable, powerless, and at-risk members—a critically important book.”
—Bryan Stevenson, founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, New York University Professor of Clinical Law
“This expose of judicial indiscretion, greed, and money laundering reads like a thriller. The setting is the Luzerne County, PA, juvenile court system between 2003 and 2008, when two judges mishandled the criminal cases of thousands of children. After presenting a rather unflattering history of the
region, citing a ‘culture of corruption,’ Pulitzer Prize—winning journalist [William] Ecenbarger describes the background and criminal activities that form the heart of the case. The book is based on 200 interviews and reflects the author’s insider knowledge of the scandal, which he covered for the Philadelphia
Enquirer. . . . A solid, shocking work of investigative journalism, recommended for civic-minded general readers and students of juvenile justice issues.”
--Library Journal
Walkin' the Line______________________
A Journey from Past to Present Along the Mason Dixon
This is the first and only book to fully explore all that is known of Charles Mason, Jeremiah Dixon and the plotting of the Mason Dixon Line.
A history-travelogue, Walkin’ the Line looks at the past and present and interweaves the story of the Line’s people, stories, and myths while following the progress of Mason and Dixon’s arduous journey.
Ecenbarger spent two years walking the Line, covering about half of its 332 miles, collecting stories about a realm where "geography pulls history in its wake." The result is a unique history travelogue and fascinating trip into yesterday that illuminates today.
He begins at the beginning, in Fenwick Island, Delaware, and ends at the end, near Morgantown, West Virginia.
Most boundaries between states and nations have been determined by land features, such as rivers and mountains. But the Mason-Dixon Line does not follow anything palpable; it runs along uneven latitudes and longitudes, and at no point does it touch any prominent landmark. Except for its stone markers, it is invisible -- an arbitrary and man-made demarcation, direct and true, but without dimension.
Walkin’ the Line: A Journey from Past to Present Along the Mason Dixon has received numerous accolades as well as a Lowell Thomas Award for “Best Travel Book of 2000.”
REVIEWS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“This is an interesting look at a national landmark that is embedded in the national psyche as a powerful racial symbol.”
--Booklist
“… a unique history-travelogue…”
-- Amazon.com
“A fascinating trip into the past that illuminates the present…. A tasty feast of heroes and rascals, myths and legends.”
-- Philadelphia Inquirer
"Using the infamous Line as his guide, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ecenbarger travels across the region, investigating the history of race and culture in the U.S. …. Part travelogue, part historical essay, this book is a well-written and dramatic examination of history, geography and race.”
-- Publishers Weekly
Glory by the Wayside__________________
the Old Churches of Hawaii
The words “Hawaii” and “safari” are not often found in proximity, but America's most diverse and exotic state can be a true motor safari with road trips to secluded beaches, snow-capped mountains, lighthouses, cemeteries, and small plantation towns with tin roofs and false-fronted stores.
And nowhere is the essence of Hawaii captured better than in its tiny churches in settings so beautiful that they take your breath away.
So leave those golf clubs and tennis racquets home. Put down that mai tai. Get off that beach chair and onto the road for a Hawaii day trip. Let Glory by the Wayside be your guide. Do this and you won’t regret it--and you’ll come home with a lot more than a suntan.
Many Americans’ idea of Hawaii is drawn secondhand from escapist marketing, airlines posters and Elvis films. Many Americans never go to Hawaii, reasoning, “I can get the same thing--water, sand and palm trees--in the Caribbean, so why bother with the long plane ride?”
But the truth is Hawaii is not just a tropical paradise. It’s much more interesting than that. It has mountains, jungles, deserts, a long history and a unique culture. There are petroglyphs (pictures carved into rocks by ancient Hawaiians) on Lanai, cattle ranches and cowboys--real cowboys--on Maui, volcanoes and heiau (ancient temples) on the Big Island, and a breathtaking canyon on Kauai. Each of the six principal islands has its own identity and ambience, and hopping from one to the other is easy and inexpensive.
Of the 2.4 million miles of paved roadway in the United States, only about 2,400 of them are in Hawaii. Yet nearly every inch of these two-lane byways have a special charm and allure, and around every bend of a Hawaii road trip is another picture-postcard moment. Indeed, Hawaii’s roads are like sunsets–some are more beautiful than others, but all are worthwhile.
Hawaiian drivers are for the most part extremely courteous. If you pull over to let a local pass, he or she will likely give you a happy “shaka” sign--a wagging fist with the thumb and pinky poking out. And day-trippers everywhere will encounter the spirit of “aloha”–that overused, misused, and abused word that to outsiders merely means hello or goodbye but to Hawaiians is a way of living in harmony and treating each other with love and respect.
Glory by the Wayside: The Old Churches of Hawaii celebrates the incomparable beauty of Hawaii’s old hand-built churches with an introduction to their history and architecture.
It is at once a picture book, an historical perspective and a travel guide that invites readers to further exploration.
From the Victorian architecture of St. Benedict's with its hand-painted interior to the Molokai churches of Father Damien, this is a picture book about the missionary churches that dot the Hawaiian islands.
Each of the 47 churches profiled in the book has a story to tell -- often a story of the first immigrants to Hawaii -- the Germans, the Portuguese, the Chinese, the Japanese and the Filipinos.
Included is information on the oldest church in Hawaii, the churches where royalty worshiped and the site of aviator Charles Lindberg's grave.
With representation from the Big Island, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, and Oahu. And including all churches listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Glory by the Wayside will serve as a guide for your own Hawaii day trip.
Glory received the “Po’okela Award of Excellence” from the Hawaii Book Publishers Association.
REVIEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------
“This is a lovely, lovely book. Lovingly researched, lucidly and stylishly written, delightfully and artistically presented. It breathes Hawaii.”
-- Kathleen Casey, Travel Editor, The Star-Ledger, Newark
“Sweeping beaches, imposing mountains and sterling skies – what better setting to find, or at least search for, the Divine? Glory by the Wayside isn’t just a beautiful book, it’s a useful guide for exploring the old handmade churches that dot the Hawaiian Islands.”
--Howard Shapiro, Travel Editor, Philadelphia Inquirer
“This book is beautifully photographed and designed. The research is impressive and for the first time sets down the record of this important part of Hawaiian life. Glory by the Wayside is a treasure.”
--Rita Ariyoshi, Author, Maui on My Mind
Wonderful, heart-warming views of a spiritual Hawaii that many travelers miss. Not only a grand view of Hawaii’s churches, but also a great guide for your next trip around the islands.
--David G. Molyneaux, Editor, TravelMavens.net
President, Society of American Travel Writers Foundation
“A beautiful new book presents Hawaii’s old churches …. Just paging through Glory by the Wayside builds a daydream… [it’s] so easy to imagine yourself in the shade of an old steeple listening for God in the whispering wind. … a beautiful book that displays the treasures of early Christianity in Hawaii…. More than a coffee table decoration, it’s small enough to pack along as a guidebook on a neighbor-island trip.
--Mary Adamski, Honolulu Star-Bulletin
And nowhere is the essence of Hawaii captured better than in its tiny churches in settings so beautiful that they take your breath away.
So leave those golf clubs and tennis racquets home. Put down that mai tai. Get off that beach chair and onto the road for a Hawaii day trip. Let Glory by the Wayside be your guide. Do this and you won’t regret it--and you’ll come home with a lot more than a suntan.
Many Americans’ idea of Hawaii is drawn secondhand from escapist marketing, airlines posters and Elvis films. Many Americans never go to Hawaii, reasoning, “I can get the same thing--water, sand and palm trees--in the Caribbean, so why bother with the long plane ride?”
But the truth is Hawaii is not just a tropical paradise. It’s much more interesting than that. It has mountains, jungles, deserts, a long history and a unique culture. There are petroglyphs (pictures carved into rocks by ancient Hawaiians) on Lanai, cattle ranches and cowboys--real cowboys--on Maui, volcanoes and heiau (ancient temples) on the Big Island, and a breathtaking canyon on Kauai. Each of the six principal islands has its own identity and ambience, and hopping from one to the other is easy and inexpensive.
Of the 2.4 million miles of paved roadway in the United States, only about 2,400 of them are in Hawaii. Yet nearly every inch of these two-lane byways have a special charm and allure, and around every bend of a Hawaii road trip is another picture-postcard moment. Indeed, Hawaii’s roads are like sunsets–some are more beautiful than others, but all are worthwhile.
Hawaiian drivers are for the most part extremely courteous. If you pull over to let a local pass, he or she will likely give you a happy “shaka” sign--a wagging fist with the thumb and pinky poking out. And day-trippers everywhere will encounter the spirit of “aloha”–that overused, misused, and abused word that to outsiders merely means hello or goodbye but to Hawaiians is a way of living in harmony and treating each other with love and respect.
Glory by the Wayside: The Old Churches of Hawaii celebrates the incomparable beauty of Hawaii’s old hand-built churches with an introduction to their history and architecture.
It is at once a picture book, an historical perspective and a travel guide that invites readers to further exploration.
From the Victorian architecture of St. Benedict's with its hand-painted interior to the Molokai churches of Father Damien, this is a picture book about the missionary churches that dot the Hawaiian islands.
Each of the 47 churches profiled in the book has a story to tell -- often a story of the first immigrants to Hawaii -- the Germans, the Portuguese, the Chinese, the Japanese and the Filipinos.
Included is information on the oldest church in Hawaii, the churches where royalty worshiped and the site of aviator Charles Lindberg's grave.
With representation from the Big Island, Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, and Oahu. And including all churches listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Glory by the Wayside will serve as a guide for your own Hawaii day trip.
Glory received the “Po’okela Award of Excellence” from the Hawaii Book Publishers Association.
REVIEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------
“This is a lovely, lovely book. Lovingly researched, lucidly and stylishly written, delightfully and artistically presented. It breathes Hawaii.”
-- Kathleen Casey, Travel Editor, The Star-Ledger, Newark
“Sweeping beaches, imposing mountains and sterling skies – what better setting to find, or at least search for, the Divine? Glory by the Wayside isn’t just a beautiful book, it’s a useful guide for exploring the old handmade churches that dot the Hawaiian Islands.”
--Howard Shapiro, Travel Editor, Philadelphia Inquirer
“This book is beautifully photographed and designed. The research is impressive and for the first time sets down the record of this important part of Hawaiian life. Glory by the Wayside is a treasure.”
--Rita Ariyoshi, Author, Maui on My Mind
Wonderful, heart-warming views of a spiritual Hawaii that many travelers miss. Not only a grand view of Hawaii’s churches, but also a great guide for your next trip around the islands.
--David G. Molyneaux, Editor, TravelMavens.net
President, Society of American Travel Writers Foundation
“A beautiful new book presents Hawaii’s old churches …. Just paging through Glory by the Wayside builds a daydream… [it’s] so easy to imagine yourself in the shade of an old steeple listening for God in the whispering wind. … a beautiful book that displays the treasures of early Christianity in Hawaii…. More than a coffee table decoration, it’s small enough to pack along as a guidebook on a neighbor-island trip.
--Mary Adamski, Honolulu Star-Bulletin