New Book Released - From Hell Raiser to Hall of Famer: Best of Times

April 17, 2013 - PRLog -- Tom Aiken, has written a book about proving what he believes was the best place to be a kid growing up in America, Colorado Springs, Colorado and also the best time to be alive.
His book “From Hell Raiser to Hall of Famer: Best of Times” was recently released by Biographical Publishing Company and is available in paperback at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other booksellers, as well as e-book on Kindle and Nook. Reviews have been very positive.
Aiken, 70, who now lives in Oregon where he is a well-respected artist and community volunteer, explains his reasons for writing the unique memoir. “After our 50th Palmer reunion in Colorado Springs, many of us exchanged our favorite stories about how life when we were growing up was vastly different from what kids experience today, and realizing that I had told and retold these stories to my wife over the years,  I knew it was time to put them on paper so my kids and grandkids would know that it was, indeed, a special time and place,” he says, as he picks up a paint brush and puts the finishing touches on a western themed painting on the easel in his studio.
“Much has been written about the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation and we all know about the ‘Greatest Generation,’ but what about the people born during or just prior to WWII? The “Greatest Generation’ won the war and launched our country into what could be defined as the ‘Best-of-Times Generation,’ the 40s and 50s.” he adds.
Aiken’s book shows it was a time of growing prosperity, people who wanted to work could find jobs that would afford them, as a minimum, bungalows or “cracker box” homes and, in many cases, dream homes in the suburbs. Children who grew up during these times had the best the world could offer.
The book is a humorous account of one spirited kid’s (Aiken’s) journey to adulthood. The venue is Colorado Springs before it became the large and bustling metropolis it is today.
Through Aiken’s eyes and great ability to recall details, the reader will watch a country transform from travel by train to travel by jet airplane, and transition from a time when people had ice delivered to their homes to keep their food cold and sitting around the living room radio listening to their favorite shows such as “Fibber Magee and Molly” to witnessing live television broadcasts of the country's first satellite launchings.
Self-described as one kid who let no good adventure go untested, much to the chagrin of the mothers of his playmates, Aiken and his friends could accurately be described as the "kings of pranks." Readers who follow their adventures will be taken back to more tolerant, simple and straight-forward times.
Readers may also long to go back in time and grow up getting in “trouble” with Tommy Aiken. Find out what leads up to the quote, “We were about one clown short of a circus parade.”
A retired “bureaucrat” he has become a much-awarded artist. He paints in oils and acrylics. He is challenged by painting anything that inspires him. Most painting are western-themed with cowboys, Indians and horses, but he also paints portraits, pet portraits landscapes and seascapes. Fortunate for the reading public, he also writes. He has previously published an article celebrating the Bureau of Reclamation’s centennial entitled “Memoirs of a Bureau Curmudgeon.”
He has already had positive reviews on the new book: Dave Bishop of Nashville, TN., writes, “An interesting and entertaining read!"; Lorene Truman Kuimelis, a classmate of Aiken's, who now lives in Healdsburg, CA. says, “I had a great time reading and reminiscing!”; and another classmate, Susan Hay McGrath of Albuquerque, NM. describes her reaction, “Read it straight through and thoroughly enjoyed it!”
For more information contact: Tom Aiken, lintomaiken@yahoo.com