This is the witty, ironic, and deliciously outspoken coming-of-age memoir of Jack de Yonge set in Fairbanks, Alaska -- a once thriving little mining town slowly dying in the remote center of the vast territory in 1934. As Jack’s dad liked say, no matter what direction you went out of town, you soon arrived in Nowhere. Then, World War II breaks out, and the Japanese attack Alaska. The sleepy little river town springs back to life with the arrival of thousands of U.S. soldiers, Russian lend-lease pilots, and construction workers who keep the red-light district busy and the bars rocking around the clock. The son of a hardwareman at the N.C. Company and a black Irish daughter of the gold rush, de Yonge is a fist-fighting, music-loving, reluctant altar boy who discovers his own truths about sex, religion, racism, and how the world works. His earthy story describes how war arrives in a small Alaska town next to Nowhere -- and nothing is ever the same again. A memoir as sparkling as a spring-thaw icicle and as honest and revealing as yellow snow. --Tom Robbins, author of Even Cowgirls Get the Blues Jack de Yonge's memoir starts as a wry, engaging story and quickly becomes a great read. He was a Tom Sawyer of the tundra and his tale is worthy opf Mark Twain. --David Horsey, SeattlePI.com Boom Town Boy is a unique contribution to Alaska history. --Michael Carey, KSKA public radio, Anchorage, Alaska Jack de Yonge's memoir starts as a wry, engaging story and quickly becomes a great read. He was a Tom Sawyer of the tundra and his tale is worthy opf Mark Twain. --David Horsey, SeattlePI.com Boom Town Boy is a unique contribution to Alaska history. --Michael Carey, KSKA public radio, Anchorage, Alaska This is the witty, ironic, and deliciously outspoken coming-of-age memoir of Jack de Yonge from Fairbanks, Alaska -- a once thriving mining town slowly dying in the remote center of the vast territory. As Jack's dad liked say, no matter what direction you went out of town, you soon arrived in Nowhere. Then, World War II breaks out, and the Japanese attack Alaska. The sleepy little river town springs back to life with the arrival of thousands of U.S. soldiers, Russian lend-lease pilots, and construction workers who keep the red-light district busy and the bars rocking around the clock. The son of a hardwareman at the N.C. Company and an Irish daughter of the gold rush, de Yonge is a fist-fighting, music-loving altar boy who discovers his own truths about sex, religion, racism. His earhty story describes how the war arrives in a small Alaska town next to Nowhere--and nothing is ever the same again. THE AUTHOR: Jack de Yonge is a retired newspaper reporter-editor, political-environmental activist, and avid fly-fisherman who lives with his wife, Sonjia, in Concrete, Washington. De Yonge's journalism career took him to the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, the Seattle Times, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Used Book in Good Condition