Step into the life of Myra Dietz, a girl whose voice is as sweet as her determination is strong. Meet Myra’s father, John, a steadfast Northwest Wisconsin woodsman who confronts the world’s largest lumber syndicate.When John asks for his back wages, the lumber company refuses. He then learns that the dam they’ve been using for log drives is on his land. The syndicate could lose millions. But rather than settle, they respond with government corruption. Warrants are issued for John’s arrest. Shots are fired. Newspapermen flock to Sawyer County. Headlines explode coast-to-coast!Get to know this struggling but loving family, once regarded nationwide as champions of the working class. Stand with them against the eighth-wealthiest American ever, timber tycoon, Frederick Weyerhaeuser.Raise your fist with Myra Dietz, perhaps Wisconsin’s bravest heroine of all time. But watch out—the Winchesters are loaded and bullets will soon fly!Thornapple Girl is …•Based on news accounts, court records, and Myra’s personal recollections.•Complete with 111 illustrations, press clippings, and excerpts from Myra’s 1929 memoir.•Created by James Brakken, Bayfield County’s award-winning author of historical fiction.•Written for adults, yet suitable for younger readers.•Available from BadgerValley.com along with the complete 1929 Myra Dietz memoir, The Heroine of Cameron Dam, edited by Sybil L. Brakken in 2020 for its first public debut.Thornapple Girl is the story of Myra Dietz, a young woman caught in the midst of a violent land dispute between her steadfast father and the world’s largest lumber syndicate.This novel is set near the Thornapple River in Winter, Wisconsin, in the early 1900s, a time when Myra and her brothers stood by their father, John Dietz when he demanded his back wages from the Chippewa Lumber Company. But rather than settle, Frederick Weyerhaeuser, the wealthiest-ever of all lumber barons, chose to use his influence over the county, state, and federal government to push Dietz aside. Warrants were issued. Posses were formed. Myra and her brother, Clarence, nearly died after they were shot by Sawyer County lawmen. Headlines carried the story coast-to-coast after nearly 100 deputized thugs fired a thousand rounds into the log home housing a family that became regarded nationwide as heroes of the working class. The assault on the Dietz family shocked a nation into realizing the abuse of power by companies that monopolized the USA back then was beyond control.Thornapple Girl is a disturbing glimpse into the past and the wrongs wielded upon American workers over 100 years ago. The story is based on press clippings, court records, and Myra Dietz’s personal recollections, featured in her previously unpublished 1929 memoir, now in print as a companion piece to Thornapple Girl. See more at http://badgervalley.com/James Brakken Some of James Brakken's Awards 2nd PLACE: AMAZON BREAKTHROUGH NOVEL AWARDS out of 10,000 novels entered worldwide in 2013! 1 st PLACE: Wisconsin Writers Assn JADE RING competition. 2015 1 st PLACE: LAKE SUPERIOR WRITERS AWARD: 2013, 2014, 2016 Critical reviews of James Brakken's 12 books and more than 140 short stories and poems: "Wonderfully written .... Compelling" "A good piece of writing with suspense and action ..." Jerry Apps, award-winning Wisconsin author. "Weaving mystery into history, James Brakken's writing vivifies the tumultuous nature of 19th-century life in the legendary north woods." Michael Perry, NYT bestselling Wisconsin author "A fascinating tale ... "Rip-roaring action ..." "So well-written." "Difficult to put down; a great read." Publisher's Weekly Magazine "The writing style of this piece is its greatest strength." "The flow of the words is like an old fashioned song." Amazon Books "It's the dialog and characters that drive The Treasure of Namakagon, a book that, ... in the 1950s, would likely be sitting at or near the top of the best seller's lists. It appears as if author James A. Brakken is determined to make a go of this series, and ... he's made at least one fan of this reader." 22 nd Writer's Digest Book Awards Judge "Wisconsin history buffs will find this book a treasure in itself. An exciting adventure for all ages." Waldo Asp, AARP Chairman "Open with caution. You won't want to put this one down." LaMoine MacLaughlin, President, Wisconsin Writers Assn "I thoroughly enjoyed it!" Larry Meiller, Wisconsin Public Radio " Saving Our Lakes & Streams should be required reading for all state, county, and town officials, for those who plan a career in natural resources, and for everyone who treasures water recreation." Dan Small, Public TV's Outdoor Wisconsin "James Brakken has captured all of the current science, technology, and leadership necessary to preserve our lakes and streams." Mary Platner, Founder & Past-president of Wisconsin Lakes About the Author Bayfield County author, James Brakken, began writing in college when "Muskie Madness,"