Set in the sweeping landscape of Montana, on the majestic, often perilous waters of Alaska, along the coastal lands and waterways of California, and in the skies over China and the Far East, Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday tells the stories of people Ed Larson has lived with and loved.
Ed Larson paints pictures with his words and tells stories with his drawings. In Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday, he takes you on a series of amazing adventures; and in due course, you will grow to respect and love Grandpa Charlie and Gram, Victor and Pete, and the cast of fisherman and fliers, family, friends, and lovers who have peopled Ed's stories and his life.
Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday reminds us that tenacity often triumphs over adversity; that life holds many surprising gifts; and that there is astounding beauty in the places, things, and people we so easily fail to notice and often take for granted. Ultimately, Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday is a reflection of a life well lived.
About the Author: EDWARD LARSON has been an adventurer most of his life. Although he grew up in Seattle, he spent his summers on Alaska towboats transporting salmon from the fishing banks to canneries spread throughout Southeast Alaska. Then at the age of 17, with America entering WWII, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps, first learning to fly and then training pilots before deploying to the far-reaches of Western China where he flew C-46s and C-47s delivering barreled aviation fuel, ammo, and supplies from India over the Himalaya Mountains-the infamous "Hump"-to combat locations farther east.
Following the war, Larson returned to Southeast Alaska, once again working the fishing boats. In 1954, he re-entered college and earned a master's degree, which led to a thirty-year career in education.
Along with his itch for adventure, Larson's passion for writing and illustrating crystalized as a young boy. Now, at the age of 93, he has amassed a considerable body of critically acclaimed work-writing and illustrations that have appeared in literary journals, magazines, and other publications.
Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday is Larson's sixth book. A collection of mostly unpublished short stories, poems, and drawings that he has created over the course of his lifetime, it is, like the author, aged to perfection.
"As a young kid, I loved jumping in mud puddles and joyfully kicking asunder those piles of raked leaves that lined the pathway of my life. I never outgrew those regrettable tendencies; thus, my life has been blessed with an abundance of adventure. Leaves from the Autumns of Yesterday is an account of the life I have loved; I present it to you, earnestly seeking your acceptance and affection for its pages. To enjoy another's written work lifts its author's soul to the region of the polar stars. I want you to love this book, and I will be fulfilled if you will join me on this journey." Edward C. Larson
Ed Larson currently resides in Santa Cruz, California, where he remains active, volunteering at the Santa Cruz Harbor and sharing his experiences with enthusiastic audiences.
