Last week, at the Augusta Museum of History, I held a book signing session. It was a pleasure meeting so many folks who were interested in three of my books. Some 70 books were purchased—each at a deep discount. All proceeds went to the Augusta Museum of History. What was a bit of a surprise for me was how many were purchased as Christmas gifts.
After the book signing session, Nancy Glaser, the director of the Augusta Museum of History, suggested the following. I sign many copies of these three books and make them available to anyone wishing one or more copies between now and Christmas. Hence, the signed books will be at the museum starting this Thursday, Dec. 16. The discount prices are as follows “Listen Up” $20, “Rules and Tools for Leaders” $10 and “Courage Compassion Marine” $10.
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A book signed by the author can be a special gift for a family member or friend. As one person, who purchased six books, told me at the book signing session: “This solves all of my Christmas present problems.”
A reminder: The Augusta Museum of History is open on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
The following is a sampling from my most recent book.
LISTEN UP: STORIES OF PEARL HARBOR, VIETNAM , THE PENTAGON, CNN AND BEYOND
By Perry McCoy Smith, Jr.
PREFACE
The following is a wild and woolly story of someone who, before the age of thirteen, watched the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, learned about the rationing of life on an evacuation ship in the Pacific Ocean, made his first public speech at age seven, observed at close hand a food riot in Naples, Italy shortly after World War II, and visited Greece during the Greek Civil War. The life that followed has been marked by successes, setbacks, a truly exceptional marriage, two kids, four grandkids and enough adventure to fill many lifetimes.
Perhaps the most interesting parts of this story are my six major setbacks. I will describe the failures and then try to draw lessons from each. Also included are nine flying stories, some of which are quite dramatic. Saving a commercial airliner is perhaps the most unusual of them all. In addition, I will tell you three lacrosse stories, four media stories, three combat stories, seven Pentagon stories, three crisis action stories and a few stories from everyday life–some which are quite humorous.
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For those who do not recognize my name, I am probably best known for my years as a military analyst for CNN, NBC TV, CBS TV and CBS radio from 1991 through 2003.
During the Persian Gulf War of 1991 (Operation Desert Storm), I served as one of two full-time military analysts for CNN. During that six-week war, there were periods of time when more than a billion people were watching CNN. Although I did not know it at the time, top officials in Washington and in Saudi Arabia were watching me. My fifteen minutes of fame actually lasted for 42 days. More on the CNN story and why I resigned from that network in protest over CNN’s ethical failure will be described a bit later.
Before you dive into my life’s rundown, let me alert you to my approach to this memoir. My more interesting stories will be highlighted in bold. You may wish to skip over my discussion of my family, my various jobs, and my forty moves from place to place. If so, I suggest you skim the text until you see some bold printing. I hope this approach works for those who may be short on time.
