Books published by publisher Merrigold Press

Merriam Press World War 2 History SeriesIt was the only barrage balloon training facility in the U.S. in World War II, so the soldiers who were there had an experience unlike any other soldiers anywhere. The Camp also became engrained in the lives of Henry Countians — most every home in Paris, Tennessee, had a soldier and his family living with them (including the author’s) and the camp is credited with modernizing Paris and the county. Most importantly, however, Camp Tyson was the home of the all-black 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion, which was the first battalion to rush onto the beaches on D-Day. They were trained for that battle at Camp Tyson and their accomplishments have been largely unheralded. Additionally, both Italian and German prisoners of war were held there during and after the war. The author was able to track down several of the black soldiers who were trained there and were at D-Day, and also has first-person accounts from white soldiers who were at the camp, as well as former soldiers who remember the German and Italian prisoners. Much of the book is first-person interviews, as well as documents from the Library of Congress and other government sources that have never been published before. The author, Shannon McFarlin, now lives in the family homeplace in Paris, Tennessee. She grew up listening to stories told about Camp Tyson from her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother and was inspired to write about the Camp from an early age. She has worked as a news reporter for most of her working life, for newspapers in Ohio and Tennessee, and is currently the News Director for a large West Tennessee radio station, WENK/WTPR, and its website and writes for Paris! magazine. She has a master’s degree in public history and a bachelor’s degree in history from Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky, and also studied history at Bowling Green State University. She was awarded first place in Investigative Journalism in 1981 by the Ohio Associated Press and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize that same year. Contents Chapter 1: Eddie Finds A New Home Chapter 2: Motors Roared, Hammers Thudded And Saws Swished Chapter 3: They Just Came Out And Destroyed Our Farms, Our Barns, Our House" Chapter 4: "They Didn’t Feel Like Strangers" Chapter 5: Flying Elephants In The Sky Chapter 6: "It Just Exploded" Chapter 7: Shot Down Over Lake Erie Chapter 8: Good Times For Entrepreneurs Chapter 9: "They Would Throw Hands of Candy And Gum At Us As They Marched By" Chapter 10: "We Reached Out To Those Boys As If They Were Ours" Chapter 11: "War Is Hell, But Pretty Entertaining, Too" Chapter 12: "The Day Jeanette MacDonald Came To Town" Chapter 13: Death In An Army Camp Chapter 14: "The Deuces": The African-American Experience Chapter 15: "We Were There. We Did Our Part" Chapter 16: Working There Was An Education In Itself Chapter 17: A Close Encounter Of A General Kind Chapter 18: "This Is Your Life, Pearl Routon" Chapter 19: 4,000 Hamburgers To Go Chapter 20: "Paris Has Nowhere To Go But Up, So I'm Staying Right Here" Chapter 21: Hospitality, Southern Style Chapter 22: Haul 'Er Down Chapter 23: From Surplus To POW Camp Chapter 24: Didn't You Hear? The War Is Over! Chapter 25: "It Was Considered Sinful" Chapter 26: "Don't Come Back From Washington Without A Signed Deed" Chapter 27: Soldiers Tell Their Stories Chapter 28: "Hi There, Soldier!" Chapter 29: Keepers Of The Flame 40 photos footnotes

Merriam Press Children No. 1 First Edition, 2015 A children's counting book based on the "Twelve Days of Christmas" song, "On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, a Pug snoring by a Pear Tree..." A variety of dogs are amusingly illustrated - Pug, Basset Hound, French Bulldog, Cocker Spaniel, Golden Retriever, Scottie, Setter, Lab, Dalmation, Dachshund, Boxer, and puppies. The colorful illustrations were especially commissioned for this work. Your child, and the child in you, will thoroughly enjoy this wonderful variation on a Christmas classic. Part of the proceeds from this book go to Tony LaRussa's Animal Rescue Foundation, ARF!

Merriam Press World War 2 History Series First Edition 2017 Admiral William Halsey’s Fast Carrier Task Force was the ultimate naval armada during World War II. To protect the carriers from kamikazes, squadrons of destroyers were placed in harm’s way on the outer flanks of the formation. The USS Haynsworth DD 700 was one of the nine sister destroyers that formed Squadron 62 in 1944. Her warrior-captain and his twenty-five year old executive officer led a mostly teenage crew through bold engagements in the South China Sea, Iwo Jima, Tokyo, and Okinawa. The destroyers battled Japanese warships, submarines, torpedoes, mines, and planes. On the road to victory in the Pacific, the young crew matured from boys to men as they endured typhoons, took prisoners on the high seas, and rescued pilots. But, on April 6, 1945, Kikusui No.1 was initiated, the largest kamikaze attack of World War II. After months of protecting the aircraft carriers from danger, the USS Haynsworth found itself in the crosshairs when it was the first warship struck. For the Haynsworth and the Fifth Fleet, it was a fight for survival against nearly seven hundred enemy planes in an epic battle that spanned thirty hours. The crew of the USS Haynsworth carried the weight of the attack through their lifetimes. For one young radioman, Jack McAllister, the attack defined his life in unexpected ways. Phalanx Against the Divine Wind contains possibly the last first-hand accounts of kamikaze attacks against destroyers. It is a riveting account of young sailors and their warships’ struggle for survival during their intense battles against the Japanese in World War II. Contents Foreword: Robert G. Walker, Cdr., USN Part I: THE WAR 1941-1944: The Boy; Battleship; Sunday, December 7th; Attack!; Pacific Island Hopping Campaign; Shangri-La: The Doolittle Raid; Halt: The Battle of the Coral Sea; Midway; Guadalcanal Part II: A CREW IS FORMED: Boot; Destroyer Training: Norfolk, Virginia; Battle of the Philippine Sea: Turkey Shoot; USS Haynsworth DD-700; Sea Trials; Destroyers and Goliath: Battle off Samar Island; Plankowners: First Mission; Storm Winds Gather; Pacific Bound; Kamikaze: Divine Wind; Destination Pearl Harbor; Warrior Seaman; Departure; Ulithi Bound Part III: FAST CARRIER TASK FORCE 38: Joining the Pacific Fleet; Task Force 38: Halsey’s Hammer; 1945; Rescue at Sea; “You will not get our alive”: The South China Sea; Replenishment at Sea; Storm: Nature’s Hammer Part IV: FAST CARRIER TASK FORCE 58: Prepare for Battle; Operation JAMBOREE: Attacks Against Japan; Target: Tokyo; Marine Rescue; Iwo Jima; “The Destroyers Were Lifesavers”; Emergency at Sea; Reprieve Part V: OKINAWA: Operation ICEBERG; 18 March 1945: Day 1 Against the Home Islands; “Six planes are down”; 19 March: Day 2 Against the Home Islands; Target: Kure; 20 March: Task Force 58; 21 March: A New Threat Emerges; Okinawa Gunto; Raid!; Easter Week; Leaving Pearl; Lucky Day: Invasion of Okinawa; Operation TEN-GO: Kikusui No.1 Part VI: DIVINE WIND STORM: 6 April 1945; 7 April 1945: The Storm Continues; 8 April 1945: Task Group 58.3; En route to Ulithi Aftermath Epilogue APPENDICES The Crew The Saved Post Script Chapter Notes Glossary Task Group 38.2 Organization December 1944 Task Group 58.3 Organization February 1945 Task Group 58.3 Organization March 1945 Ships Sunk or Damaged by Kamikazes 6-7 April 1945 Casualties Pilot and Crew Rescues Crew Letter: Clifford Heob Muster Roll 1944-45 Destroyer Squadron 62 Commanders Destroyer Squadron 62 World War II Battle Stars Bibliography: Interviews and Correspondence; Personal Journals, Letters and Published Accounts; Published Histories and Other References; Official War Diaries, Muster Rolls, and Action Reports Index 292 photos and illustrations 7 maps