Herr's founder writes about 'Life with Flavor'

For all you snack lovers, the following comes from a press release I received recently from Chester County writer and publisher Bruce Mowday:

Life with Flavor: A Personal History of Herr’s

Jim Herr, founder of international snack food company, writes about business, life

          OXFORD, Pennsylvania - A new book, Life with Flavor: A Personal History of Herr’s is now available for pre-ordering through New York Publisher Barricade Books and internet sites such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

            President George H. W. Bush endorsed the book and wrote, “If you want valuable guidance on how to succeed in business and, more importantly, how to succeed in life, then Life with Flavor is a must read. Meet Jim Herr and learn. And whatever you do, do NOT skip Mim’s Notes in the Epilogue!” 

The story of the lives of James S. Herr and Miriam Hershey Herr are contained in the book and could have been taken directly from pages written by the 19^th-century author Horatio Alger, who wrote novels about hard-working Americans gaining success through their determination and honesty.

With a $1,750 loan Jim and Mim Herr built Herr Foods from a small, one-kettle potato chip concern in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to one of the major snack food companies in the nation.

Jim Herr authored the book along with his daughter June Herr Gunden and author Bruce E. Mowday. Jim shares his experiences, from the difficulties to the triumphs, to help readers apply some of his life lessons to their life and work. Jim’s passion was to fan into flame the entrepreneurial spirit. He encourages readers to look for opportunities, invest energy wisely and to seek guidance from your Creator. He also believed that small business makes the United States strong.

The book costs $22 and can be obtained by pre-ordering through amazon.com, bn.com, barricadebooks.com and by contacting Mowday at mowday@mowday.com.

Herr, who died just before the book was printed, was a member of a number of national business organizations, local civic organizations and the Mennonite church, which he actively supported. He also was a philanthropist.

Joining President Bush in endorsing this book are former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge; Congressman Joseph R. Pitts; Franklin Graham of Samaritan’s Purse; Bill Giles, Chairman of the Philadelphia Phillies; Dick Wood, Chairman of Wawa; Dan Danner, President of the National Federation of Independent Businesses; James McCarthy, President of the Snack Food Association; Mark Taylor, President of Tyndale House Publishers; and John Haggai, Chairman of the Haggai Institute.

“Jim Herr has a knack for keeping things simple. Remarkably, his wisdom is the application of simple truths to life’s challenges, and he often quotes from the biblical book of Proverbs. This book is not only for budding entrepreneurs – it will add zest and flavor to anyone’s life who applies its wisdom,” from Life with Flavor.

Psssst ... There's a free lending library at The Mercury's Community Media Lab

Today I'm writing from The Mercury's brand new Community Media Lab, where the newpaper offers the public free WiFi, the use of three computers, a microfilm machine to look up past editions of the paper, and space to hold a meeting or small gathering.

The lab is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday immediately adjacent to the offices of The Mercury at 24 N. Hanover St., Pottstown (located at the intersection of King and Hanover streets). The lab celebrated its grand opening on July 20.  It is usually staffed by Mercury Community Engagement Editor Diane Hoffman, but sometimes she gets to have a day off and people like me fill in.

Our lending "library" at the lab.

At the lab we also have a small lending library of books on loan from various Mercury staffers. Our "library" consists of just one 3-tiered bookshelf, but on it you'll find a fair sampling of books in lots of different genres.

There's an 8-book collection of Anita Shreve novels (great for the beach!); various mystery/suspense/thriller novels by writers including Mary Higgins Clartk, Tom Clancy, Jack Higgins, and Thomas Harris; non-fiction writing including Jon Krakauer's amazing book "Into the Wild" and Stephen King's "On Writing"; and some of my personal picks, which include "The Book of Ruth" by Jane Hamilton (dark and deep) "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd (mysterious and engrossing) and "Turtle Moon" by Alice Hoffman (magical and enchanting).

We had a total of 5 visitors today!

We are also in the lending library some how-to books - "The Garden Primer,"  and "Train Your Dog in One Hour" and even some nonfiction offerings from local (Pottstown!) writers: "The Chiropractic Way to Health" by Leo McCormick, Darryl Hajduczek and Roger Walker: as well as the extremely well done "Save Our Land, Save Our Towns" by former Mercury Editor Thomas Hylton. We also have a copy of the stellar documentary that accompany's Tom's book.

There are also several copies of Mercury Reporter Evan Brandt's "The Hidden River" series, which have been in demand since he wrote the newspaper series on the Schuylkill River way back in 2001. That's how good it is!

Some Mercury staffers including me and Mercury Editor Nancy March plan to note some of our book recommendations (just like those staff picks you see at a bookstore) and rotate them each months. So far, we still need to make the staff pick signs, but Nancy has put her recommendations of Frank McCourt's "Teacher Man" and Philly writer Mark Bowden's "Black Hawk Down" atop the shelf. Mine are those mentioned above.

We're also open to having "guest picks" - Do you have any good books you'd care to recommend? Please comment below!

A view of the lab at the end of open hours today.

Stop by check out the community media lab and our lending library. Search the 'Net, sit and read in our cushy new microfiber loveseat from Pottstown's own Lastick Furniture or take a book home for free (we just ask that you sign it out ... and promise to bring it back).

It's 100 degrees out today, but it's a cool 72.1 here in the lab. It's a nice place to stop for a cup of $1 coffee (we have a Keurig), hold a small meeting, work on our new computers or peruse some microfilm copies of The Mercury going back to 1933.

Come see us!

'All the Truth' will keep you guessing

Review: "All the Truth," by Laura Brodie (July 3, 2012, Berkley Trade Paperback Original, $15, 287 pp.)

I brought this novel with me on a recent multi-day visit to my mom and stepdad, along with other unread novels and magazines - whatever was piling up on my nightstand. I parked myself on a comfortable lounge chair on their shaded porch with a lake view, which is the utmost perfect place for reading, and dove into "All the Truth." The next day I left the paperback lying about when I went off to play golf with my stepfather.

Several hours later I returned home to find my mom sitting in that same chair, engrossed in the novel. "Do you mind that I'm reading your book?" she asked sweetly, not putting it down. Not really, I thought, as I pick up a magazine instead. After all, I had a bunch of other things to read. But her ardor made me become even more intrigued in the novel. My mom was fully caught up in "All the Truth," had far surpassed my bookmark, and ended up finishing the near 300-page novel in ONE DAY.

When she finished I started it up again. After a bit, my mom asked innocently, "What part are you reading now?" I told her and she responded, "So, you haven't gotten to the twist yet?"

Um, no. And now I knew there was a big twist coming.

Just last night I finally did finish the suspenseful "All the Truth." It took me several days (I'm no speed-reader like my mom). And there is indeed a giant twist that I will not reveal here because it would ruin the book for you. Truly.

After my mom's comments, I started to try to guess aloud what the book's twist was, and she just shook her head. Thankfully, the big plot change wasn't something I could simply guess at - that would be soooo boring.

And boring, Brodie's novel is not. It draws you in from page 1 with a tale of a violent act involving a mother, daughter and three college students on a late spring night in rural Virginia.

The lives of the mother, Emma Greene, her daughter Maggie and the three students, Kyle, Jacob and Sandy, change instantly and drastically during the course of a few minutes.

Just like the author, the character Emma is an English professor at a small college in Virginia. Her husband is out of town the night in question, when the three students - who have been drinking - happen upon the creek near the home where Emma has just put her 5-year-old to bed. The students' voices carry to Emma's home, and she goes outside and politely asks them to move along, so as not to disturb her daughter. They agree, but first, the girl wants to use Emma's bathroom. Emma concedes, and the girl and her boyfriend, Kyle (Kleptomaniac Kyle), go to the house while Emma chats with the other boy. Emma and Jacob meander back toward the house and Emma sees that the students have been where they shouldn't have been - upstairs, where her daughter is sleeping, and that Kyle's pockets are stuffed full of Maggie's toys.

Emma is enraged, and threatens to recommend the students for expulsion from the college. The three are seniors who will graduate in a week's time, and the threat is not taken lightly.

The shocking thing that happens next happens quickly and irrevocably. Young Maggie witnesses the act from the top of the stairs. She knows what happened, but the reader is kept in the dark, with bits of details of that night and its aftermath unraveled throughout the tale.

The story is told from the vacillating viewpoints of Emma and Maggie. The point of view switches back and forth from the time of the violent act to a time 9 years later, when Maggie is a high school freshman still very much affected by the incident.

Brodie writes with the sensitivity of a mother, a college professor, and a woman. It's a quick read, obviously. You will want to know what happens. What you believe is the truth will change through the course of the novel. And you'll see that the truth about that fateful night is different to different characters.

The novel gets its title from an Emily Dickenson poem, "Tell All the Truth."

Tell all the truth but tell it slant,
Success in circuit lies,
Too bright for our infirm delight
The truth's superb surprise;

As lightning to the children eased
With explanation kind,
The truth must dazzle gradually
Or every man be blind.

Book summary (from the author's website):

     Emma was smoothing a blanket across her daughter's shoulders when she first heard the voices. They rose in quiet syllables from the open window, long vowel sounds combined with the rolling consonance of her backyard creek. Occasionally a girl's high laugh punctuated the lower tones, then all fell silent...

    When three college students stray from a party onto the rural property of their former professor, a casual encounter devolves into a violent confrontation. Nine years later three of the characters present on that night must unravel the truth about what happened and come to terms with its aftermath.

About the author:

LAURA BRODIE

Laurie Brodie is a Harvard graduate with a PhD in English from the University of Virginia. She is the author of "The Widow's Season" as well as two works of nonfiction: "One Good Year: A Mother and Daughter's Educational Adventure" and "Breaking Out: VMI and the Coming of Women." A visiting professor of English at Washington and Lee University, Brodie resides in Lexington, Va. with her family. She is the mother of three girls.

Win this book:

If you would like to "win" my slightly dogeared review copy of Laura Brodie's new novel "All the Truth," courtesy of The Berkley Publishing Group, simply comment on this post with your email address. If you're selected as winner (at random), I'll contact you to find out where to mail the book. If no one comments or otherwise claims the book it will be donated to The Mercury's Community Media Lab.