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55 ratings | 22 reviews | avg rating:4.38

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Steve Procko

Goodreads Author

Born

in Miami Beach, The United States

Website

https://www.HistoryBend.org

Genre

Biography, History, Nonfiction

Influences

Laura Hillenbrand; Erik Larson; Charles Frazier

Member Since

March 2021

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Steve Procko is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and historical nonfiction author whose work explores the overlooked people and stories of America's past. After more than thirty years producing films and documentaries, he brought the same approach to research, visual storytelling, and narrative structure to his books.

His newest book, Gilded Breeze, tells the remarkable true story of James Lawrence "Jimmie" Breese and his family as their lives intersect with the extraordinary world of America's Gilded Age. Moving through New York society, architecture, early photography, automobiles, aviation, wealth, scandal, and a changing America, the book brings together a cast that includes Stanford White and many of the people who inhabited the world of Steve Procko is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and historical nonfiction author whose work explores the overlooked people and stories of America's past. After more than thirty years producing films and documentaries, he brought the same approach to research, visual storytelling, and narrative structure to his books.

His newest book, Gilded Breeze, tells the remarkable true story of James Lawrence "Jimmie" Breese and his family as their lives intersect with the extraordinary world of America's Gilded Age. Moving through New York society, architecture, early photography, automobiles, aviation, wealth, scandal, and a changing America, the book brings together a cast that includes Stanford White and many of the people who inhabited the world of the Four Hundred.

His previous book, Captured Freedom (2023), follows a group of Union officers who escaped Confederate prison camps during the Civil War and made a dangerous journey of more than 300 miles to freedom. The book received an Independent Press Award and was praised by Kirkus Reviews.

Rebel Correspondent (2021) grew from the rediscovery of a remarkable series of firsthand newspaper accounts written decades after the Civil War by former Confederate soldier Arba F. Shaw. The book also received recognition from the Independent Press Awards.

Steve's historical storytelling extends beyond his books through There's History Around Every Bend, where he produces short films and stories drawn from the people, places, photographs, documents, and unexpected discoveries that make history personal.

He is particularly drawn to stories that have slipped from the historical record and to the primary sources that can bring them back to life. His research has taken him into archives, libraries, family collections, historic sites, military records, old newspapers, photographs, letters, and sometimes a single forgotten document that opens the door to an entirely new story.

More of his work can be found at HistoryBend.org, GildedBreeze.com, CapturedFreedom.com, and RebelCorrespondent.com. ...more

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Steve Procko’s books

Average rating: 4.36 · 45 ratings · 12 reviews · 4 distinct works • Similar authors

	Rebel Correspondent 4.31 avg rating — 26 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Captured Freedom: The Epic True Civil War Story of Union POW Officers Escaping from a Southern Prison 4.42 avg rating — 19 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	There's History Around Every Bend: Historic Stories to Amaze and Intrigue You by Steve Procko (Goodreads Author), Kathy Thompson (Goodreads Author) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gilded Breeze 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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17 posts
Steve Procko's Blog

The Photograph That Started It All

Every story has a beginning, and for Captured Freedom, it was a single photograph shared with me in 2022 by a descendant of one of the men it depicted.

Taken on January 2, 1865, the image showed twelve figures — nine Union officers and soldiers who had escaped Confederate imprisonment, and three mountain guides who risked everything to help them.

The soldiers had endured brutal conditions, walking n Read more of this blog post »

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Published on April 26, 2025 10:32

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Steve’s Recent Updates

Steve Procko rated a book it was amazing Fever Beach: A Novel by Carl Hiaasen (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 08, 2025 11:27AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Fever Beach by Carl Hiaasen. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Fever Beach by Carl Hiaasen <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Steve Procko made a comment in the group Goodreads Librarians Group — Merge two editions topic " Hi! I updated the links so they are now correct - Can you please merge these two editions? Correct Edition https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... Incor ...more "
May 05, 2025 02:37PM
Steve Procko rated a book it was amazing The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Reading Erik Larson’s latest, I was completely absorbed from the very first page. The Demon of Unrest plunges you into the chaotic, nerve-wracking months between Lincoln’s election and the first shots at Fort Sumter—months I thought I understood but ...more
Apr 26, 2025 12:53PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Steve Procko made a comment in the group Biography, Autobiography, Memoir — What Are You Reading Now (anything goes) 2025 topic " Been reading "Stanny: The Gilded Life of Stanford White" by Paul Baker for some research for a Gilded Age book I have been writing the last year. Quit ...more "
Apr 26, 2025 11:36AM
Steve Procko made a comment in the group The American Civil War — currently reading? topic " What is everyone's thoughts on Erik Larson's "The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War"? I am a big ...more "
Apr 26, 2025 11:20AM
Steve Procko rated a book it was amazing The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Reading Erik Larson’s latest, I was completely absorbed from the very first page. The Demon of Unrest plunges you into the chaotic, nerve-wracking months between Lincoln’s election and the first shots at Fort Sumter—months I thought I understood but ...more
Apr 26, 2025 11:10AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Steve Procko made a comment in the group Authors & Reviewers — R&R Sign Up topic " 1. Name: Steve Procko 2. Email address: sprocko@steveprocko.com 3. Book Title: Captured Freedom 4. Book Synopsis: In January 1865, nine Union soldiers an ...more "
Apr 26, 2025 10:15AM
Steve Procko rated a book it was amazing Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2025 09:24AM · like
Steve Procko rated a book really liked it Holly (Holly Gibney #3) by Stephen King (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2025 09:23AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Holly by Stephen King. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Holly by Stephen King <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Steve Procko rated a book really liked it Crossing the Hudson: Historic Bridges and Tunnels of the River (Rivergate Books (Hardcover)) by Donald E. Wolf	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 26, 2025 09:23AM · like