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312 ratings | 67 reviews | avg rating:4.46

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Bill Thorness

Goodreads Author

Born

in Williston, North Dakota, The United States

Website

http://www.billthorness.com

Genre

Nonfiction, Memoir, Travel

Member Since

July 2012

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Bill Thorness's most recent book is All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War a memoir where the author crosses continents and history to retrace his father’s steps on the battlefields of World War II. All Roads Lead to Rome (December 2024, University of Nebraska Press) was named an Independent Book Awards 2025 finalist.

A Seattle-based author, editor and freelance writer, Bill currently focuses on travel, lifestyle and history.

Visit Bill's website billthorness.com and read his Substack newsletter Annotations.

Memoir:
All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War

Join his Goodreads book group related to WWII, focused on the First Special Service Force, the subject of his memoir.

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Bill Thorness’s books

Average rating: 4.2 · 110 ratings · 21 reviews · 11 distinct works • Similar authors

	Cool Season Gardener: Extend the Harvest, Plan Ahead, and Grow Vegetables Year-Round 4.19 avg rating — 32 ratings — published 2013 — 5 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
	Cycling the Pacific Coast: The Complete Guide from Canada to Mexico 4.67 avg rating — 27 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
	Biking Puget Sound: 50 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans by Bill Thorness (Goodreads Author), Bill Woods 3.67 avg rating — 21 ratings — published 2007 — 4 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
	Edible Heirlooms: Heritage Vegetables for the Maritime Garden 4.13 avg rating — 15 ratings — published 2009 — 4 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
	POWER: How J.D. Power III Became the Auto Industry’s Adviser, Confessor, and Eyewitness to History by Sarah Morgans, Bill Thorness (Goodreads Author) 3.43 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2013 — 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
	Biking Puget Sound: 60 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans, 2nd Edition really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 8 ratings — published 2014 — 4 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
	All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War 4.43 avg rating — 7 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
	POWER: How J.D. Power III Became the Auto Industry's Adviser, Confessor, and Eyewitness to History by Bill Thorness (Goodreads Author), Sarah Morgans, Bill Griffeth (Foreword) 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
	Building green: energy efficiency takes root at habitat for humanity.(Currents): An article from: E 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
	Avoid environmental case creep into first-party property areana 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

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Bill Thorness's Blog

Named an Indie Book Award finalist!

I'm proud to report that my book All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War has been named an Independent Book Awards 2025 Finalist.
It's gratifying to have recognition for a project that was ten years in the making.
Thanks very much to my publisher, Potomac Books at the University of Nebraska Press, and the editors and readers who helped me craft my story.

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Published on June 25, 2025 09:30 • Tags: all-roads-lead-to-rome, independent-book-awards, memoir, thorness

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Bill is Currently Reading

Bill Thorness is currently reading

The Time-Jinx Twins

by Carol Fisher Saller (Goodreads Author)

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Oct 13, 2026 08:58AM

Bill Thorness is currently reading

Contrapposto

by Dave Eggers

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Jul 22, 2026 10:17AM

Bill Thorness is currently reading

Faith in a Seed: The Dispersion of Seeds & Other Late Natural History Writings

by Henry David Thoreau

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read in September 2022

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May 25, 2026 09:33AM

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Oct 13, 2026 08:44AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Bill Thorness rated a book it was amazing Zodiac by Neal Stephenson (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
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