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Neal Thompson

Goodreads Author

Website

http://www.NealThompson.com

Twitter

nealthompson

Genre

Nonfiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Mystery

Influences

Erik Larson Laura Hillenbrand Michael Chabon Laura Lippman Megan Abbot ...more

Member Since

January 2010

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I'm the author of Kickflip Boys: A Memoir of Freedom, Rebellion, and the Chaos of Fatherhood (May 2018). Tony Hawk called it "fun, moving, raw and relatable.” Michael Chabon said it "captures the ache, fizz, yearning and frustration of being the father of adolescent boys." Maria Semple calls it "a riveting, touching, and painful read! My stomach was in knots page after page."

I've written four other books - stories about flawed and adventurous men - and have blabbed about those on ESPN, the History Channel, PBS, C-Span, Fox, TNT, and NPR. Plus five minutes on The Daily Show.

My previous book, A CURIOUS MAN - a bio of eccentric world-traveling millionaire/playboy cartoonist Robert 'Believe It or Not' Ripley - was an Oprah.com Book of the Wee ...more

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Average rating: 3.83 · 4,686 ratings · 696 reviews · 9 distinct works • Similar authors

	A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley 3.66 avg rating — 2,488 ratings — published 2013 — 17 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
	The First Kennedys: The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty 3.84 avg rating — 856 ratings — published 2022 — 13 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
	Driving with the Devil: Southern Moonshine, Detroit Wheels, and the Birth of NASCAR 4.18 avg rating — 609 ratings — published 2006 — 11 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
	Light This Candle: The Life & Times of Alan Shepard – America's First Spaceman 4.16 avg rating — 481 ratings — published 2004 — 8 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
	Kickflip Boys: A Memoir of Freedom, Rebellion, and the Chaos of Fatherhood 3.90 avg rating — 156 ratings — published 2019 — 7 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
	Hurricane Season: A Coach, His Team, and Their Triumph in the Time of Katrina 3.95 avg rating — 96 ratings — published 2007 — 21 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
	Winter Faith 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
	THE FIRST OBAMA: The Humble Roots of the first black president of an African/American Dynasty. 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
	Kickflip Boys: A Memoir Of Freedom, Rebellion, And The Chaos Of Fatherhood 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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Neal Thompson's Blog: Blood & Whiskey

Blood & Whiskey #40

Hey friends and readers,

I tried ten times to get this one out the door, but… the election, holidays, New Years, whatever. Now I’m sending this on my birthday. One of those landmark b-days — ends with a 0 and starts a new decade (shut up, doesn’t matter which decade…) Feels like a good time to put Blood & Whiskey on ice to tackle some urgent writing projects. Not forever, but this’ll be my last new

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The Rembrandt Affair (Gabriel Allon, #10)

by Daniel Silva

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Nov 27, 2024 11:38PM

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Hunters in the Dark

by Lawrence Osborne (Goodreads Author)

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Into the Deep: A Memoir from the Man Who Found the Titanic

by Robert D. Ballard

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Jun 22, 2024 12:13AM

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Neal Thompson wrote a new blog post Blood & Whiskey #40 Hey friends and readers,I tried ten times to get this one out the door, but… the election, holidays, New Years, whatever. Now I’m sending this on my b Read more of this blog post »
Jan 17, 2025 12:29AM · like
Neal rated a book it was amazing School for Love by Olivia Manning	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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Quotes by Neal Thompson (?)

“You must carry along with you a lively imagination and plenty of romance in your soul. Some of the most wonderful things in the world will seem dull and drab unless you view them in the proper light.”
― Neal Thompson, A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley

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“Why any one place should forever hold enchantment for the reason you are born there is a mystery. But like cats and birds we are pussy-footed and pigeon-toed and our footsteps lead toward home.… The Eskimo longs for his northern bleakness and his ice hut, the cowboy dreams of the wide open towns and prairies of the west, the old salt is looking out to sea … and down in the hold of many ships are dead Chinamen’s bones going home to China.”
― Neal Thompson, A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley

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“An overnight train ride delivered him to Persia, his 153rd country, where he drank beer for breakfast and began mapping a route home.”
― Neal Thompson, A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley

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Neal Thompson's Blog: Blood & Whiskey

Blood & Whiskey #40

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Blood & Whiskey #40

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