Hickory Trail

by Scott Douglas Vaughan

First kiss. First love. First job. First car. First dance. First step beyond home.
For American teenagers, the high school years include all the firsts of independence. Frank Wilcox is no different. It’s been four years since Frank and his family left the farm on Brookwood Road for the new subdivision on Hickory Trail in Acorn, GA. During those four years, the family ties are both hilariously and poignantly strengthened within the sluggish economy of the late 1970s. Frank explores his passion with a job at the local newspaper – a position that opens his eyes to the darker side of humanity. Frank and his closest friends forge their teenage camaraderie through double dates, school activities (some gone awry), and Sunday afternoon baseball in the sweltering Georgia heat.
In the third and final installment of his Memories of a Home series, author Scott Douglas Vaughan again writes through the eyes of his alter-ego, Frank Wilcox. In his unique style, Vaughan gives his readers a series of stories – each confined to its own chapter – that collectively take a walk through the life of a teenage boy growing up in north Georgia during the late 1970s.
Readers will take a journey through another time and place – a small-town on the brink of phenomenal growth. Readers will laugh at the adventures of the Wilcox brothers, poignantly remember the advice of loving parents, and fondly recall similar memories of growing up among all those firsts of early independence.

354 pages, Paperback

Published November 10, 2018

About the author

Scott Douglas Vaughan has been paid to write for more than 40 years, starting with a submission to his hometown newspaper when he was 12 years old.
He is a former award-winning writer for newspaper members of both the Georgia and South Carolina press associations. He is a professional public speaker, writing his own speeches and the illustrations (stories) within them.
As a lifelong professional communicator, he has served organizations, including churches and small businesses, with strategic communication planning.
Scott has written two books, Brookwood Road (www.brookwoodroad.com) in 2014 and Elm Street (www.elmstreetmemories) in 2016. Both books are fiction based on Scott's stories from his life growing up in 1960s and 1970s north Georgia.
Scott is a board member for the South Carolina Writers Association.
Scott has been married for 31 years. He and Vicki have four grown sons and one daughter-in-law.

Reviews

[Janice Samson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the third in a series of stories about growing up in the Deep South, focusing on the main character's high school days. I enjoyed this book the most of the three, and found myself laughing out loud at some of the stories.

(Spoiler alert) One of my favorite stories was when Frank's mother found his stash of Playboy magazines and ordered him to destroy them, and his father asked him for the edition that had the interview with Jimmy Carter.

[Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third book in a series about the life and coming of age of Scott Vaughan. It begins with a move of his family from a house he grew up in out in the country to a house in town where he begins high school. Most of his memories are from those high school days but other memories are told throughout the story. It is a heartwarming book with many funny stories and life growing up in the 70's.

[Jackie Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. The author used some of his boyhood memories in this writing. This is third book in a series. The characters grabbed me in the beginning and held me throughout. Thanks to Goodreads.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was nice getting an autographed copy free, thank you. It was even nicer reading this wonderful book. A collection of short stories that were very interesting. You could tell this was a loving family and community. Will need to read his other 2 books.