June 2013, I retired from RR Donnelley, one of America’s great, historic, family-founded companies. After 41 wonderful years in the direct marketing field, I am enjoying the break. Still, there remains the satisfaction of knowing that you get letters when you write them, and if you add a few zeros to that, it is a very successful business model.
Nowadays, I write to amuse and awaken.
In addition to this blog, I have published five books, which is a lot easier today than in the past. Write me at pmb1267@gmail.com for hard copies, or you can order by clicking the links below.
Crick, Honor, Willow and Sage are hunters in the village of Juniper, just off of the Arbor Woods. They encounter a dragon who has wandered far from home in pursuit of Magu an evil monster. The chase is an urgent matter of life and death, not only for the hunters, but for their village, as Magu extracts a hefty price for satisfaction. At 90 pages, Roarg is a perfect chapter book, a page turner for readers aged 7-11 years.
Many Happy Returns — Rules, Reckonings and Tales Told From The Mailbox
Revealing stories from a direct mail playbook: strategy , creation, and production of direct mail that delivers outstanding results. Browse through more than 140 stories, discoveries and observations of direct marketing success, and blunders. Here you will find direct mail math revealed, strategies to live by, and memorable disasters and triumphs that underline the intricate mechanics of direct marketing. Laced with humor and sober advice, Many Happy Returns is a primer for some, and a reminder for those who have seen it all, and then some. 180 pages.
Norfolk Chronicles – A Treasury of Vignettes, Tales and Sightings
Norfolk Chronicles is my personal memoir of growing up in the country, and enjoying the benefits and adventures of living in a small town. It is sweet, raucous, rank and revealing, all along sharing fifty stories, tales sightings and vignettes that make you smile at any page. One reader commented, “A perfect summer time, winter time, anytime read. It will either carry you back to a time that’s gone or introduce you to an era you’ll be sorry you missed.”
I hope you like what you read! 160 pages. On Amazon.com and Amazon.Ca and wherever else Amazon stakes a flag.
A boy off the farm, a brilliant, beautiful girl, and the coming threat of war combine to weave a tale of brave determination to overcome an impossible, mysterious disappearance. The answer appears 80 years later.
High school seniors, Theo and Claudia discover each other on the eve of World War Two. Europe and Britain are in turmoil. They wrestle with the need to take a stand against the threat. From the fields of Norfolk County, to the streets and tunnels of Toronto, they explore their options. She up-ends the male-dominated physics department at university, while he takes flight with the air force. It all comes crashing down after one unexplainable afternoon. Edge of Destiny is first and foremost a love story — a tale that brings to life Phil Brown’s love for the Norfolk County of his and the previous generation’s youths. It is a story that wraps together themes of coming of age, a sense of duty, young love, small town life, collisions with world events, and more.
Edge of Destiny is an enchanting tale that delivers a wildly stunning conclusion.
A blockbuster story — 425 pages. On Amazon.com and Amazon.Ca and wherever else Amazon stakes a flag.
The year is 1925. Prohibition is in full force. Riverport is a small fishing port on Lake Erie, holding its own as the populace recovers and grows from the ravages of The Great War. Just as the economy is beginning to blossom, the herring fish catch disappears, jeopardizing the livelihoods of the community. In response, the town becomes a major hub for rum-running illegal liquor into the United States. It is deadly and dangerous, but a highly profitable activity. Prohibition has spawned an influx of gangsters bent on controlling their territories. Joey and Belle are caught in the middle of the conflict between competing mob gangs and the law. The young couple navigate the precarious challenges before them while they enjoy the thrills of first love.
330 pages. This book is available on Amazon.Com and Amazon.Ca, and wherever else Amazon chooses to stake a flag.
Phil, I enjoyed you tobacco article. I grew up on a tobacco farm in Princeton, and have reletives in and around Norfolk county. I am writing an article, well editing one I wrote a few years ago, for the Harley Museum. I am missing a picture of the jack planter and a horse pulling a boat, my I copy yours.
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Yes! A belated yes!!
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Hi Phil,
Willy Andries here. You may not remember me, but I was in the DFSC for about 5 years as a kid. I’m the kid sitting on the ice in the carnival picture with the sombrero. I somehow landed on your site whilst browsing around the Delhi sites last night. I read your Big Creek story and recognized, and “lived”, everything you touched on; I even fell in and got wet.Like you,I also foolishly jumped in the deep end of the bend down by the swimming pool hill and came up too soon. A young gal saw me floundering and pulled me to the shallows. I definitely would have drowned but God had other plans.She scolded me for jumping in the deep end and then walked away. I don’t know who she was.I now wonder if the same girl that rescued you also rescued me.Do you still have her name? I digress. It was a surreal “journey” you took me on.
I also delved into the Arena ,Parts 1&2. I was a shoveler for the hockey games when I was about 14. I remember Ivan and do you recall the taller man’s name who helped pull the flooding barrel around the ice? His name was Stu Petit. Always had a cigarette on the go.
Your memories of the Delhi Figure Skating Club brought me to tears. My sister ,Mary Jean, was in the club and I told my mom I wanted to figure skate as well so, as a grade two kid,I was enrolled. With a pair of used hockey skates,I skated ,on my ankles while hugging the boards and enjoying it all. Ella Scott ,our booming voice instuctor, must have been shaking her head. Not long afterwards, mom and dad got me a new pair of black figure skates with picks. What an improvement, although my blades where not as mirror shiny as George Rapi’s or Robert Lammen’s.
Phil, thank you so much, for crafting these true stories so well.I was there between and among so many of the pages. Your stories would be excellent exemplars for anyone wishing to scribe. You are definitely “top shelf”.
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Hi Willy! You bet I remember you. It is just a fine thing to find your comments this morning on this post. “Big Creek” is one of the most visited blog posts I have ever written. I am glad that you liked it. Do you remember also that I used to deliver the evening newspaper to your home? The Brantford Expositor, or the Toronto Telegram? I was sorry to read of Mary Jean’s passing. She was a lovely girl. If you enjoyed the blog posts, you should get a copy of Edge of Destiny, which is a full-length novel I wrote. It takes place on the eve of WW2, and recounts the story of two young lovers in Norfolk County’s fictitious town of Reppen, and their decisions about enlisting, school and tobacco. It has a stunning ending. Amazon.Ca. All the best to you Willy; I will check my photos, as I believe that I have a few more of you from the carnival. Email me at pmb1267@gmail.com. Thanks for writing!
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Good Day
I was born and raised in Simcoe. I read your book Fish and Whiskey. Enjoyed it so much that our book club has chosen it for this month’s book. I am now reading Edge of Destiny. Shocked me when I saw Brian Mawhineys name mentioned as his family are friendsof mine.
I am trying to buy a copy of Chronicles of Norfolk but unfortunately cannot locate a copy. Can you suggest where I can obtain a copy. Amazon dos not have it in stock
Thank you for bringing back so memories.
Candace
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Hi Candace! I messaged you with a link to Blurb.com. They have a 20% discount right now: ‘Blurbpicks20’ is the coupon. Thank you for writing! Norfolk County is the jewel of the north shore!
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hi Candace! Here is the ink to getting a copy of Norfolk Chronicles. There’s a 20% discount offer too, with is coupon: Blubpicks20. Here’s the link: https://www.blurb.com/b/10122960-norfolk-chronicles
thanks for writing!
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