Stories and trivia from a beloved Kent Institution Meet Me at Ray's celebrates more than seventy-five successful years (and counting) of Ray's Place, a restaurant and bar located near the Kent State University campus in Kent, Ohio. Once referred to as the place "where the hustlers meet to hustle the hustlers," Ray's Place has survived decades of trends, changes, and events. Hundreds of students have worked there, thousands of customers have dined there, and millions of glasses have been raised there. In Meet Me at Ray's, author Patrick O'Connor features the stories, memories, and experiences of the legions of customers and employees who have made Ray's Place what it's been since 1937. Rooted in the hearts, minds, and experiences of the people who know it best, it is an "organic" story. Through humorous and poignant personal anecdotes, readers will come to know what makes Ray's Place special and how important that is to the surrounding community. O'Connor has collected stories dating from 1943 to the present, including one declaring Ray's Place the first sports bar in the United States. This book features the history of the eatery and its owners, including Charlie Thomas, the owner since 1978. Through the long history of the restaurant, four different owners have sustained the connections between local residents and Kent State University employees, students, and alumni. For literally thousands, Ray's Place is synonymous with Kent State University and Kent, Ohio. A wealth of Ray's Place trivia, traditions, and fun facts are complemented by photographs and original artwork that help tell the unique story of this Northeast Ohio institution.

A collection of Lawrence and Lee's major plays: Inherit the Wind, Auntie Mame, The Gang's All Here, Only in America, A Call on Kuprin, Diamond Orchid, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, and First Monday in October. Introductions to each play place them in their critical and historical contexts. Includes bandw photos, and a chronology. No index. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The world struggles to find peace. Two old guys discovered the answer. Fifty years after they fought in Vietnam, they worked it out. They grew up together and went to the same schools, yet they had never met. They served in the army together, were both shot down in helicopters, and lost some of their best friends in combat, but they had to wait to meet. The answer was not in combat, military training, or book learning. They were tough soldiers who were trained to kill. Ray was a helicopter pilot flying some of the army’s most advanced killing machines. Bruce was an airborne ranger who deployed the army’s artillery with precision. They did their jobs well. Ray and Bruce needed to find an answer to the world’s struggle. They did. See if you agree.

On May 19, 1942, a U-boat in the Gulf of Mexico stalked its prey fifty miles from New Orleans. Captained by twenty nine-year-old Iron Cross and King's Cross recipient Erich Wurdemann, the submarine set its sights on the freighter Heredia with sixty-two souls on board. Most aboard were merchant seamen, but there were also a handful of civilians, including the Downs family: Ray and Ina, and their two children, eight-year-old Sonny and eleven-year-old Lucille. Fast asleep in their berths, the Downs family had no idea that two torpedoes were heading their way. When the ship exploded, chaos ensued—and each family member had to find their own path to survival. Including original, unpublished material from Commander Wurdemann’s war diary, the story provides balance and perspective by chronicling the daring mission of the U-boat—and its commander’s decision-making—in the Gulf of Mexico. An inspiring historical narrative, So Close to Home tells the story of the Downs family as they struggle against sharks, hypothermia, drowning, and dehydration in their effort to survive the aftermath of this deadly attack off the American coast.

Corrymeela - a Christian community committed to reconciliation, is bounded by bells. Twice a day – morning and evening - a large bell sounds out over the site. This is a call to attention, a call to pause, a space to reflect on God, self, neighbour, stranger. Between the Bells recounts the varied experiences of many whose lives have been changed by their visit to Corrymeela, and the changes they have effected in others. Narrated by the former Centre Director of the Corrymeela Community, it is full of wild and beautiful and funny stories that linger in the heart. Each story shows an aspect of the reconciliation journey, and captures various encounters - sad, challenging, inspiring, strange - that roam from the epic to the everyday.