Darlene Bultemeier asked Andrew R. Thompson Jr.:

My brother and i grew up in Morrisville, Pa. from the 1959 to 1970. My brother has never gotten over the move. He was to be a Junior in high school and had to leave Morrisville and friends he ever knew. It has been tough. He moved to Chicago after he graduated in 1973 and made good money from his business but never saved anything. Now in poverty and talks about the past. Will your book help him?

Andrew R. Thompson Jr. Hello, Darlene. I am sorry to hear about your brother's struggle- it is hard to leave behind friends and a place you feel connected to. I myself only reconnected with a lot of the boys I talked about in this book when we published it. It was good to reconnect with some of them, though others had since passed away, which was very sad to hear. As for whether or not my book could help your brother, I think I may have to leave that up to your own discretion. Once Upon My Time was written with the purpose of telling my own family my stories, specifically of growing up in Morrisville in the 30's and 40's. It does have an underlying message of growth, hope, and friendship, however, the times and issues Morrisville faced in the 30's and 40's included a world depression, a world war, the fear of polio, and very pronounced discrimination. Those are the things that my Morrisville wrestled with. I don't know your brother, but you do, if you think reading my story may help him, I'm glad of it; if you think it may only bring back painful memories, I think you would be the best judge of that. I hope this helps you, and thank you for noticing this personal history of mine.

flag