Lewiston couple Allie (Al) and Edith (Edie) Vannoy, ages 100 and 96, prove that you’re never too old to write a book with “A Nice Car, A Good Woman, A Little Fun Every Day: True Tales: From Boyhood to Manhood in Troubled Times 1917-1947.”
The memoir recounts Al’s youth during the Great Depression. Born Sept. 12, 1911, he grew up in rural North Carolina without telephones, electricity, flush toilets, or refrigeration. He was 10-years-old and one of nine children when his mother died. In 1930 he and his father and brother abandoned North Carolina and headed west searching for work during the depression. They tried Arizona and California and were down to $20 when his father remembered some friends in Cottonwood, Idaho. Nearly starved, they were taken in by the families there and Al started learning the ways of the Idaho farmer. He recalls hauling lumber down Ford Creek grade on brakeless trailers, adventures with livestock, and a stubborn landlord with a habit of loosing new equipment in Orofino card games. He farmed the Cavendish area for more than 50 years.
Throughout his life he has entertained friends and strangers with stories of his past.
“I’ve written down the stories as he told them,” says Edie, his wife of 73 years. She recently finished collecting them in a book.
The title comes from the answer the always optimistic Al gave at his 100th birthday party when asked how he’d managed to live so long: “I always had a nice car, I got a good woman, and I made sure I had a little fun every day.”
Al will be 101 and Edie 97 when the couple signs copies of the book from 1-4 p.m. Sept. 22 at the Rosauers coffee shop, 332 Thain Rd., Lewiston. Anyone who wants an autographed copy should pre-order the book by Aug. 3O by contacting Edie at (208) 746-3011, edievannoy@msn.com; or Les Huntley at (208) 743-0918, leshunt72@cableone.net. The book is $5.99 and cash or check will be accepted at the time of purchase. The book will be for sale at Rosauers in Lewiston and online.
“A Nice Car, a Good Woman, a Little Fun Every Day: True Tales: From Boyhood to Manhood in Troubled Times 1917-1947” by Allie and Edith Vannoy Intermountain North Publishing 107 pgs., $5.99
