The book is almost here!

This is what the cover will look like. It’s at the printer now, and in a week or two a pallet of books will show up on my doorstep, and then the fun begins.

I will be having a book-signing at the Bidwell Mansion Association Holiday Event on December 4th. Other book-signing programs are in the works. If anyone wants me to do a presentation, I am always happy to talk about the Bidwells’ incredible lives and sign books.

The book is a 32-page 8.5 x 11 inch soft-cover picture book, with full-color illustrations throughout by Steve Ferchaud. The design and layout was done by Carla Resnick, who is not only an excellent graphic designer, but a good neighbor. The cover price is $16.95. I am self-publishing the book under the imprint Goldfields Books.

I have done my best to make it historically accurate, and it includes a timeline and a bibliography. I think it will make an excellent companion to my first book: John Bidwell: The Adventurous Life of a California Pioneer.

Here’s another one of my favorite illustrations from the book: John and Annie camping with John Muir. The Bidwells were good friends with Muir. They really did take him camping with them, and they really did have a tent that looked like that. There is a well-known photograph that shows John and Annie posing outside their striped tent.

I certainly hope everyone who sees the book likes it, and I hope it will be a valuable resource for teachers who bring their classes to Bidwell Mansion. And I’ll let you know as soon as the book is available for purchase.