Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir Of Cards And The Cold War Era [Paperback]

Tom Price (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 13, 2009

Last Hand is a tale of the life and death of an American Cold War family. Take a journey back to a bygone era before laptop computers, digital TV, and cell phones and experience the carefree summer days of the 1970s, attend public school, enjoy holiday traditions, ride along on a summer road trip, and sit in on a game of the all-but-forgotten (but once popular) game of pinochle. In Last Hand, author Tom Price looks back at a lifetime of relationships lost to the passage of time in this witty memoir of family life in the northwest suburbs of Chicago during the Cold War.

Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (April 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 144013619X
• ISBN-13: 978-1440136191
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,163,360 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Makes me want to play Pinochle..., May 8, 2009

By 

Bonnie - See all my reviews

This review is from: Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir Of Cards And The Cold War Era (Paperback)

First I must disclaim that I am definitely not a auto/biography/memoir kind of person. But this book might have just changed that.

After a week of laughing through the majority of the book, finishing it today has me on the verge of tears. Family can get you that way.

Growing up right behind this era, I remembered some of the references, but learned more from it than anything. If you were born late 60's to late 70's, you will appreciate many of them. And of course, anyone from the Chicagoland area will appreciate the geography.

But anyone with a mom, dad grandparents, siblings or even just a dog will be touched by this story. If you've ever had Christmas, Easter, or funerals to go to, you will identify as well with this "normal" American family.

I want to go hug my parents right now and call my living grandparents. And maybe talk more to my brother. This story makes me want to know my family history better so that my kid will know, too. If you don't tell the story, who will? And it makes me want to learn how to play Pinochle.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story About Life in Suburbia, August 3, 2009

By 

JB "Reading Fool" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir Of Cards And The Cold War Era (Paperback)

This is a must read for anyone who grew up in the late '60s through the end of the Cold War. Mr. Price does an excellent job of describing the emerging suburban family life before cellphones, video games, iPods, DVDs, etc.

I hesitate to say it was a simpler time in America as it describes life in the shadow of the threat of communism and nuclear war.

The book, in many ways, parallels my own life - from school experiences to a kid's joy of summer to "Wacky Packs" to family vacations. There are many funny stories about family and friendships during that era, but ultimately the book reminds us how fleeting life can be and the one true treasure we all have - Family.

"Split!"

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Split!, July 27, 2009

By 

K. Betti "KB" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Last Hand: A Suburban Memoir Of Cards And The Cold War Era (Paperback)

A great passageway to early suburban life on the outskirts of Chicago with a family you would be more than happy to call your own. Price's story is a unique one but one not too far off from any true American family living in what I consider the last generation of innocence. This book really hits home on the important stuff. Family, love, loss. All the things that we experience and that can dramatically influence our lives.

The family dynamic in this book is tremendous and is loaded with the Author's nostalgic humor that makes you want to get in on the fun. I often found myself wanting to get in on some pizza with the Price boys or bump someone off the Pinochle table so I could get in on the action. By the time you finish reading this book you will have felt like you were there, just watching from the sidelines.