Snail Mail Versus Email (Paperback)

by France A. Bozeman (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Back at the end of World War II, Post Office customers were called patrons, a first-class letter cost three cents and the local postal fleet consisted of two 1930s Ford vans. This was when the author of these memoirs started work as a mailman in his region of the United States. If anyone is qualified to compare email with snail mail, then he surely is. The many amusing stories make this chronicle of the trials and tribulations of a mailman's life a joy to read: his encounters with fierce pooches, his confusing conversation with a minor bird, his dealings with the more eccentric patrons. He comes over as a warm and feisty individual, a former trade union member, with a fine sense of social justice. He lets rip at how society's institutions treat the individual - from the Post Office management to insurance companies - they're all in his line of fire. This entertaining and unique record of one man's life is related with a delightful sense of humor and in such a way that you can't help but feel you've met the author face to face. I finished high school in 1940, and for a farm boy at that time college was never a choice. My dad had already passed on, and my future didn't look so good. I enlisted in the Army and took basic training at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey in the Signal Corp. From there I attended radio school at 16th. and Park, in Washington DC, CREI (Capital Radio Engineering Institute). Upon completion, I was transferred to Camp Murphy, Florida, near Hobe Sound. There I completed military training in radar. This training was very helpful to me in working on televisions when they began to be popular. After I started to work at the post office I opened a small television shop in my garage. I had a license and a business telephone for many years, I maintained the televisions in some of the hotels and motels, including Radium Springs Hotel and Motel, which was on the city route I carried for nineteen years before getting the rural route. I installed many TV antennas; I had a contract with Sears, and installed all they sold for many years. Sometimes I would ask some of my fellow carriers to help me. My first wife, Mary, and I were married in 1945 and we enjoyed fifty-four good years before her passing. Now my present wife, Jayne, and I have been married for five years and we are sharing a good life together.

Product Details

• Paperback: 76 pages
• Publisher: Athena Press Publishing Company (April 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932077928
• ISBN-13: 978-1932077926
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 4.9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,502,338 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars France Bozeman is an American Treasure, July 26, 2007

By	michael fischer (Anna Maria Island, Florida) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

About 2 weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to meet France Bozeman. He served with my grandfather during WWII. I can honestly say that he is just as interesting and entertaining in print as he is in person. This book is very humorous and informative. It kept my attention from start to finish. I would highly recommend it as a fascinating slice of Americana.

5.0 out of 5 stars Snail Mail Versus Email, May 20, 2005

By	Ann Taylor "Shopaholic and Sister" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

What a delightful trip back in time. Discover all of the benefits that are available to our wonderful letter carriers today and how they came about. This letter carrier, France Bozeman, was such an active memeber in the National Association of Letter Carriers that he was instrumental in providing some of the actual benefits that your letter carrier enjoys today. He mentions his many trips to Washington, D.C. to speak with the movers and the shakers about what was really happening in the local post offices and they really got involved.

You can read this book in one sitting and it is well worth it. You will become better informed and entertained at the same time. Mr Bozeman even includes his "famous" recipe for Barbecue Chicken and describes a cooking contest where he placed second. Now where can you find all of that in one small book?

Order this book or go to your local bookstore and purchase one for your letter carrier. They work very hard for you, and they would appreciate the gift.

5.0 out of 5 stars The More Things Change the More they Stay the Same, May 10, 2005

By	W. D. Ashe (Knoxville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Snail Mail versus Email is a rare treat. The book reads warmly and invites you to sit a spell as the story unfolds. It follows the experiences and humorous reflections of a small town mail carrier during the post World War II era. Before computers, electronic messaging and mail sorting machines, the men and women of the American Golden Age wrote, sorted and delivered mail with a neighbor's touch.

The pages walk you down the lane of the author's life, every stop along the way is a new story. The author describes everything from dealing with attack dogs, outsmarting contriving supervisors, to dealing with politicians while he was working to reform the system. And with the wit of a grandfather storyteller, he leaves the reader trying to decide which is worse!

While some might object that the book has little to do with Email, I think they're missing the point. The book is about working people in the pre-electronic age. I can't think of a grandparent or anyone with a grandparent who wouldn't enjoy Snail Mail.