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March 20 is the official release date for The Barefoot Bandit: The True Tale of Colton Harris-Moore, New American Outlaw, my new book from Hyperion. Finally.
It was a long time coming and I appreciate everyone's patience as we waited for the wheels of justice to slowly grind this thing out to a conclusion before we released the book.
My new website BobFriel.com includes maps, Google Earth tours, photo galleries and links. It will also host updates as I continue to report on the story, and any news that arrives about the movie.
The book is getting some press already:
New York Post ran a feature in Sunday's paper. Not so much a review as a recounting, but they gave it a page and a half in the paper and three pages online, which is a lot of ink.
Dispatches gave a real nice review. Our favorite part is probably: "The Barefoot Bandit is one of the finest and most entertaining true crime books that I've read in a long, long time."
And to mark the release, I'll be on The Bob Rivers Show tomorrow, March 20 at 9am PST. The show will be available online and podcast as well as live on KJR 95.7 in Seattle.
Yesterday, March 22, was Colton's birthday. He turned 21. I hope somehow he was able to have a happy birthday, but clearly it's hard to deal with prison at any age, especially when he's still so young.
ReplyDeleteBeth
I think it may have been a stressful one, Beth. Colt is still waiting to find out where he'll spend his time, and whether he's going to have to do part of it in maximum security. There's a lot of work going on to try and prevent that right now.
ReplyDeleteI just ordered the book from the iTunes store. What a great way to break in my new iPad.
ReplyDeleteBTW, for all those folks buying the electronic version, iTunes has it for $12.99 while Amazon's price is $14.29
Thanks Jay! Let me know how you like the book.
ReplyDeleteBob: great book! Very well written and a fascinating story. I was a little bit surprised at the ending, but I won't spoil that here with questions or observations for the other readers who've not gotten to that point in the book yet. Suffice to say, I wish the story did not have to end. Congrats on a best seller!
ReplyDeleteTim
I just finished Part 1 last night. I'm really enjoying it so far. I think most of us around Puget Sound had read newspaper articles and seen Colton's exploits on the 6 o clock news, but this really fills in all the hidden blanks. This is the story behind the story. It's taking a blurry story and making it nice and clear.
ReplyDeleteYou're an incredible writer. I really like how you sprinkle the story with humor, yet it's not overwhelming. And the humor is quite clever. I've had to set the iPad aside more than once because the belly laughs were getting too intense.
But that's not to say that the serious portions aren't serious. They are just as good. So far, I have not seen any filler in this book. It's been all juicy material throughout these first few chapters.
I'll start Part 2 tonight. Can't wait.
One last thing, in case you missed it, the Seattle PI reviewed the book yesterday.
http://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/blogcritics/article/Book-Review-The-Barefoot-Bandit-The-True-Tale-3442348.php
Thanks Tim, glad you enjoyed it! We'll see about the best-selling part. Not enough people know it's out there, yet, but hopefully the word will spread.
ReplyDeleteBob,
ReplyDeleteWhat a story the book tells! Reading through Colton’s list of criminal accomplishments in rapid succession, it is truly unbelievable that he didn’t get caught sooner; it’s just one thing after another after another. I kept finding myself saying (to the pages of the book, I guess), “Come on Colt! Just give it up, turn yourself in now and minimize the damage”, and then, by the next page, saying, “Damn...nice job, bud! How’d you manage to pull THAT off?” And every once in awhile I found myself saying, “Oh Bob!” (“Just a short stroll from where the Fritos lay…”). Ouch!
I’ve closely followed Colt’s story since just days before he was arrested in the Bahamas but, as you warned during an interview with Bob Rivers, until I read your book, I didn’t know the half of it. One new discovery for me was how many friends Colton had growing up, some his own age and some adults; somehow I thought of him as a loner. It was heartwarming to hear about the Wagners and the Davises, both of whom sound like simply fantastic families. I was especially encouraged to read that Bev and Geof Davis continue to look after Colt. Between them and his Aunt Sandy, he seems to have a strong safety net ready to envelope him when he gets out of prison…assuming he’ll let it.
I can’t imagine how you kept all the thousands of details straight but you’ve penned an amazing story and it’s a blast to read.
Ned
Thanks Ned. Writing the book was a long, stressful slog trying to weave together all the detailed research into something readable. I admit I included a few bits in there for my own enjoyment when I was getting cabin fever. Didn't expect anyone to pick up on the Frito lay line!
ReplyDeleteGlad you were pulled this way and that with the story, that's how I as well as others close to it, like Bev and Geof, experienced it and how I wanted the reader to feel it.