Wiley Hall

Wiley Hall is a collection of twenty-five short nonfiction stories. The stories are of people, places, and events that the author related to and experienced during his formative years in an orphanage. The characters are representative of humankind—stern, ignorant, wise, industrious, humorous, and playful. The beauty of the Adirondack Mountains comes to life at the Camp. Gothic buildings standing tall and foreboding contrasted with the serenity of the chapels. Senior citizens skipped a generation and interacted with children regaling them with stories of World War I, their fathers fighting in the American Civil War, sailing to exotic ports, and experiencing the stock market crash of 1929. While the children covered the face of North America and Europe, prejudices were evident by those in charge, not realizing that many of the children came from backgrounds from Southern and Eastern Europe. Despite these derogatory manifestations, the children succeeded in their chosen walks of life.