Books by Steven Verrier
Roots Revisited
A Hometown Study
Decades after pulling up stakes, three sixty-something Canadians living in three different countries are drawn back to the town in which they spent their formative years and built their lifelong friendship. In Roots Revisited, they share their memories of the town that molded them and sent them on their way, and examine the effect of those hometown experiences on their adult lives out in the world. They go on to chronicle what has become of their hometown, and examine the effect the place has had on those who never left and on members of a younger generation deciding whether to leave or stay. Employing a variety of research methods and undertaking a broad interdisciplinary approach, the authors observe and trace key developments in their hometown over the past half century, examine how those developments pertain to the wider modern world, and illustrate how their journey reflects the experience of countless people who’ve left the towns and cities in which they grew up only to find, sometimes half a century later, that they’ve retained more of their hometown roots than they ever realized.
Wilbur Snyder
The World's Most Scientific Wrestler
Crowbar Press
Among wrestlers of the 1950s and 1960s, Wilbur Snyder isn’t remembered or revered in the same manner as other top names of the era. One reason is that many current-day wrestling fans, if they remember Snyder at all, remember him more as the middle-aged wrestler who settled in Indianapolis following his years as a top-shelf attraction nationwide and ran the promotion there in partnership with—and in the shadow of—Dick the Bruiser. Snyder is often regarded as a wrestler who achieved great heights out of the gate but whose star burnt out much too early. This book is a reminder that, after Wilbur Snyder dazzled fans from coast to coast during the first decade of his wrestling career, his achievements as a promoter over the ensuing two decades only solidify his legacy as one of the greatest wrestling figures of his era.
The Two-Party Trap
Recipe for Dysfunction in American Politics
The United States has become increasingly polarized, although the
concept of a two-party system is not new. This book traces the major
parties' utter dominance—of the highest elected positions all the way
down to "nonpartisan" political offices across the U.S.—from the
founding of the Constitution through the 2020 presidential election.
This book is a comprehensive, fast-paced analysis of how the two-party
system has grown to be such an affront to the ideals of the Founding
Fathers and of the numerous Americans today who appear to accept it as
a fact of life. Never have failures of the two-party system been of
greater consequence than in the current day.
George Gordienko
Canadian Wrestler, Artist and Renaissance Man
George Gordienko may be the best wrestler you've never heard of. From humble immigrant roots in the Canadian Prairies, he endured a tough childhood during the Great Depression to emerge as a leading "shooter" and one-of-a-kind artist on the mat. Excluded from the United States during the McCarthy era and deprived of a world championship for which he was hand-picked by the great Lou Thesz, Gordienko nonetheless used wrestling to get what he really wanted in life: the opportunity to see the world and to transition to a full-time career as the painter and sculptor he'd always dreamed of being. It wasn't an easy road by any means, but what an amazing journey it was. This first full-length biography traces his remarkable life and career.
Slam Wrestling reviewGene Kiniski
Canadian Wrestling Legend
Gene Kiniski: Canadian Wrestling Legend is an entertaining account of the life of a champion professional wrestler old-time fans and wrestling historians remember well for his accomplishments in the ring, his run-'em over approach to the game, his growly demeanor, and a razor-sharp wit he could unleash at will. Few are aware, however, of what a complex character Gene Kiniski was or what a fascinating life he lived over the course of his 81 years. This first biography of "Canada's Greatest Athlete" draws from interviews with many people who knew Gene Kiniski inside and outside the wrestling ring—from boyhood friends and acquaintances in 1930s/1940s Alberta to fellow wrestlers and promoters who knew him professionally from the 1950s to the early 1990s and on to people who became Kiniski's friends during his retirement in Blaine, Washington, where he was known to do things that turned heads. In Gene Kiniski: Canadian Wrestling Legend, those who knew Kiniski best generously share memories and stories about a man who impacted people around him even more than he impacted wrestling audiences over the course of a memorable life and career.
Slam Wrestling reviewProfessional Wrestling in the Pacific Northwest
A History, 1883 to the Present
Introduced in the Pacific Northwest in 1883, professional wrestling has a long and storied history in the region and has contributed significantly to Northwest culture. This entertaining account of the wrestling industry in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia provides a detailed look at more than 130 years of events in the ring and behind the scenes. The author draws connections between developments in wrestling and the changing identity of the Pacific Northwest.
Slam Wrestling review