The Summer Nights Never End... Until They Do: Life, Liberty, and the Lure of the Short-Run - Tapa dura

You may know Robert James Waller as the man who brought the world to Iowa's storied covered bridges. What you may not realize is that before and since becoming an internationally acclaimed novelist, Waller has grappled with a very real puzzle: How can an individual, a group, and/or a society cut through the confusion of everyday life to successfully navigate its pitfalls and traps? Through intense reflection, shrewd reasoning, and not a little trial and error, the reclusive author has developed a unique and inventive paradigm for thinking clearly and logically. In The Summer Nights Never End ... Until they Do, Waller shares a methodology that can be applied to everything from governmental gaffs and immigration reform to losing weight and financial freedom.Like so many things that make sense, Waller's words are complex in their simplicity, turn from the madness of short-term, quick fixes and toward time-tested, reasonable goals. The devil is in the details. So, too, are the answers.

Robert James Waller grew up in Rockford, Iowa, a Midwestern town of 900 people, where his mother was a housewife and his father operated a small produce business. He was educated at the University of Northern Iowa and Indiana University, where he received his doctorate. He taught management, economics, and decision theory at UNI from 1968 to 1991, except for one year (1975-76) spent on leave at the Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio. From 1979 to 1985, he served as dean of UNI's College of Business. He has lectured and published widely in the fields of problem-solving and decision-making and has worked as a consultant to business corporations and government institutions throughout the United States and around the world. He was an all-conference basketball player in college, worked for more than 20 years as a musician (guitar, flute, singer/songwriter) playing nightclubs and concerts, and is a serious photographer. Among his non-academic publications is the bestselling novel, The Bridges of Madison County, with over 12 million copies in print in more than 40 languages, which also was a major film and has been presented as a theatrical production in several countries, including a long-running production in Japan, a recent successful run in Paris, and forthcoming productions in other countries. He also has published six other novels, has five additional books on various topics, and has completed a photography-poetry book. His novel Puerto Vallarta Squeeze was made into a motion picture starring Harvey Keitel and Scott Glenn and is available on DVD. His most recent novels are High Plains Tango and The Long Night of Winchell Dear. Taken together, his books have sold approximately 17 million copies. Robert lives on a small farm in the Texas Hill Country and—as the spirit moves him—pursues his various interests in economics, mathematics, writing, photography, music, and fly fishing for trout in locations throughout the United States. He is married to Linda Bow, and his daughter, Rachael, is a professional photographer.