Light This Candle The Life and Times of Alan Shepard

Alan Shepard was the brashest, cockiest, and most flamboyant of America's original Mercury Seven, but he was also regarded as the best. Intense, colorful, and dramatic, he was among the most private of America's public figures and, until his death in 1998, he guarded the story of his life zealously. Light This Candle, based on Neal Thompson's exclusive access to private papers and interviews with Shepard's family and closest friendsincluding John Glenn, Wally Schirra, and Gordon Cooperoffers a riveting, action-packed account of Shepard's life.

NEAL THOMPSON is a veteran journalist who has worked for the Baltimore Sun, Philadelphia Inquirer, and St. Petersburg Times and has written for numerous national magazines, including Outside, Men’s Health, and the Washington Post Magazine. He lives with his wife and their two sons in Asheville, North Carolina, where he is writing a book about moonshine, NASCAR, and the South. Visit his website at www.nealthompson.com.<br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>