Although born in Michigan, Walt Shiel was raised across the US and around the world as an Air Force “brat.” He started school on the Pacific Island of Guam during the Korean War and finished high school in France during the Vietnam War. Shortly after graduation, Charles DeGaulle kicked all American forces out of the country, but Walt swears it had nothing to do with him.
Subsequently, he earned a BSEE degree from Michigan State University, a commission and pilot wings from the Air Force, and the hand of a charming young woman named Kerrie. Walt spent 20 years as an Air Force pilot (including time in the Michigan Air National Guard) and logged 4,000 military and civilian flying hours.
As a civilian engineer, he worked at Northrop on the B-2 bomber program and at Lockheed Martin on the F-16, F-35, and F-22 fighter programs. He retired from Lockheed Martin in 2004. Walt is currently the publisher and managing partner at Slipdown Mountain Publications LLC.
Since 1990, Walt has written for magazines in the US, England, and Australia and authored five books -- military aviation history, historical fiction, and short stories.
He and Kerrie have two daughters and two grandchildren and live on a 40-acre Michigan farm populated with horses, cats, dogs, and an abundance of wildlife.
<p>Does your child have a Guardian Angel?</p><p>Share a day in the life of a little girl whose tiny guardian angel named Angela sits on her shoulder to keep the child safe and guide her through the day.</p><p>Her activities include getting the girl ready for school, crossing the street, being polite and kind to friends, learning her lessons, fastening her seatbelt while traveling, being aware of stranger-danger, praying for her pets, and reminding her constantly that she is loved.</p><p>Once again social values are emphasized in this latest illustrated children's coloring book by award-winning author Sherrill S. Cannon. This is the author's third rhyming children's coloring book.</p><p>Meet many classroom friends from the author's previous books, as My Little Angel Angela guides this child throughout her day.</p><p>The author says, "This book is dedicated to our oldest son, who lost his battle with cancer in August 2021. He is my Special Angel."</p><p><strong>About The Author:</strong> Sherrill S. Cannon is the author of 10 award-winning children's books that have won nearly 100 awards (and counting), including Santa's Birthday Gift, Peter and the Whimper-Whineys, The Magic Word, Gimme-Jimmy, Manner-Man, My Fingerpaint Masterpiece, Mice & Spiders & Webs...Oh My!, The Golden Rule, My Little Angel and David's ADHD, as well as two award-winning poetry books, A Penny for Your Thoughts, and A Dime is a Sign. Her other two coloring books are Peter and the Whimper-Whineys Coloring Book and The Golden Rule Coloring Book. She is also a playwright, with seven published and internationally performed plays for elementary school children. A former teacher, the author's goal in each of her books is to teach good manners as well as caring for others.</p>
<p>Will have readers frantically turning the pages! This dramatic retelling of the largest wildfire in Michigan's history is well written and riveting. Based on newspaper accounts, documented interviews and oral histories, this tragedy comes to life for a new generation to understand...The author carefully laid the foundation by describing the town and introducing the key characters. Readers become connected to this place and its people, thereby forming a strong emotional attachment...Thanks to the writing ability of Walt Shiel, this catastrophic moment of history leaps off the written page and into the hearts of readers. --Joyce Handzo, <em>In The Library Reviews</em></p> <p>Shiels compassionate writing creates a community of bright, supportive, and determined people, whose characters develop and deepen as the fire growsthis novel never slows down, but leaves the reader with a great respect for the hardy, strong-willed people who fought and survived wildfires all across the States, and built up their lives in the aftermath. --Catherine Perkins, <em>Historical Novel Society</em></p> <p><em>Devil in the North Woods</em> is a work of historical fiction, based on modern reports and oral histories of a terrible 1908 wildfire in Michigan. Ten-year-old Henry Hardies survived the fire that claimed his mother and three younger sisters; in real life, Hardess told personal stories that his own children have handed down to this day. <em>Devil in the North Woods</em> vividly recreates the terrible blaze from start to finish, the toll it took, and the trials of human beings forced to recover from the devastating losses it inflicted. Though <em>Devil in the North Woods</em> tells the story of man vs. nature, its core is emotional and human-centered. --<em>Midwest Book Review</em></p> <p>The best of the bunch reviewed here is Walt Shiel's hellraising account of a blazing inferno that torched the northern end of our peninsula...Written with the pace of a thriller, <em>Devil in the North Woods</em> is a grim but fascinating read, building a bonfire of the dusty pages of history. --<em>Northern Express Weekly</em></p> <p>WOW, What a Read! As a rule I am not a fan of fiction, historical or otherwise...However, every once in a while there is an exception and this book is a perfect example. I have been intrigued with Wildfires after once living on the western slope of Colorado and experiencing their often devastating effects first hand on numerous occasions...The author skillfully blends the true story of Michigan's largest wildfire in modern history...and the actual experiences of survivor Henry Hardies with a host of other characters...to tell a story that is highly readable, believable, and guaranteed to hold your interest from first page to last. The effects of the fire...are recounted in vivid detail and contain elements of love, death, sorrow, family, friendship, and rebirth that will leave the reader both a bit sad and yet hopeful...This is first-rate writing that at times will leave you wondering whether it is fact or fiction but in a manner that does not deceive or talk down to the reader. Highly Recommended. --Charles M. Nobles, Amazon.com Top 100 Reviewer</p>