Williston: Winter, The Man Camp,

by Bill Harvey

Overview

Shortly after the Texans figured out how to fracture shale formations for oil, North Dakota had become second only to Texas in domestic oil production and a little prairie town with little more than a grain elevator and a railroad depot came to be the center of a twenty-first century boom. Overnight, Williston North Dakota exploded. It was colder than the Alaskan Klondike, richer than California in 1949, and had more sin and sinners than Mark Twain's Comstock.
So this is the story of economic boom, bust, and conflict. The fracking boom tripled the population of Williston almost overnight. There are lots of horny young oil field workers working lots of overtime and earning more money that they ever had in their lives. Problem was, there was no good way to spent it -other than in the strip clubs, so there are also some 'Soiled Doves' -with hearts of gold and otherwise. Add some greedy lawyers and politicians who are all about getting rich as soon as possible. Then there are some drunks, druggies, and folks at the end of their rope just trying to stay warm
Williston is on the prairie where wheat and barley grow, so there are regular folks -Lutheran Farmers with roots in Scandinavia. Some have been there for generations and are simply trying to raise families and stay out of the boom.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940185931097
Publisher:	Sunset Boulevard Press
Publication date:	09/14/2024
Series:	Williston , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	548 KB

About the Author

Bill Harvey
I am an ordinary sort of a guy with with a rather extra-ordinary history --not an exceptional nor even admirable history, but I have seen some stuff and it informs my writing. To get through the old resume as quickly as possible: carpenter, stock broker, teacher, woodworker and finally retired / writer.

Rather than nattering on about the wheres and whens of my life, permit me to tell you about the other writers I consider old friends. First is C. S Forester and his HORNBLOWER novels about the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. This indirectly lead to my second and third books, (dictionaries actually) VICEROYS, VICARS, AND VERGERS: BRITISH ENGLISH FOR READERS and a toned-down version for students.

Then we have all of Mark Twain, but in particular ROUGHING IT which described the boon and bust of the Comstock Silver Panic. Thru some more confusing steps, and no little personal pain due to the Denver petroleum bust in the early 80’s, we get to my first book WILLISTON: MANCAMP about the boom and bust of the North Dakota fracking boom. It may -or may not- become a 3 or 4 part series. This writing touches on the third author I admire. William Sumerset Maugham is a master at developing characters. I don't compare myself to Maugham, but I do try.

Finally the simple need to feed myself, lead the my 4th book THE ENGINEER’S COOKBOOK.