{"product_id":"back-in-the-day-kenneth-r-young-9780578586625","title":"Back in the Day: The Education of an Oklahoma Boy (A Memoir)","description":"\u003cp\u003eBACK IN THE DAY is the autobiography of Kenneth R. Young, a distinguished American scholar of Southeast Asia born in Oklahoma at the end of the Great Depression. The book details Young's early life in small-town Oklahoma and midcentury Los Angeles and continues his story through the present day.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eYoung's mother's family were \"Okies,\" poor dirt farmers who barely survived each harvest, while his father worked ten hours a day, six days a week as a grocery clerk making $12 a week, scarcely enough for a man with two young children. As a little boy Young learned two hard lessons that guided him over the course of his life: (1) he was not the center of the universe; and (2) he would have to take care of himself, since no one else would.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDespite unexpectedly becoming a father at age twenty and numerous family difficulties, including a deeply contentious relationship with his father, Young obtained a PhD from New York University in 1970, when he was thirty years old, achieving his lifelong dream. A working-class son through and through, he earned the degree without the help of family, mentors, scholarships, or student loans. To make ends meet during his studies he worked full-time as a shoe salesman, stencil cutter, and college lecturer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor thirty-one years Young taught courses on U.S. diplomacy in East and Southeast Asia (including Vietnam, China, Burma, Indonesia, and the Philippines) at Western Connecticut University. In 1979 he received a Fulbright scholarship to the Philippines, and over the years he wrote many scholarly articles on the region. \u003cem\u003eThe General's General\u003c\/em\u003e, his groundbreaking 1994 biography of Lt. General Arthur MacArthur, Douglas's father, won several awards and was the basis for a PBS documentary. After Young retired, he self-published a novel, \u003cem\u003eTwice Honored\u003c\/em\u003e, about a US military officer who won two Congressional Medals of Honor for his bravery during an uprising in the Philippines.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith BACK IN THE DAY, Young has turned his scholarly eye to an even more familiar topic: his own life.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Kenneth R. Young\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0578586622\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780578586625\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Ray Hill Publishing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/05\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 482\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.54lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.02h x 5.98w x 1.07d","brand":"Kenneth R. Young","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48441067340031,"sku":"9780578586625","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_dd9d593d-d8da-4529-a28b-27c26ca7d31e.jpg?v=1777188502","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/back-in-the-day-kenneth-r-young-9780578586625","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}