John Clayton, the award-winning columnist from The Union Leader, has assembled a compelling collection of his stories in a book that captures the spirit of the New Hampshire men and women who have answered their country's call.

In "New Hampshire: War and Peace," you'll meet heroes ranging from Lancaster's Col. Edward Ephraim Cross - commander of the New Hampshire regiment that took more casualties than any other in the Civil War - to Rene Gagnon, the Manchester Marine who helped raise the flag at Iwo Jima.

There is Walpole filmmaker Ken Burns who rekindled a national passion with "The Civil War," and the members of the Keene American Legion Band, who honor America every time they play.

They are heroes all, and in a time when we need heroes, their stories are all the more moving inspiring and compelling.

Here's what others have to say about John Clayton:

"He's a tireless gatherer of the threads of our State's culture and society; it's hard to tell a story about. . . the Granite State that he hasn't already marked as his own."
- New Hampshire Magazine

"Clayton focuses unerringly and intimately on the people. . . There is a warmth and an affection to his writing; you feel he's a part of the community he's chronicling."
- The Associated Press

"Life in New Hampshire's largest city produces all kinds of shared, familiar experiences that often go unnoticed. Except by John Clayton."
- The Boston Globe

"Clayton writes gracefully and with great clarity. His wording is precise and his transitions are flawless, with one paragraph flowing into the next ever so smoothly."
- New Hampshire Press Association