New Hampshire's most Revolutionary War hero is just the jumping-off point for "Stark Realities In The City," another fun-filled foray through New Hampshire's Queen City with award-winning Union Leader columnist John Clayton. From the dynamics of dance marathons to the peculiarities of poutine, it's an anthology of anthropology that explores and examines the characters and the character of Manchester, N.H.

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