Pretty Paper

Nelson, Willie; David Ritz

ISBN 10: 073521154X / ISBN 13: 9780735211544

Published by Blue Rider Press, New York, 2016

About this Item

283pp. First Ptinting Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. X2.

Seller Inventory # 003138

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Pretty Paper
• Publisher: Blue Rider Press, New York
• Publication Date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 073521154X
• ISBN 13: 9780735211544
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Broughton, Matthew
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • Christmas
  • Fiction

About this title

Synopsis

A perfect Christmas gift for music lovers, Pretty Paper is Willie Nelson’s inspiring Christmas fable, based on his holiday classic “Pretty Paper.”
 
More than fifty years ago, Willie Nelson’s beloved Christmas song “Pretty Paper” first hit the airwaves. And for all these years, Willie has wondered about the real-life Texas street vendor, selling wrappings and ribbons, who inspired his song. Who was this poor soul? What did his painful trials say about our loves, our hopes, our dreams in this holiday season—and in the rest of our lives?

It’s the early sixties and Willie Nelson is down and out, barely eking out a living as a singer-songwriter. The week before Christmas, he spots a legless man on a cart, selling wares in front of Leonard’s Department Store in Fort Worth, Texas. The humble figure, by the name of Vernon Clay, piques Willie’s curiosity, but Vernon is stubbornly private and—despite Willie’s charming queries—has no interest in telling his story. Willie is tenacious, though, and he eventually learns that Vernon is a fellow musician, a fine guitarist and singer.

When Vernon disappears, he leaves behind only a diary, which tells an epic tale of life-altering tragedies, broken hearts, and crooked record men, not to mention backroad honky-tonks, down-home cooking, and country songwriting genius. Deeply moved and spurred on by Vernon’s pages, Willie aims to give the man one last shot at redemption and a chance to embody the holiday spirit.

About the Author

Willie Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as a poet, actor, and activist. He is also the author of six previous books. Nelson was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1993.
 
David Ritz coauthored Nelson’s memoir, It’s a Long Story, and has collaborated with everyone from Ray Charles to Don Rickles.