​Since 1949, Joyland was Wichita's largest amusement park but that changed when the park closed in 2006. In 1948, the Ottaway Amusement Company purchased 40 acres of land in south Wichita so they could build the largest roller coaster in the state of Kansas. The Ottaway Amusement Co. sold Joyland in 1975 to Stanley Nelson. For 30 years, the Nelsons were the driving force behind the park and a large percent of its current rides, including the Whacky Shack, the Log Jam, and the Sky Coaster.

In its fourth edition, this exhaustive guide to roller coasters in the United States and Canada also provides a history of coaster evolution (from the 16th century) and a look into the future of coaster technology and design. The book lists by state or province more than 700 coasters at more than 160 amusement and theme parks. Each entry includes contact information along with summaries of each coaster's origins, features and history. There are six appendices: famous coaster designers, the longest wood and steel coasters in North America, a coaster census by state or province, a chronology of wooden roller coasters still in operation, interesting amusement park and coaster facts, and a guide to the alpine coasters at winter resorts in the U.S. and Canada.

Shortlisted, 2021 Manitoba Book Awards, Eileen McTavish Sykes Award for Best First Book Nominated, Manitoba Young Readers Choice Awards 2023, Sundogs Award Set between Kansas and Saskatchewan in 1907, this middle-grade novel follows a young boy who gets separated from his family en route to Canada and must find his way alone across the immense prairie landscape. Following the sudden death of his eldest brother, twelve-year-old Peter is chosen by his father to travel by train from Kansas to Saskatchewan to help set up the new family homestead. But when Peter's boxcar becomes uncoupled from the rest of the train somewhere in South Dakota, he finds himself lost and alone on the vast prairie. For a sheltered boy who has only read about adventures in books, Peter is both thrilled and terrified by the journey ahead. Along the way, he faces real dangers, from poisonous snakes to barn fires; meets people from all walks of life, including famous author Mark Twain; and grows more resourceful, courageous, and self-reliant as he makes his way across the Midwest to the Canadian border, eventually reaching his new home in Drake, Saskatchewan. The journey expands Peter's view of the world and shows him that the bonds of family and community, regardless of background, are universal and filled with love. Packed with excitement and adventure, this coming-of-age novel features a strong and likeable young protagonist and paints a realistic portrait of prairie life in the early twentieth century.

In 1984 America celebrated the one hundredth anniversary of the first successful roller coaster device: La Marcus A. Thompson’s switchback railway, erected at Coney Island. Robert Cartmell examines every phase of roller coaster history, from the use of the roller coaster by Albert Einstein to demonstrate his theory of physics, to John Allen’s use of psychology in designing one.

The Roller Coaster-the Cyclone at Coney Island, the Racer at Pittsburgh's Kenywood Park, the Blue Streak at Sandusky's Cedar Point-icon of the midway, capable of reducing even the strongest of grown men to screaming, white-knuckled hysterics. During the early decades of the 20th century, daring designers pushed the limits of these high-speed thrillers, reaching hundreds of feet in height and thousands of feet in length, with ever more miles of winding, twisting, lurching track dominating the landscapes of America's amusement parks. Most of the roller coasters from that golden age are gone today. Thankfully, they live on in memory, preserved in vintage postcards that provide a lasting record of the magnificent wooden structures that thrilled our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.

When Six Flags Over Georgia opened in June 1967, it became the first theme park in the Southeast. Although the park is best known today for its high-speed roller coasters, this book recaptures its earlier years when it was devoted to the various periods of Georgias history. Six Flags Over Georgia revisits such classic rides and attractions as the Log Jamboree, Tales of the Okefenokee, Jean Ribauts Adventure, the Krofft Puppet Theater, the Happy Motoring Freeway, and many others. It also explores how the parks focus changed and expanded over the decades and takes a look at some of its classic advertising and souvenirs.

Throughout the twentieth century, African Americans challenged segregation at amusement parks, swimming pools, and skating rinks not only in pursuit of pleasure but as part of a wider struggle for racial equality. Well before the Montgomery bus boycott, mothers led their children into segregated amusement parks, teenagers congregated at forbidden swimming pools, and church groups picnicked at white-only parks. But too often white mobs attacked those who dared to transgress racial norms. In Race, Riots, and Roller Coasters, Victoria W. Wolcott tells the story of this battle for access to leisure space in cities all over the United States. Contradicting the nostalgic image of urban leisure venues as democratic spaces, Wolcott reveals that racial segregation was crucial to their appeal. Parks, pools, and playgrounds offered city dwellers room to exercise, relax, and escape urban cares. These gathering spots also gave young people the opportunity to mingle, flirt, and dance. As cities grew more diverse, these social forms of fun prompted white insistence on racially exclusive recreation. Wolcott shows how black activists and ordinary people fought such infringements on their right to access public leisure. In the face of violence and intimidation, they swam at white-only beaches, boycotted discriminatory roller rinks, and picketed Jim Crow amusement parks. When African Americans demanded inclusive public recreational facilities, white consumers abandoned those places. Many parks closed or privatized within a decade of desegregation. Wolcott's book tracks the decline of the urban amusement park and the simultaneous rise of the suburban theme park, reframing these shifts within the civil rights context. Filled with detailed accounts and powerful insights, Race, Riots, and Roller Coasters brings to light overlooked aspects of conflicts over public accommodations. This eloquent history demonstrates the significance of leisure in American race relations.

In The Center of the Universe, Rita shares snapshot stories of her life spanning seven decades. She shares her experiences of the pain caused by World War II; the wonder and innocence of the '50s, the challenges to her belief system in the '60s, rearing her children in the '70s and '80s, and the pain of divorce in the '90s. The best story of all is her story of falling in love with Jesus and embarking on a new journey of love in the twenty-first century. As you read Rita's stories, you just might be reminded of your own journey as well as your personal stories. We all have stories to share. At the place of our greatest need is where our stories meet and where we see Jesus, longing to be the center of our personal universe.