John Steinbeck Salinas, Monterey and parts of the San Joaquin Valley were the setting for many of his stories. The area is now sometimes referred to as "Steinbeck Country". Most of his early work dealt with subjects familiar to him from his formative years. An exception was his first novel, "", which concerns the pirate Henry Morgan, whose adventures had captured Steinbeck's imagination as a child. In his subsequent novels, Steinbeck found a more authentic voice by drawing upon direct memories of his life in California. His childhood friend, Max Wagner, a brother of Jack Wagner and who later became a film
John Peterson (author) Episcopal church. John Peterson (author) John Lawrence Peterson (February 10, 1924 – November 2002) was an American author of children's books. He is best known as the creator of "The Littles", which began as a series of books in 1967, later adapted into an animated cartoon series by DiC Entertainment. Peterson was also the author of "The Secret Hide-Out", a popular Scholastic Books title in the 1960s and 1970s. Peterson was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania on February 10, 1924, and attended Pratt Institute before volunteering and serving as a paratrooper of the 11th Airborne Division in World War II. After