JEDEDIAH MAGNUS WEST is "The Great Wild West." Award-winning author Jeff Appelquist takes us on an amazing odyssey as Jed West's story unfolds against the dramatic sweep of modern American history. Jed, the grandson of humble immigrants, grows up in a comfortable Midwestern household. He graduates from schoolboy mischief to the pain and glory of collegiate athletics. He serves America as a Marine officer and courageously confronts multiple life-changing events. From the shores of Omaha Beach to the jungles of Vietnam, from the Marine occupation of Beirut to the killing fields of Iraq and Afghanistan, Jed and his family are touched by the harsh scourge of war. Jed leaves the military and enters into a law practice that he comes to detest. But fortune shines when he marries a wife and fathers two daughters whom he adores. Sara, Angela, and Jessica teach him much as they profoundly change the way he thinks about the world. Jed becomes an entrepreneur who builds a business empire, only to watch his world come crashing down around him. He suffers the embarrassment of failure, the agony of physical injury, and the heartbreak of personal loss. With his pals Zach, Tommy, and Luke, Jed savors the joys of friendship, camaraderie, and laughter. Together they experience the wild and wonderful world of nature in pursuit of epic hunting and fishing exploits around the world. Finally, over time, in ways that they could never have imagined, Jed and his beloved circle of family and friends are forced to come to grips with highly charged issues of race, religion, gender, and sexuality. Jed West proves that what matters is not the destination, but the journey. Throughout all of his adventures and challenges, Jed strives to persevere, to maintain his outrageous sense of humor, to do the right thing, and to become a better man. The Great Wild West is a great wild ride and an unforgettable vision of the American dream.