By Our Bootstraps is chronicle of memories of a boy from northern Arkansas who had never lived in a city or even imagined any other career choice other than military service. His parents were farm laborers who married during the Depression and struggled to raise a family of seven. Many of his stories center around his younger brother Larry, whose path eventually diverged from Bill's to return again after retirement, when the brothers reunited in their beloved state of Arkansas to compare notes on life. Bill's poetry enhances the story, deepening the message. For Bill, the challenges of...