DOWNEY – Former resident and author Shannon Capps is honoring his home town with a new childhood memoir, set entirely in Downey. The new book, No One Special: Confessions of a Badly-Behaved ‘Boomer’, features 33 stories about life in 20th Century suburban America.

“If you grew up in the ’60s, ’70s or ’80s,” Capps, who writes under the name S.W. Capps, says, “this book will take you back there. And even if you didn’t, you’ll relate to the stories, because they’re about something universal—childhood.”

Capps spent more than two decades in Downey, attending Roger Casier, Maude Price, Griffiths Middle and Warren High schools. The new memoir chronicles his experiences here, from life on Guatemala Avenue to exploring the city on his Schwinn Stingray to escapades at Furman Park, Stonewood and Skate-O-Rama.

“I love Downey,” Capps says. “And I loved writing about it in the new memoir. In all my years of travel, I’ve never found a single place as special, unique and tight-knit as my home town.”

The author has returned here for speaking engagements at the library after each of his previous books was published. No One Special is Capps’ first foray into non-fiction, his other offerings—Salmon Run (2007), Train in the Distance (2010) and Runaway Train (2021)—all novels. He hopes to meet with readers again here later this year.

“Every time I come back, I get so much support,” Capps, 60, says. “That’s one of the reasons I wrote this memoir. On one level, it’s a humorous trip to our collective past, but it’s also, as one friend recently pointed out, ‘a love letter to the people of Downey’.”

In literature, No One Special represents a burgeoning genre known as ‘Boomer Lit’. According to the last census, 70 million Baby Boomers (people born from ’46 to ’64) now live in the U.S., with Generation Xers (’65 to ’80) not far behind.

“That’s a lot of book buyers,” Capps says. “And with many of us hitting retirement age, that’s a lot more time we’ll have for leisure activities like reading.”

Recent studies seem to reflect this, Businesswire estimating that global book sales will double over the decade. What do ‘Boomers’ and ‘Gen Xers’ want to read? According to BoomerLit Magazine, they’re looking for stories that “don’t just reflect our time of life but the historical and cultural time in which we came of age.” Capps’ latest book checks all those boxes.

“He transported me back in time,” Jon Cockrill, a Baby Boomer and longtime English teacher at Griffiths Middle School, says. “The stories range from poignant to hysterical, viewing the past through the lens—and astounding recall—of the author, while rekindling my own memories of simpler times.”

The book spans the period between the author’s birth in 1964 and his high school graduation in 1982. From there, Capps left Downey to attend the University of Southern California, where he earned a Broadcast Journalism degree before working as a TV reporter in Texas and Oklahoma. After leaving the world of television news, he moved to the Pacific Northwest to pursue a full-time writing career.

No One Special: Confessions of a Badly-Behaved ‘Boomer’ is available in hardcover, paperback or eBook at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and Walmart.com. To read more about the author or watch his ‘Behind the Memoir’ video series, visit Capps’ Web site at swcapps.com.

AUTHOR BIO

S.W. Capps grew up on the ‘not-so-mean streets’ of Downey, California, where he parlayed a childhood of bloody knees, countless spankings and failed accordion lessons into a writing career.

A one-time TV news reporter—he was nominated for an Oklahoma Broadcasters Award for his ‘hard-hitting’ piece on Christmas fruitcake—he’s also penned numerous magazine articles and three novels. The Midwest Book Review calls his latest, Runaway Train, “a solid, fast-paced action piece”.

No One Special is his first voyage into the sea of nonfiction. A recent empty-nester, Capps lives with his wife in the Pacific Northwest, currently at work on his next book.

SYNOPSIS

If you’re looking for deep, thought-provoking prose, you’ve come to the wrong place. No One Special: Confessions of a Badly-Behaved ‘Boomer’ is a ride in a ’76 Celica, a chance to crank the music, stick your head out the window and feel the wind of youth. And let’s face it, never have we needed a trip back to the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s more than we do today.

With his irreverent memoir, S.W. Capps paints the definitive landscape of 20th Century suburban America. And his message—that our similarities far outweigh our differences—couldn’t come at a better time, resonating not only with Baby Boomers but with readers of every generation.

There are stories of brawling brothers and Groundhog Day vacations, dance class debacles and ruined Christmases, all wrapped in a package of polyester and told in a style that’s one part Wonder Years, one part Dazed and Confused.

The result is an often hilarious, sometimes poignant voyage to our very beginnings, one filled with mistakes, misdeeds and misdemeanors, a not-so-subtle reminder that we’re all No One Special.

And that’s exactly what unites us.

Q&A

Q: What made you want to write a memoir?

A: When we were all quarantined for the pandemic, I started thinking about better times—and the idea of a childhood memoir blossomed. It began with one short story about failed accordion lessons and took off from there. We all have an endless torrent of experiences in our heads. In my case, the hard part was determining which ones to write about.

Q: Are the characters in the memoir ‘real people’?

A: As I say in the book’s Introduction, most of the characters are amalgamations of people I knew, bits and pieces, if you will, sewn together and often embellished for the good of the story. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. Except for mine, of course. With me, you can presume guilt.

Q: How much research went into the memoir?

A: There was a surprising amount of research, actually. For one thing, even though I grew up in Downey, I didn’t know a lot about its history. Adding that history, along with details of the news events, pop culture and music of the day, not only gives the reader another layer of relatability but transports him/her right back to the time period.

Q: What do you hope readers take away from the memoir?

A: In recent years, we’ve focused so much as a society on our differences. I’m hoping the book reminds us of our similarities. Of how much we share in common. And of how we’re truly just one people. I also hope it provides some laughs—even if most are at my expense!

Downey author releases new ‘boomer lit’ memoir set in home town