Rob Hawkins

Robert E. Hawkins, Nashville's newest author, is set to release his new book entitled A Book of Matches The Life, Murder and Family of an Appalachian War Veteran. This Historical Memoir is the true story of his grandfather, Oliver Elliott "Zeke" Stayner, who lived through the Great Depression and World War II only to be cut down in his prime. It also champions the grit and determination of his grandmother, Edith Wyvonne Morrison Stayner, a widow who was left to raise their daughters on her own. At the time of the murder Susan was 9 months old and Dottie was 3 and a half years old. Local, regional, American, and World History are threaded through the novel to put the reader in their environment and it is told through the words of the characters. The book draws from her 5-year diary, scrapbooks, letters from WWII, court documents, newspaper articles, the autopsy, eyewitness interviews, Ohio Supreme Court testimony, personal letters, radio broadcasts, popular culture, personal accounts, and photographs from private collections. The research and all of the materials in the book were approved by the family members at the heart of this story as they lived this true story.