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Daniel James Brown

Daniel James Brown (born October 8, 1951) is an American author of narrative nonfiction books.

Brown was born in Berkeley, California. He grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. He attended Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Valley, California, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English at the University of California at Berkeley and a Master of Arts degree from the University of California at Los Angeles. He taught writing at San Jose State University and Stanford University before becoming a technical writer and editor. He now writes narrative nonfiction full time. <ref name="Official web site, Daniel James Brown"

Career
Brown’s debut book, Under a Flaming Sky, The Great Hinckley Firestorm of 1894 (2006), traces the personal stories and social, economic, and environmental causes of the Great Hinckley Fire of September 1, 1894, which burned an area of up to 250,000 acres (1,000 km2; 390 sq mi), including the town of Hinckley, Minnesota. The fire killed hundreds, including Brown’s great-grandfather.

Brown’s second book, The Indifferent Stars Above, The Harrowing Sage of a Donner Party Bride (2009), traces the footsteps of Sarah Graves, a young bride who left her home in Illinois in the spring of 1846, bound for California. Sarah was one of a handful of the ill-fated Donner Party members who attempted to hike out of the Sierra Nevada to save herself and her family.

Brown’s latest book, The Boys in the Boat, Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Olympics (2013), celebrates the 1936 U.S. men’s Olympic eight-oar rowing team—nine working-class boys rowing for the University of Washington. It is also the story of one young man in particular, Joe Rantz. The Weinstein Company has purchased the rights to adapt the book for a feature film.<ref name="Weinstein Company Captures Book Proposal On 1936 U.S. Olympics Crew Team"

Awards and Honors
Under a Flaming Sky, The Great Hinckley Firestorm of 1894 (2006)
 * 2006 INDIE NEXT NOTABLE Selection by the American Bookseller's Association<ref name="INDIE NEXT NOTABLE Selection by the American Bookseller's Association
 * Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers, Summer 2006 (Ref. 4)
 * Notable Books of 2006 by Booklist magazine (Ref. 5)
 * Finalist for the 2007 Washington State Book Award (Ref. 6)

The Boys in the Boat, Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Olympics (2013)
 * Shortlist for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2013 (Ref. 7)
 * Notable Books Online 2014 Notable Books. (Ref. 8)
 * Indie Next List for July 2013 (Ref. 9)

Personal life
He and his wife live near Redmond and in Port Townsend, Washington. They have two daughters.

References

1.	Official web site, Daniel James Brown. http://www.danieljamesbrown.com 2.	Weinstein Company Captures Book Proposal On 1936 U.S. Olympics Crew Team. http://www.deadline.com/2011/03/weinstein-captures-book-proposal-on-1936-u-s-olympics-crew-team/ 3.	INDIE NEXT NOTABLE Selection by the American Bookseller's Association. http://www.librarything.com/bookaward/Selected+as+an+INDIE+NEXT+NOTABLE+pick+by+the+American+Booksellers+Association 4.	Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/under-a-flaming-sky-daniel-james-brown/1007629063?ean=9780061236259 5.	Notable Books of 2006 by Booklist magazine. http://www.booklistonline.com/ProductInfo.aspx?ind=1 6.	2007 Washington State Book Award Finalist. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_State_Book_Award 7.	Shortlist for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2013. http://www.williamhillmedia.com/index.php/sports-book-of-the-year-shortlist-2013 8.	Notable Books Online 2014 Notable Books. http://www.booklistonline.com/Notable-Books/pid=6657261 9.	Indie Next List for July 2013. http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780670025817/daniel-james-brown/boys-boat