by Mark Smiley
Looking for a unique holiday gift idea? Longtime Glendale Chamber Ambassador Laura Lieff wrote a book called Wookie Is Not His Real Name which provides a comprehensive look into snowboard culture through the eyes of a local legend and his community. The biography also illuminates how the life-altering circumstances of a professional athlete were handled with heart and humor. Following a career-ending injury, after which he was told he would never walk again, Wookie endured severe physical, mental, and emotional lows that changed the trajectory of his life. Exemplifying his strength and determination, he pushed through to make it back on his feet and back on a board.
The book is easy to ship and the perfect gift for anyone interested in reading about Colorado snowboard history, sports, family, local lore, Vail Valley culture, fatherhood, coming back from an injury, the outdoors, professional snowboarding, and snowskating, among other topics.
Lieff says, “My goal with this book was to demonstrate how far Wookie has come and how he clawed his way back to the top with courage, grace, and a lot of heart. The biography also shows that even with all the press and praise he’s received throughout the years for snowboarding, and his overall outdoorsmanship, being a father is his greatest achievement.”
Before moving to the Vail Valley in 2013, Lieff was an editor for the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle and a Glendale resident for seven years. She now runs her own business, Lieff Ink, and is a writing tutor at Colorado Mountain College and Vail Mountain School. On Friday nights she hosts a radio show on 107.9 Radio Free Minturn.
Wookie Is Not His Real Name can be found in bookstores and retail locations throughout Colorado, including The Bookies. For more information on the book, or to purchase online, visit www.lauralieff.com /book.
