Hannibal: A Walk Through History

Local author and tour director Dea Hoover deftly guides you around her birthplace like an old friend. Her thoughtfully and historically interesting walks will inspire you to explore life along the Mississippi and create memories that last a lifetime.

Immortalized by the writing of its most famous resident, Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, Hannibal is known around the world as much for its history as for the characters it birthed. Enjoy a guided walk through that history in America’s Hometown. You might take the opportunity to trace the paths of the childhood adventures that Mark Twain shared through the stories of Tom and Huck, or follow the path of the Women of Hannibal or seek a bit more adventure with the Cemeteries, Caves, and Chaos Path. Use the book to carve out your own adventure!

Whether you are visiting the town or reading the book from afar, you will come to know the people and the places in America's Hometown, where the number for the tourism center is 1-TOM-N-HUCK

• Plan your day, or days, in Hannibal according to your interests. Here are a few of the paths:
  The Gilded Age and view the mansions while learning the stories of those who lived there.
  The Sodalis Nature Preserve is the trail to get close to nature.
  The Gardens and Parks to discover private and public areas of beauty.

Only $16.00 per book!

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• Local tour guide Dea Hoover brings her expert eye and love of the town to you.

• You will feel like you have met the residents past and present.

-Use the source Index to dive deeper into the areas that interest you most.

About the Author:

• Dea Hoover As a veteran tour director, Hannibal-born Dea Hoover is accustomed to hearing the familiar mantra, "Are We There Yet?" - thus the name of her full-service tour operation. Dea grew up in the Firestone tire and GE appliance store in Vandalia, Missouri that her mother still owns and operates today. After moving to St. Louis to attend Washington University, Dea cut her teeth in retail at Famous-Barr, sold cars at Saturn of South County and then found her true calling as a natural-born storyteller in the guise of a tour guide. Her father foretold her future of public speaking when he enrolled her in a Dale Carnegie course at the age of 16. This along with her collective experience as a 4-Her and as a first generation college graduate, dealt her the cards she could play at different times in her adult life to find fulfillment and happiness.
  Are We There Yet?, LLC expanded its operations with the acquisition of St. Louis’ first local receptive tour operation Discover St. Louis, LLC, founded in 1975. She is very proud to be the third woman to own this successful sightseeing company. During the pandemic she used her knowledge of St. Louis and somehow wrote an actual book. With a lot of help from the folks at Reedy Press she became an inadvertent best-selling author of STL Scavenger: The Ultimate Guide to St. Louis’s Hidden Treasures (Reedy Press).

Currently residing in The Hill neighborhood of St. Louis with her husband Declan, they own and operate their tour companies from their home. For leisure, Dea plays weekly in a league at the Italia-America Bocce Club. She is a voracious reader attending two Book Clubs and participating in all events to do with history and even leading some. Her favorite pastime is visiting with family and friends and basking in the glow of conversation. In this age of email and texting, which she has embraced, Hoover remains a fan of actually talking on the phone.

• Her mantra of 'Never come back the way you came!' should encourage you to stumble upon fun treasures she's pointed towards as well as many other hidden gems in America's Hometown.

Book Details:
Hannibal: A Walk Through History, by Dea Hoover, ISBN: 9781681063249
Softcover
8.5 x 11
48 full-color pages