Memoirs
Hope: A Deconstruction Journey
Published: 2022
Deconstruction is defined as a method of critical analysis of philosophical language, emphasizing the internal workings of language and conceptual systems, the quality of its meaning, and the assumptions made in forms of its expression. I grew up entrenched in evangelical Christianity, and there is A LOT to deconstruct. In general, the intent of deconstruction is not to necessarily disprove or demolish it from existence. Rather, it is a method of peeling back the layers, both past and present, in an attempt to understand it.
However, when you take something like Christianity, you pull back a lot of layers that were conveniently glossed over when you were younger, leaving you with a minefield of rabbit holes to jump down and explore. Oftentimes, as has happened to so many others before me, that means you emerge with a completely different view of religion that destroys the world you had seen as a child. It almost means starting over and re–evaluating your entire life, depending on how deeply involved in it you were to begin with. I recently underwent that journey, and I’m sharing it with you now in hopes that it helps you in some way.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
Shift the Perspective
Published: 2019
In this fifth installment of his travel memoir series, John tackles the always sensitive topic of depression. He shares intensely personal thoughts and feelings and explains how depression has affected his outlook on life as he travels the northeast in an attempt to discover which side of the Civil War really was the best. As usual, this memoir is full of fun stories from cities along the way and thoughtful recollections as John continues to learn about the world and who he truly is.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
Moisturize the Water
Published: 2018
After four years of traveling, it seems like everything has come full circle. Did John finally get the answers he was looking for? Did he come to a realization about who he was and where he belonged in the world? Or did everything finally break him down and send him back to where he started? In this travel memoir, John travels the Southeast and Midwest to sample the sights and flavors, as well as profile some of America’s most intriguing characters, such as serial killers, politicians, and more.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
Where the Weird Things Are
Published: 2017
After exploring most of the Southeast in Hang the Elephant, John returns to cover the last corner – Florida. Along the way, John highlights all the horrific and weird stories Florida has to tell, and realizes his place in the world. This book is full of amazing and strange tales from the Sunshine State, from the Panhandle to the Keys.
Read all about cursed dolls, dolphin lovers, and serial killers. Lots and lots of serial killers. It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
Hang the Elephant
Published: 2015
In the follow up to Something About These Fields, John tackles his next big adventure – The Deep South. Along the way, John covers his three Ws – Waterfalls, Wings, and Weird history – and contemplates why Americans are constantly overreacting to tragedy.
This book is full of funny stories and thoughtful contemporary commentary, while also taking a look into John’s past and connecting the dots to show how he got to where he is today. It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
Something About These Fields
Published: 2014
John’s first full-length book is a travel memoir that recounts his journeys across North Carolina, with adventures in Virginia, Tennessee, and South Carolina as well. Follow along as he samples the food, takes in the sights, comments on the world, succumbs to an existential crisis, and flashes back to different moments in his life. It is humorous, a little sad at times, and completely real. It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iBookstore!
History
100 Stories: The Paranormal – Part 2
Published: 2023
The paranormal edition of John Hinson’s huge 100 Stories series returns for a second edition with more stories about cryptids, ghosts, aliens, and more! (Now with fairies, curses, and legal implications!) These stories span over 400 years of recorded human history of people trying to explain the otherwise unexplainable. Although John is annoyingly skeptical, don’t let his cynicism of the supernatural sway you from learning about these paranormal events. While some events have been determined to be a hoax or otherwise have a logical, scientific explanation, others remain a mystery.
In the end, it only takes one true story to open up an entire new world of human understanding of the world beyond this physical realm. Which one might it be? Between two books and 200 stories, one of them must be true, right?! This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 8
Published: 2023
The eighth edition of the 100 Stories series brings you a continued dose of the weird history you know and love. There are serial killers, strange characters, head–scratching events, and more. As always, this series aims to show you that things aren’t any worse than ever…it’s always been a crazy world out there. Don’t buy into all the media fear mongering. Things, technically, have actually never been better. Sure, the Russians are always up to something. There’s unrest in the Middle East. There’s whatever nonsense going on in the political world that threatens to wipe out the fabric of our democracy and decades of human progress.
But it isn’t that bad. The number of active serial killers is dwindling. There are fewer diseases that can kill us. Wars, though they still exist, are fewer and farther between and shorter lived. And after reading this book, you’ll feel better about living in today’s world than any other point in history. This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories from 100 Counties: The Lesser Known History of North Carolina – Part 2
Published: 2023
What do you think of when you think of North Carolina? Probably things like the Wright Brothers, the Outer Banks, the Great Smoky Mountains, or college basketball. But North Carolina is so much more than that. Each of its 100 counties is full of history. Sure, a lot of it isn’t what many people would deem as desirable or worth remembering, but it’s history that needs to be told nonetheless.
This book uncovers that history and brings lesser known parts of each county to life. Sure, some counties don’t look good in this, but it’s a gentle reminder of the progress the state of North Carolina, as well as humanity in general, has made over the years.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: Serial Killers – Part 2
Published: 2023
No, there’s nothing wrong with you and your fascination with true crime. There’s something about a good serial killer story that draws us in. What makes them do the things they do? How does someone ultimately get to the point where they willingly and happily kill someone despite all of the ramifications they’ll face if and when they eventually get caught? This book contains 100 more stories of the most notorious serial killers from around the world to help you answer those questions, most of which don’t have a Netflix documentary…yet.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 7
Published: 2022
The seventh edition of the 100 Stories series continues to be nothing more than a reiteration of John Hinson’s core message: Things aren’t the worst they’ve ever been. The world has, in fact, always been an inferior moronic cesspool of chaos and entropy. The human dickhead parade that we’ve created as a species has not gotten worse. Shockingly, by many standards, it has actually gotten better.
This book, in its own weird way, aims to prove that to you by looking back through time at more of the awful, bizarre, and interesting moments in history you likely missed along the way while your history classes and textbooks were focused on wars and political regimes.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 6
Published: 2021
What else can be said about John Hinson’s 100 Stories series that hasn’t been written yet? You know what this book covers, and you should at least have some idea of what to expect as you go through this set of stories. It’s hard to write the same thing six different ways, but it’s also hard to write as many books as John has written up to this point. For this sixth edition of the 100 Stories series, John has continued his relentless combing and scraping of historical records to find the stories you’ve likely never heard before. He is most certainly on a government watch list because of it, but he does it for you.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 5
Published: 2021
This edition of The Lesser Known History of Humanity series marks 500 stories that you likely weren’t taught in high school. Was it because America’s education system—both public and private—failed you miserably because the US Department of Education is run by a commission of global elites elected by the Bilderberg Group whose sole purpose is to revise the history books to a certain narrative that is ultimately designed to skew your view of racial and cultural histories to push forward a pro–white, pro–America, pro–Christian point of view? Maybe.
Or, perhaps more reasonably, that after over 5,000 years of recorded human history, there are simply too many stories that could be included in any mainstream history book. Beyond that, telling young children in their most formative years about some of the most awful, heinous, and bizarre events and people from history is probably a great way to scar them for life and add fuel to the raging dumpster fire our society already is. It’s much easier to keep those history books to nothing more than a timeline of political succession and large–scale international conflict while we save the good stuff for adulthood, just like everything else.
Like the previous four iterations, this version of the series is full of killers, strange characters, and head–scratching events that will leave you feeling oddly better about the current state of the world. Enjoy! This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 4
Published: 2020
Every time he thinks he’s scraped the bottom of the research barrel, John continues to find more strange, awful, and horrifying stories that history would prefer we all forget. The truth, however, is that the world we live in has generally been a pretty unpleasant place. If you’ve read any of the previous three editions of the 100 Stories series, you know what to expect. This one, somehow, may outdo them all.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories: Christianity
Published: 2019
Author John Hinson spent his most formative years in a religious environment, including nine years in a Free Will Baptist school. If there is anyone who is qualified to write this book (outside of someone who currently works in a church or teaches religious classes), it’s John. As with the other books in the 100 Stories series, John brings his straightforward, dry, biting humor to Christianity to provide a light-hearted take on the Bible’s darkest and least-read sections. Although it’s not blasphemous in any sense of the word, you might find some of the stories and the accompanying commentary offensive because you’ve been overly sheltered your entire life. If you’re sensitive, consider this your warning.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity – Part 3
Published: 2019
It’s the third part of the lesser known history of humanity, marking the end of an eye-opening trilogy unless John sells the rights to Disney, who will then revive the series, but do so in a way that will almost mirror the original trilogy in a frustratingly subtle way because original concepts and creativity don’t exist in today’s world. There are more stories of strange wars, interesting killers, and baffling conspiracies to uncover thanks to Big Curriculum taking these stories out of the history books in an attempt to keep you in the dark as to what’s really been going on the past several centuries. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, John finds a way to make it happen.
This book, like the others, is probably best kept away from your children, but within reach from where you sit on the toilet. It’s available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories: Serial Killers
Published: 2019
Did you know there are roughly 25 active serial killers in the United States right now? Even though the chances of you meeting one are about the same as getting struck by lightning, it’s fun to think about. In this edition of John Hinson’s 100 Stories, you’ll learn about 100 of history’s most horrifying killers. Some names – like John Wayne Gacy or Ted Bundy – will be familiar, but you’ll also be introduced to others who were arguably much more terrifying.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories: The Paranormal
Published: 2019
Ghosts, aliens, and cryptids! Many of us are fascinated by the paranormal. In this edition of John Hinson’s 100 Stories series, you’ll learn about 100 of history’s biggest mysteries. While many have logical explanations, some remain a mystery. Find out the truth in this great read.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 (More) Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity
Published: 2018
In the sequel to 100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity, John spent more time researching the annals of history to bring 100 more stories of things you likely never heard about (or didn’t get the full story on) in history class. This second edition brings more of the same types of funny, intriguing, and downright horrifying stories over the last couple thousand years of recorded human history.
Inside, you’ll find interesting characters, fascinating war stories, and profiles of some of the worst serial killers that have ever lived. This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories: The Lesser Known History of Humanity
Published: 2017
Although recorded human history is relatively small compared to the existence of earth, there are so many great stories that are consistently left out of the history books. John has spent countless hours researching and unearthing some of humanity’s best and long-lost stories. If you think present day is weird, you might find comfort in knowing it’s always been weird. It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
100 Stories from 100 Counties: The Lesser Known History of North Carolina
Published: 2016
Sure, you know about “The Lost Colony,” the Wright Brothers, and all the other well-known stories from North Carolina. But there’s a lot more that’s happened in the state’s history that has been forgotten along the way. John has scoured the annals of history and brought back 100 stories representing each of North Carolina’s 100 counties. Stories include forgotten wars, gruesome murder mysteries, personality profiles from famous small-town residents, and more.
It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble! It can also be found in the North Carolina Collection at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill’s Wilson Library.
Fiction
1997: The Diary of Robert Caleb Finley
Published: 2021
Following the 1997 arrest and 2001 trial of serial killer Robert Caleb Finley and the documented events surrounding the murders Mr. Finley committed, the prosecution secured the public release of Mr. Finley’s diaries as a way to recoup damages to the victims’ families. Robert Caleb Finley’s estate will not receive any proceeds from sales of this book. This book contains the unedited entries of Mr. Finley’s diary, which partly acts as his manifesto and sheds light on the logic and mental state Mr. Finley was in prior to and during his murders. The diaries were also used as evidence in the civil suit against Mr. Finley’s psychiatrist, Dr. Alexander Foster, for his role in the deterioration of Mr. Finley’s mental state. This book is intended for educational purposes only.
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Invisible Country
Published: 2020
Gert Huber, an officer with the German Sozialwohlfahrt, has been tasked with going to Unsichtbarland, a small, impoverished, isolated region in Germany that had long been the country’s eyesore. Gert, under the direction of a government–funded program, is tasked with developing a plan of action to improve the quality of life in Unsichtbarland to a more modern standard. However, not everything in Unsichtbarland is as it seems, and Gert finds himself in a new world and among strange people he doesn’t fully understand. In a world where Grimm’s fairy tales have seemingly come to life, Gert must figure out a way to rationalize everything in order to finish his assignment, or else Unsichtbarland would face serious consequences…
This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
Other
25 Life Lessons That You Won’t Listen To (But Here They Are Just in Case)
Published: 2023
If you’re not my kid and you’re reading this book, just know that this wasn’t meant for you. You’re still welcome to read it because, if I’m being honest, there’s a lot of great advice and perspective in here that you wish your parents had shared with you…but I’m not going to be your fairy godparent or anything.
This book, rather, is a work of love to my first child, which is meant to give him all the advice and wisdom I wish I had gotten when I was young. I don’t expect him to listen to it. Why would he? Kids don’t appreciate these sorts of things the way adults do. (To be fair, I also wouldn’t have listened to this advice when I was a kid.) This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc.
Tastes of Newfoundland: A Contemporary Collection of Canadian Cuisine
Published: 2021
Many people struggle to identify Canada’s core cultural definition. Even more, people struggle to identify the culinary identity of this large North American country. And while the focus stays on the larger provinces of Ontario and Quebec, many people often overlook the tiny island of Newfoundland, which has long contained a unique cultural and culinary identity of its own that has quietly influenced a lot of modern American cuisine. This book will take you on a culinary journey through Newfoundland’s history and provide you with a host of easy recipes to make at home. Bring Canadian cuisine to life right in your own kitchen with chicken, pastas, stews, and more, along with an extensive list of truly Canadian cocktails to pair them with. Finally, a cookbook that highlights the best of what Canadian cuisine can bring, while also telling the unique stories of each recipe’s history!
Whether you’re an experienced chef or just looking for easy meals to cook at home, this book provides several recipes borne out of years of at–home, tried and true methods of cooking that have been passed down for generations. This book is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
The Hinson Family Tree
Published: 2020
Thanks to the national lockdown for the coronavirus pandemic, John had a lot of time to figure out where he came from. This collection of biographies highlights some notable people John was able to directly connect himself to on his family tree. This project was intended for family only, but if you’re super interested in reading about several notable historical characters, the book is available for purchase from Amazon.
Appalachian Waterfalls: A Guide for Beginners
Published: 2017
North Carolina and the Appalachian Mountains are teeming with waterfalls. But where do you begin? This book offers a great guide for beginners of all ages who want to explore the waterfalls in the Appalachian Mountains. It is available for purchase directly through the publisher – Lulu, Inc. – as well as Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
John Hinson 