| Life is full of change and upheaval. In the Tarot, this is indicated by the Wheel of Fortune card. There are ups, downs, surprises and most of all, lessons to be learned. With the end of a year, a new one begins. It’s a time of resolutions, of taking stock of your life and filling in the missing pieces, and of fostering those things in your life worth cultivating. In short, it’s a magical time full of potential and possibility.
Often it’s hard to think of this time as magical, but sometimes those things we see in darkness become the bright shining beacon of hope for which we are searching. As the New Year begins, reach out for tales of inspiration and hope with some wonderful books from Llewellyn for your before-the-fire reading.
Ever feel stuck? Imagine having a huge fight with your father, taking off without his permission to go skiing and ending up in Nirvanaville — dead! That’s exactly what happens to Kevin, 18-year-old all-around good kid, except for that pesky relationship with his father. Kevin loves Nirvanaville, although he hates that his parents are hurting. Well, at least his mom is hurting. He knows for sure that his dad is probably still mad at him for his fight and just went along with his life after Kevin’s death like it was no big deal. He probably blamed Kevin, too — that’s just like his dad.
When a job in Nirvanaville opens up to be a courier of letters, Kevin jumps at the chance. It would be fun to visit his old haunts, so to speak. His job is to deliver a letter to his girlfriend’s mom letting her know that she’s OK. Kevin gets a special motorcycle, some bimi berries (for that “in a real body” look) and heads to Earth to complete his mission. Everything is fine until his motorcycle crashes, he gets picked up by a policeman for impersonating the deceased and is stuck in jail with a nasty “Dweller” named Morty, determined to ruin his life. What’s worse, Kevin realizes he’s in danger of becoming a “Dweller” himself, a soul unable to get over past hurts, and is therefore stuck down on Earth. He discovers he has to heal his relationship with his dad before he can go back to Nirvanaville. This is a seemingly impossible task, since Kevin’s dad is the prosecuting attorney in his case! Could things get any worse? How can Kevin convince his dad it’s really him, and even more impossible, heal their relationship?
This heartwarming tale will have you laughing, crying and singing “All You Need is Love” at the top of your lungs. As Kevin strives to get off of Earth and back to Nirvanaville, he learns about forgiveness, understanding and most importantly, the strength of family love. Check out the excerpt of this heavenly book that is sure to keep you flying high.
Far away from Nirvanaville, Toby Maxwell is dealing with something a little more down-to-Earth. His parents are getting a divorce and he has to move with his mom and his sister to the city. His mom insists that 7th Street is a great place for kids to live; after all, she grew up there. Toby doesn’t have the heart to tell his mom the truth: the street has changed. Instead of a potpourri of different cultures enhancing each other, living side-by-side happily and harmoniously, the street is in chaos. Now the Strafers, a gang of miscreants bent on destruction, have taken over and everyone is afraid. If Toby wasn’t so upset about his parents’ divorce, and convinced he won’t be staying long in the neighborhood, he may actually try to make it better.
Things change when he meets a homeless man named Moe. The two of them hit it off and discover that the wall on 7th Street, the one that the Strafers cover with gruesome graffiti full of violent imagery, has some sort of latent power. It seems that whatever the Strafers paint comes true. So with a little help from the local art teacher, some subtle ingenuity and clever planning, Toby and Moe set out to turn the wall into something beautiful. And what they find — community support, friendship, creativity, nobility, courage and honor — is the best work of art a neighborhood could hope for. Make sure to read the excerpt after this article for a taste of the beauty that Toby and Moe find.
Both of these fabulous books speak of finding hope through bleakness, righting the wrongs in our lives, and moving on to a different phase in our development. And with that segue, dear Readers, I want to let you all know that this is the last column you’ll be reading from me. Yep, that’s right, I’m moving on to a different phase in my life. I can’t tell you how fun and rewarding it has been to write these columns, and I sincerely hope you’ve all enjoyed them. As the Wheel of Fortune turns, and I leave you for a different path, I hope you’ll welcome my successor as he begins his new phase. Take it from me, he’s fabulous, and I know you’ll love reading his columns every New Worlds issue. With that, I bid you a fond farewell and I wish you much happy reading! |
