My Books

                                              

                                                 Gerald and the Wee People

Two teenagers respond to a plea for help and literally fall into another world. They become involved in a war and invent some clever plans to temporarily prevent the enemy from entering the village of the wee people. Time is running out, the gates are getting weaker and the weapon stash is dwindling. Something else has to be done to stop the war.

Gerald, Vernon and six companions embark on a quest to defeat the crazed forest god who is set on destroying all the inhabitants living on that world. They follow a path described in an old prophecy but things do not go as planned.

Excerpt from Gerald and the Wee People

This time it was no illusion. The walls burned their hands; the hot air burned their throats. The floor was sticky with some kind of hot substance, burning their feet through their shoes.

They began to hear a distant sound like the laughter they had heard earlier. Cian fell to his knees and cried out in pain as the scalding liquid burned his skin. “I can’t go on, just leave me here to die,” he screamed.

Tomas reached out to his brother trying to help him up. It was no use; he was too weak and exhausted. In a very weak voice he said, “You all go on. I’ll stay with Cian. I can’t go another step anyway.”

No one else said a word. The others were too tired to talk, too tired to walk, too tired to care.

 This was not supposed to be happening. Gerald did not remember this from his nightmares. Something was wrong.

He yelled to whoever was listening, “Did we take a wrong turn or something? Stop it Miach, stop it. You want me, leave my friends alone.”

That just made matters worse. The scampering, unseen creatures came out of nowhere. They did not just run past this time but stayed and started pinching and biting the legs and arms of Gerald’s companions.

For some strange reason though, the creatures did not bother him.

All four of his companions were down, rolling around on the ground trying to fight off the shadowy figures. The screams intensified from his friends as the burning liquid covered their bodies and the creatures’ biting turned to gnawing.

Gerald could hear pieces of flesh being torn away as the other boys were being eaten alive. The laughter was all around them now bouncing off the walls and echoing through Gerald’s head.

“Stop it, stop it now. Please, I’ll do anything you want, Miach. Stop the noise, stop torturing my friends.”

Total silence fell; all the gnawing, screaming and laughter were gone. Gerald did not know if the total lack of sound was worse than all the noise.

He noticed a light shining above him. He looked around and realized he was all alone.

A voice spoke inside his mind and said, “Anything I want, huh,” followed by a soft, haunting chuckle.

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House on Bo-Kay Lane

House on Bo-Kay Lane continues the adventure begun in book one in this series, Gerald and the Wee People.

Gerald and Vernon believe their time with the wee people came to an end after they returned to their home world but begin to wonder when strange things started to happen at an abandoned house in their neighborhood. Ghostly images of familiar faces from the wee people village are seen in the windows, echoes of voices from the past haunt the boys’ dreams and an undeniable curiosity draws Gerald and Vernon to investigate the mysterious haunted house. What they find takes them back to the world of the wee people and a new adventure begins.

In House on Bo-Kay Lane, a mirror is found in a forgotten room in the far-seers’ training center. Sheela, a far-seer master and Alyson, an apprentice firestarter are unwillingly drawn into the depths of the mirror and wind up in the abandoned house on Bo-Kay Lane. Sheela uses her telepathic skills to enlist the aid of Gerald, Vernon and Gerald’s father, Andrew to help find the way back to the world of the wee people.

That problem resolved, they try to unravel the secrets of the mirror and find that it is a portal between their two worlds, as well as to a time in the future and possibly even to a parallel universe. They also discover that someone is trapped inside the mirror and the decision has to be made as to whether or not to help the trapped soul escape the confines of the portal.

Meanwhile, the wee people discover the origins of their world. That knowledge is not well accepted and leads to discord between them and the outworlders, Gerald, Andrew and Vernon. An uneasy truce paves the way to an understanding and acceptance of the unwelcome facts and eventually to a solution of how to deal with the man in the mirror.

Excerpt

A sense of peace washed over the young man as he sat on the rock. Something inside him gave him a second wind and the determination to complete his mission. He looked at his hands. They were a raw, bloody mess. He had held onto the rope during the fall which probably saved his life. The rope kept him from gaining too much speed during his downhill slide, but it cost him dearly. All the skin on his hands had been rubbed off.

Tomas’ shirt was in tatters, nearly ripped off him by the protruding obstacles during his fall. There was an advantage to that though. It made it easier to tear off strips of material to wrap around his throbbing hands. He wrapped one long strip around his chest, resulting in each breath being a little less painful.

He was ready, or at least as ready as he would ever be. Tomas stood, grabbed the rope and began the process over again. Two steps, move hands, two more steps, move hands; he got back in to the familiar rhythm.

Tomas thought of nothing else. The voices from above were silenced, the pain in his ribs subsided, the ache in muscles relaxed. All he could hear was the beating of his heart; all he could feel was the roughness of the rope tearing through the strips of cloth. He could taste the sweat dripping from his forehead down to his parched lips. It was like a dream, he was there, but not really there. He could visualize his body slowly inching up the slope as if he was watching with the others from above. Then again, he knew his life depended on each step. It was up to him and him alone to win this fight with fate.

The young man reached up and grasped nothing, no mud, no rope, just a handful of air. Seconds later, many hands grabbed his and pulled him up onto the solid flat ground. The tension and stress from his ordeal caught up with Tomas at that moment, and he began to cry. Big wracking sobs releasing the pain, fear and relief tore from his throat. No one thought any less of the muscular teenager for his show of emotion; actually everyone joined him and shed their own tears.

It was a very somber group that returned to camp late that afternoon.

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   Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat

        Patchwork Dog has a knack for getting into trouble and his best friend, Calico Cat usually winds up right in the middle of the mess with him. Calico would rather spend her days sleeping in her nice comfortable bed, staying safe and worry free. She knows better than to follow Patchy when he is out looking for a new adventure, but she tags along anyway just in case…

On the other hand, Patchy is very curious and is always investigating new sights, sounds and smells. He follows his nose wherever it goes. Sometimes that leads to trouble but other times it gives Calico a chance to play a trick on her not so smart friend.

Join the two lovable creatures as Patchy tries to fly like a bird and finds out that soaring through the air is fun but the landing hurts too much. In another adventure, the little dog gets caught sneaking around an airplane.  In the other three stories, Patchy and Calico eat too many apples, confront a not too friendly skunk, and take a magical ride into town.

Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat has illustrations at the beginning of each chapter that hint at what the new adventure will be about. Other pictures are included at the end of each story along with some questions for the child to answer. Older children can read the stories themselves or it would make a wonderful bedtime story book for younger kids. The five tales will entertain children of all ages with the antics of the title characters and hopefully teach youngsters some valuable lessons on sharing and working together.

Excerpt from Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat

Patchwork Dog and Calico Cat woke up bright and early one chilly winter morning ready for a new adventure.

“Where should we go today, Calico? It’s a perfect day to go exploring.”

“Oh no Patchy, I know that look in your eyes. When you look at me like

that, we usually get in trouble.”

“When have I ever gotten you in trouble, Calico? I just want to have some fun today.”

“Fun…like sneaking into Mr. Smith’s tool shed and being locked in there all night?

…or like eating all those apples and being sick for two days?

or like…

“OK! OK! We have been in a few jams, but think of it as a way to learn new things.”

“Yea, we learned never to do things like that again,” said Calico Cat.

“See,” said the proud little dog, “if we didn’t have any adventures we would never learn valuable lessons.”

“Oh well, what do you have in mind to learn today?” grumbled the cat.

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Patchy and Calico's Summer Vacation

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                                  Heartaches and Miracles

“But I don't feel sick. Why do I have to stay here in the hospital?” I stubbornly asked the emergency room doctor, and he replied in an exasperated voice, “Because you are one sick chick. Your platelets are down to 2000. You are going upstairs to PCU and you are going to stay there until I say you can go home.”

I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called ITP (Idiopathic Thrombocytopenia Purpura) in April 2005. At that time, I knew very little about platelets, CBC’s, corticosteroids and other factors that would play a significant role in my well-being for the rest of my life.

 Since that time, I have researched autoimmune disorders and ITP and have spoken with a number people who also suffer from this chronic blood disease.  I kept a journal describing my relapses, treatments, successes and failures and wrote up all this information so that I could share it with others who are also fighting this illness.

Heartaches and Miracles is a combination biography, research information and pep talk for anyone suffering with ITP or for family members and friends who want to understand what this disease is all about. There are excerpts from other ITPers who have been on or are still on the never ending roller coaster ride of steroids, surgery and other types of medications and treatments. There are no cures for ITP or for any autoimmune disorder for that matter. The treatments and medications can have terrible side effects, but the disease can be controlled in most people. It can be a hard road filled with relapses and disappointments but with a positive attitude and support from friends and family, there is hope.

Heartaches and Miracles was written as a form of chicken soup for the ITP soul to give encouragement and strength to those affected by this blood disorder. Reading how others have coped, hopefully will give those newly diagnosed a glimpse of what to expect and give everyone with ITP a new hope for tomorrow.

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