John Collings

Moab, Utah

For the last eight years I have worked for Frontier High School, an alternative high school in Elizabeth, Colorado. It is a school determined to bring back the joy of education to those who have been disillusioned by the traditional methods of teaching in a culture that is more interested in testing students rather than educating them. I have been proud of the fact that this small staff at this school has been able to turn around the lives of kids who other schools have written off as trouble-makers, or unable to reach. I’m not saying that every educator out there is so callous as to dismiss one of their students, but there are enough of them out there to not care about any individual that causes disruption in their classroom. These educators would rather ignore these students in need than give them the time needed so they could obtain a proper education. For the most part these students end up at my school, or schools like mine. They find themselves there for various reasons: drugs, gangs, struggles in learning, disruptive home lives, poverty, or bullying for various reasons of teenage awkwardness. Frontier High School is there to give these kids a chance.

There are many things that this school does to bring these kids into the fold of lifelong learners. The one that I enjoyed the most during my tenure there was the experiential education program. This program allowed students to learn by getting out of the classroom and seeing the world around them. Moments like this bring learning to life. I have been on a lot of these trips during my time there. I went skiing on the slopes of Colorado, explored the caves in Carlsbad, New Mexico, and hiked the less traveled paths of Yellowstone National Park with my students. Each time I went on one of these adventures I learned just as much about the history of our nation and the way the world works as my students did. They were experiences that they will always be able to take with them, and in the process I was able to make great academic relationships with my students and show them a way to a more promising future. It has been a rewarding experience, and sometimes I wonder who got more out of the experience, them or me. My last trip there was to the beauty of Moab, Utah.

Our voyage on this trip took us to many exciting places. We went to two national parks, Arches and Canyonlands, and a canoe trip down the Colorado River. The first day was an eight mile loop through the slick rock that is Canyonlands National Park. We learned about the formation of these canyons while running into the wildlife that found a home in this desolate place. There were many lizards scurrying over the same rocks that we were, and when we looked in the sky, we saw hawks soaring to hunt these same lizards. The students learned about the power of the desert as the sun sweltered in the sky, and we sweated under the exposure of its brutal landscape. Luckily, we were there in early June, so it was only in the nineties. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like in August when temperatures reach well over the one-hundred degree mark. It was a little bit of a challenge for my fellow teacher, Jed, and me, but it was more of a challenge for some of our students who have never been on an exposition like this before.

The next day was spent on the Colorado River. Even though we were given lessons on eddies, strainers, and how to navigate through them in a canoe, we were given an unexpected lesson in physics. One of our members of the trip backed out a couple of days before we left, so we were left with a odd number. We had arranged with the rental company, Moab Rafting, for ten people in five canoes, so they had prepared that many for us. Once again luck was on our side, or so we thought. One of the canoes they pulled out was smaller, so one person could navigate the river with it. Jed, being the more skilled, opted to take the canoe down the river by himself. We quickly learned our mistake in letting him alone in a boat. His weight lifted the front of the boat out of water, and we quickly experienced a headwind right before heading into the canyon. The four boats with two passengers moved swiftly down the river, whereas he lagged behind. Quickly, Jed and his boat became a tiny dot on the horizon. This is where the kids’ problem solving skills came into play. The other four canoes formed a barge and waited for him to catch up. When he was finally with us, we tied the end of his boat to one of ours and guided him down the stream. It still wasn’t as fast as the other boats, but he no longer lagged so far behind that we were scared of losing him completely.

Even with all of the difficulty we experienced as we made our way down the Colorado River, the fact that recent rains had pushed its limits to the highest banks and gave power to its current, we arrived at the pullout an hour ahead of schedule. We spent a little time enjoying lunch and then joined another group of students that took turns leaping off an outcrop of rock into a deeper part of the river. The water was refreshing and it was the perfect activity for a hot, sunny day.

The day wasn’t over when we completed our river excursion. Across the road from the pullout was a trail head. We returned later that evening to take this short hike. It was enjoyable in the cool of the early evening and we were able to see our first natural arch. These majestic sculptures are created after years of being punished by the elements. Rains and winds carve out these arches to last decades and centuries, but they are a part of a constantly changing landscape subjected to the whims of nature. Even though I could probably come back ten years later and still see this same arch, it is not a guarantee. There are always stories of arches who have lost their battles to time, and eventually this one will too. All we can do is enjoy their beauty while they last and search for the new ones as the elements give them their unique characteristics.

Arches National Park has the largest collection of these arches. They are all over the place, and many small hikes crowded with tourists from around the world took us to the more iconic ones on our last full day on this trip. Delicate Arch is the most well known of the arches. From a slightly different angle than this picture, one can see the image emblazoned on the license plates of many Utah cars. It is one of the more unique arches that we found in the park. Most times, the arches are attached to cliffs that are a part of the whole weathering process, but Delicate Arch is out there by itself, attached to nothing. Even though the mile-and-a-half hike to see this landmark is strenuous, it doesn’t stop tourists gathering around the natural amphitheater surrounding this structure and spending time watching people take their turns standing on the platform under the arch to get their picture taken. It was fun to watch the different poses that people attempted as they tried to balance themselves against the wind.

Even though there are a lot of educational opportunities that the students experience as we travel to the different sites on each of our trips, one of the greatest experiences that happens is the bonding an individual creates between the fellow students and the teachers. This usually happens at the campsites. Yes, the students learn about camping, conservation, outdoor cooking, and how to start a fire during their stays at these campsites, but they also laugh as they play various games and enjoy the friendly banter that can only be enjoyed around a campfire. I learned a couple of new activities on this trip such as Extreme Spoons, and the roasting of Starbursts (quite a delicacy if you have never tried it), but the game that brought out the most laughter and the biggest challenge among the kids was Chubby Bunny. This is usually played while waiting to make smores. The contestants take a marshmallow and stuff it into their mouths without chewing it. They must say the phrase, “I am a Chubby Bunny” in order to continue. The contestants take turns stuffing these fluffy treats into the maw until only one of them is able to utter the phrase as their mouths are overflowing with marshmallows. The record on this trip was nine marshmallows held by Jed. Even though the kids lost to a teacher, it created a wonderful moment that the students will take with them for the rest of their lives.

This trip to Moab, Utah will be placed among the top trips that I have taken with Frontier High School. It was the perfect way to say goodbye to a place that allowed me to grow as a teacher and be able to see the importance that education holds in our society. Even though I will not be returning to Frontier High School next year, I will always be a soaring eagle, and I will look back at these trips with fond memories. It is a program that I hope will continue in the future because not only is it a great learning opportunity for these kids, but it also gives them a chance at a future because it shows them that there is a whole world out there for them to connect with. It is programs like the experiential education program at Frontier High School that should be implemented in more schools across America. They would show disenfranchised students that there is more to education than books and tests. If you find one of these programs in your local school districts make sure that it survives because it is so essential to so many students out there.

Best Superhero Movies

#1 – The Incredibles

For a few years, there was no better animation studio in the world than Pixar. they were leading the way not only in animation, but in story development. Every summer, people waited eagerly for their next project to emerge, and they were never disappointed by what they saw on the screen. When they had Brad Bird tell his story about a superhero family forced into retirement, it was the height of Pixar’s reign as animated kings. It also tells one of the best superhero stories ever, and this was not one that was previously told in comic books. It showed how dysfunction can control all aspects of your life if you are not allowed to be the person you know you are. It also showed typical family life as kids grow up with parents who are the heroes they always make them out to be. This could easily be the best animated feature highlighting the lives of superheroes.

#2- The Dark Knight

I have a hard time deciding which takes more to believe, why this movie didn’t get nominated for an academy award, or why it only got a PG13 rating. Both are head scratchers as you watch this masterpiece. The one thing that won’t make you wonder is if there has ever been a better villain in any type of movie. Heath Ledger gave this character a darkness that goes back to the original Batman comic books. He is only on the screen for 46 minutes in this movie that almost runs for three hours, but each time he is there, you remained glued to your seat to see what he will do next. He definitely deserved the academy award for the best supporting actor that year just as the movie deserved to be mentioned among the best not only that year, but maybe even this century. Granted an argument can be made for Slumdog Millionaire which won that year as being a better movie, but who is going to talk about The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons again. Whereas, we will talk about this movie as the best installment in the Batman series and the best superhero movie ever made. It will take a lot to remove this movie from its position on the list because not only are the performances amazing, but it looks into the power of chaos, chance, and what will really happen if we all started to play vigilante. This movie is legendary and by far the best superhero movie ever made.

#3 – Iron Man

Growing up, I really didn’t like Iron Man. Who would like a narcissistic arms dealer turned superhero? Yes, it is the dream of all arms dealers, but I really didn’t want to spend my fifty cents on a comic book reading about it. When I saw they had made a movie about Tony Stark, I knew instantly that I had to skip this one. But then the reviews came out, and I learned that John Favreau was the director. I could overlook the fact that Robert Downey Jr. was the lead and give this movie a chance. Boy, my initial reaction was wrong and I was surprised how good this movie was. Given the fact that it was released during the height of the war on terror just added to the timeliness of the movie, and who better to play a narcissistic arms dealer turned superhero than Robert Downey Jr. The humor combined with the action intertwined in a relevant story made this movie the first to make this list.

#4 – Spiderman

#5 – Man of Steel

#6 – Guardians of the Galaxy

Americans have a special place in their hearts for bad guys. We even like them better if they start off bad, but as time goes on, they find the right way and end up doing good. If you don’t believe me, think of your favorite Star Wars character and most of you will think of Han Solo right away. (Yes, I know Yoda popped into a lot of your heads as well.) But for those of you who thought of Yoda, I bet Han Solo is number two. Now imagine a movie where six Han Solos get together to save not only the world, but the universe. What you get with this band of misfits is the number two spot, Guardians of the Galaxy. Most of the time I would tell you to stay away from a movie that has too many origin stories because they don’t have time to tell each of their stories, and the whole thing turns out flat, but this is not the case with Guardians of the Galaxy. James Gunn did a wonderful job of developing the characters and entertaining us all in this less than known story from Marvel comics.

#7 – The Avengers

Growing up, my brother was really into this group of superheroes. I did not feel the same way. It involved more of a love story and bunch of overrated heroes talking than getting into fights. A West Coast version came out that I was more interested in than the original group of heroes. Of course, this was post Ultron days when the story centered on the Vision and the Scarlet Witch. When I heard that Marvel was working to bring this story to the big screen, I was skeptical, but I liked the way that they were doing it. It was nice to get all of the origin stories out of the way, so they could focus on the story itself. What I was not expecting was the action adventure that followed. There is so much action in this movie that it never gives the viewer time to breathe. It is just pure fun all the way through. It also doesn’t hurt to see the Hulk throw a god around like he is a rag doll. This definitely deserves this spot on the countdown.

#8 – Darkman

#9 – Batman Begins

The Batman franchise had hit a slow spot. The movies had turned into the campy version of the caped crusader that plagued viewers in the 60s and 70s. Why would anybody want to come out for a reboot of this story. Christopher Nolan was also struggling as a director after his debut was followed by a lackluster performance with Insomniac. The story was doomed to be forgotten and quickly. At least this was shat I thought. I didn’t even bother going to see it in the theater. Instead, one afternoon while looking for something to do, I threw down a dollar to go see the movie in a rundown theater. What I saw blew my mind. Here was a story about the power of fear in a post-9/11 world. The theme could not be presented at a better time. Gone was the campiness of the previous movies. The villain was not some cartoon parading around on the screen, but instead a real villain. It also presented a new, dark twist to the origin story that is so overplayed that everybody in the world knows it by heart. It blew my mind, and returned Christopher Nolan back to the ranks of one of the best directors out there. Obviously one of the best versions of Batman from a series that have offered up more stories about this hero than any other hero out there.

#10 – Kick Ass

Can a superhero without any superpowers really be included in this list? Hell yeah. After the saturation of superhero movies every summer, it was refreshing to see a movie about the effects it might have on the average viewer. Who didn’t want to be a superhero growing up? There were many days growing up that I fantasized about waking up and finding myself a mutant with hidden powers that I never knew about, but then reality set in. These superpowers do not exist, and no matter how much I wished for them, they would never come. But what would happen if I decided to go fight crime anyway? This is the idea that plays out in Kick Ass, and in amazingly entertaining fashion. The ideas combined with the action makes this a worthy edition to the list.

#11 – Spiderman 2

As a kid, my favorite superhero was Spiderman. So when they made the first movie, I was really excited to see it and was not disappointed in the job they did telling the story. My only complaint was the was the way the dealt with his web-slinging abilities, but that was so minor that I could easily forgive it. I had only wished that they had taken on Spiderman’s greatest enemy, Dr. Octopus. But patience is a virtue, and it was the second installment in this series that allowed me to see how they were going to present this super villain on the screen. The battle scenes in this movie are epic, and you cannot just forget what it was you have seen. I could watch this movie over and over again, and never get tired of it.

#12 – Unbreakable

It was 2000, and M. Night Shyamalan had just wowed the world with his debut movie, The Sixth Sense, won an unprecedented contract, and was ready to release his sophomore effort. The world was ready to see what this wonder director was going to bring to the table with his dark themes and Twilight Zone twists. He gave us another mind-bender with his superhero movie, Unbreakable. Unlike other superhero movies, this one didn’t market itself as a superhero movie. It also didn’t have a lot of action scenes like other movies of its kind. But it has one of the best origin stories that have ever been told, and its deconstruction of the superhero genre has laid the groundwork for all of the other movies that followed. It is one that is usually forgotten by those who love this genre, but deserves a spot on the list for its ingenuity.

#13 – Thor

Yes, I am a big enough geek to claim that my favorite kind of mythology is Norse mythology, and some of this had to do with growing up with the Thor comic books as a kid. Even though it is hard to find the stories that created this ancient religion, the more you look into this mythology, the better it gets. Of course, Marvel embellished a little bit on the original stories, but Kenneth Branagh brought some of the details of these stories back into the movie. It was also the perfect choice of director because the scenes on Asgard needed a classic appeal, and who better to bring that to a movie than a Shakespearean trained actor and director. Even though all of these aspects find themselves in this movie, it is the dynamic between the God of Thunder and Jane Foster as he makes his way to Earth for the first time that really create this movie. It adds the perfect amount of comedy to this action adventure and creates some of the more memorable scenes. It was also a great introduction that followed in the next movies that continued this great story.

The Calling by Louise G. White

I would give The Calling by Louise G. White a 7 out of 10.

A feral young girl, Carolyn, finds herself irresistibly drawn to gateways that open up in her world, and take her to other worlds filled with demons who kidnap humans to use for their own wicked purposes. She has this calling because she witnessed a group of demons suck her mother and brother into one of these gateways. Now she is constantly looking for her loved ones while saving other humans from a similar fate. She lives this animalistic existence, avoiding the “suits” and killing demons, until one day when she “anchored” to a demon. This releases dormant hormones within her, forcing her to have a irresistible attraction to her new demon friend.

Louise does a great job creating fantastic creatures and wonderful worlds to explore. She wraps this all up in an action adventure that engages the reader at numerous occasions. Adding to the flavor of this adventure, she creates a love triangle centered around a strong willed girl as she explores what the true meaning of love is. The author does a wonderful job of making the reader see this struggle with this powerful emotion in a way that most teenagers would see it. It makes you wonder if what Carolyn is really experiencing is true love, or just an effect of the new hormones rushing through her body.

The book, however, does lag a little in the middle. This is not something that is unusual for larger fantasy pieces because the author does need to establish the world that they have created and introduce the reader to all of the characters needed in order to fully tell the tale. Louise G. White does a good job of keeping the reader entertained while developing this aspect of the story even though there are a couple of occasions where I wondered if what she added was actually necessary to the story.

The one major complaint I had about the book was the ending. This is my own personal taste, but I believe that the first part of any series should be able to stand on its own as a book. Of course, the author should leave the reader with some questions to get them excited for the next installment, but I believe that there should be enough closure in the book to allow the reader to feel satisfied without having a burning desire to have those questions answered. There is a huge cliff-hanger at the end of this book, and even though I do have a desire to find out what happens next, I feel like it is part of marketing ploy to get me to buy the next installment. Of course, I probably will, but I still like that sense of closure that wasn’t a part of this book.

Otherwise, the story that Louise G. White has created is a lot of fun and if you are willing to go on the full adventure, I would recommend picking up The Calling.

Hell, and God, and Nuns with Rulers

TOP INDIE BOOK of 2015 – Britbear Books

5 Stars – In Tristan, Collings has created a character with which many teens will identify (indeed, most adults as well). Regardless of the religion in question, most of us struggle for a balance between the pious and the secular, and the ability to live our lives whilst pleasing both our parents and ourselves. And while many of us don’t grapple with the same potentially life-altering, game-changing issues as Tristan, we grapple with the issues nevertheless. That Tristan holds on and refuses to give up who he is to the pressure of others makes him not only memorable, but inspirational. – Britbear Books

5 Stars – I was immediately blown away by the intelligent, almost satirical nature of Collings’ writing, which was straight-forward and authentic to the age and acrimony of a teenage boy. Tristan has a distinct tone—a real voice—and it is instantly potent. – Please Pass the Book

A witty suburban coming-of-age story – RedNoise

(Throughout the course of the novel, the main character, Tristan Adamson, has to write a series of essays for his Literature and Composition class. They don’t always go as well as he hopes. This particular essay he wrote gives the story its title.)

Hell, and God, and Nuns with Rulers

Some people would say that Jewish parents have cornered the market on guilt. This noble race knows better than any other type of parent how to make their children feel uncomfortable at any given moment. They can use the fires of Hell and the pains of their past to make their children feel bad when they complain about the scratchy pants they received for Hanukkah. Even though they might have pretty effective skills when dishing out guilt, the Catholics have made strong inroads with this ability. In fact, the parents of Catholic children have made so much progress in this area of expertise that they now hold the title for the best guilt trippers on the planet.

Just like the Jewish people, the Catholic parents have the fear of Hell on their side and they know how to use it. They instill it in their children at a very early age. From the moment their child can enjoy stories, these parents pull out their big old picture book of Bible stories. These books tell wonderful stories about animals going into an ark two by two, or how three wise men showed up at the birth of some random kid to give him gifts of precious metals and smelly stuff. But other stories involve what a young person’s life will be like if they are condemned to Hell. Red painted men with horns and long tails walk around with pitchforks forcing people to take leaps into big old pits of fire. Parents force their children to look at pictures of the anguished faces of people burning for all eternity while Lucifer dances behind with glee. Catholic parents will point at these pictures and tell their children, “Look what happens if you don’t brush your teeth at night.” On a side note, Catholics generally have very happy dentists.

If Catholic parents can’t scare their kids by using the devil, they can always use God. We should all fear God; at least this is what they tell children at a very early age. God will not be undone by a mere human. If He thinks someone is showing Him up in any manner, He will use His might and power to smite that person. Many Bible stories confirm this. Children’s Bibles even furnish pictures to better illustrate these messages. God threw Adam and Eve out of Eden. After Noah got on the ark, God flooded the earth. The picture in the Bible depicted men drowning as Noah sails by with a smile on his face and a cute cat in the crook of his arm. Imagine being five years old and seeing a picture of a man wearing a toga and yielding a sharp knife to stab his son, or the picture of the Hell on Earth that God created while he destroyed Sodom. These frightening pictures, combined with terrifying stories, can even help Catholic parents guilt their children into being potty-trained.

Finally, Catholic parents having something that would make the Holocaust look tame. They have nuns with rulers. There is nothing scarier on this God-given Earth than a nun with a ruler. Just one of these formidable beasts will stare down an army of highly trained super ninjas. With one crack of that ruler, it will cause those ninjas to wet their pants (they don’t have many Catholics in Japan) and run away like Shaggy and Scooby Doo being chased by some imaginary ghost. The only problem with being a Catholic child is that when faced with this dilemma, they can neither pee their pants (see earlier argument) nor run away. They must face the nun and whatever terror she may inflict upon the knuckles of said victim. Many Catholic boys and girls wake up with their knuckles aching, and they don’t even know why.

So it is obvious that even though all parents know how to use guilt trips to their advantage, no parent knows how to use them better than Catholic parents. They have many more tools at their disposal, such as: Hell, and God, and nuns with rulers. Just feel lucky you don’t have Catholics for parents.

# # #

This time Mrs. Baker went backward down the list as she talked to each student about their essays. I followed Stephen Bluestein. She started off by pointing out her pride at the fact that I could use a semicolon correctly. I guess this would mean a lot to me if I knew what a semicolon was. She then went on to explain her dissatisfaction with the fact that I couldn’t stick to the prompt. My voice and subject matter interested her but she couldn’t understand how it had anything to do with the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. She would even accept my consistently writing the five-paragraph essay if only I could stay on topic. Maybe I could stay on topic if I actually sat down and read Macbeth, but I just can’t get into Shakespeare.

She handed back my paper with a big red letter F on it. She went on to explain that she might’ve found it in her heart to give me a D if I hadn’t dismissed the Holocaust as being less terrifying than a nun with a ruler. Apparently, they never taught a theology class at the public high school she attended. She is definitely not making any brownie points. I can’t move her to the list of teachers that I like. But considering the fact that only my first grade teacher, Mrs. Flarrety, has made the list, I doubt Mrs. Baker would really care.

Alora by Megan Linski

On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give Alora a solid 9, if you are the intended audience for this book. If you are not the intended audience for this book – in other words a middle-aged man like me – then this is not the book for you, but I would still give it a 9. Why? Well, if you think about it, there is always that niece you have a difficult time buying gifts for when Christmas or her birthday comes around. With this book, you now have the perfect gift because she would be the intended audience. In which case, you would give this book a 9 too because of all the joy you brought to the loved one you gave it to.

Alora is the story of a teenage romance between August, a boy struggling to come to terms with his parents recent divorce, and Alora, an Anmortal. Anmortals have lived in this world for many years, isolated from human contact and never growing older than the age of sixteen. They live in harmony with nature, and only have contact with others when they have found their Anmortal soul mate. Alora has not found hers, but she still lives contently in the forests of Michigan. During the summer months she appears as a sixteen year old girl, but as soon as the first snow falls, she transforms into a white wolf with majestic wings that allows her to soar through the air. During one of the summers, she meets August while he is visiting his father and romance blossoms as they get to know each other better. Everything is starting to look great, but there is a danger that lurks in the Anmortals’ world, the Windcomer. The Windcomer is a mechanical beast whose whole purpose in life is to hunt all the Anmortals to extinction. Can love grow when this danger is just around the corner?

Even though the heart of this story is a love story, it is not sentimental or sappy. Young women will love the honesty that Megan Linski portrays in this relationship and will be able to relate to the many twists and turns that it takes. Linski also introduces a wonderful theme of mankind’s influence on nature, and how it affects all living creatures. It gives depth to this story, and provides some literary merit. She also gives the story enough action to make it exciting that even young men might find some enjoyment within the pages.

The real strength of Megan Linski’s writing is her prose. Her words create a dreamlike atmosphere that make you feel as if you are walking through a surreal landscape. When you finish the last words of the book, you feel as if you have just woken up from the most wonderful respite that you wish to return to as soon as possible. The only real problem I had was early on when she spent a lot of time describing the looks of the characters and the clothes they were wearing. It felt a little unnatural and maybe if she had sprinkled these descriptions throughout the course of the book, it wouldn’t have been so jarring to the reader. But once again, this complaint is coming from a middle-aged man who doesn’t care much for fashion. This complaint will probably not come from the intended audience due to the fact that this might be something that they care about more. After I got into the story, this small distraction didn’t bother me anymore, and I lost myself in the adventure that Megan Linski had created.

For the most part, if you are woman, no matter your age, you will love the story that Megan Linski has created. Even if you are not a woman, there is still a lot that you can get out of this story. I was surprised at myself at how much I enjoyed it. It has the potential to become a modern day young adult classic, one that many people will talk about for years to come.

Scepter by Scott L. Collins

I have always enjoyed a good fantasy series, but have found only one series that can come close to comparing itself to J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and that is George R.R. Martin’s Song of Fire and Ice. Apparently, you need to abbreviate your middle name and make sure that it begins with an “R” if you want to belong to this elite group of writers. Scott L. Collins hoped to make it to this group with the addition of his Scepter novel. He even abbreviated his middle name in order to invoke the spirit of Tolkien and Martin, but he made the mistake of using the letter “L” instead of “R”. Still I would give the first installment of this series three and a half stars out of five.

Let me start by making one thing clear; writing a fantasy series is always a hard thing to do, and the first installment of one always seems to drag a little bit. The author has to spend those pages creating the exposition for the story, and there is a lot of it to create in order to have an engaging fantasy story. The writer has to create the world so the reader can see it. He has to establish the rules of this world, and explain its history up to the point where the hero is introduced to the story. If he does not do this then the story falls flat with two-dimensional characters that nobody will care about. Because of this, the first installment of any fantasy series tends to drag a little bit. If you don’t believe me, go read The Fellowship of the Ring again and notice that it takes Tolkien a good 150 pages before the story even gets started. Even after that moment, the story falls into ruts where nothing seems to happen except for Tolkien describing the world around you so you can understand its landscape and its history. Even though it is slow to read, it is also the thing that makes the story so engaging because the reader feels a part of Middle Earth.

With all of this in mind, Scott L. Collins does take the time to create the history of his world. A scepter was gifted to a kingdom by the fairies to insure peace and tranquility among its people. At the head of the scepter there were four jewels that represented the four corners of the kingdom, but King Argyle removed the four stones from the artifact and threw the scepter into the river never to be seen again. War soon started and King Argyle collected people to work as slaves in his mines. Existence was terrible and even a terrible disease took over the land. If infected with it, a person could die, but if they survived they were gifted with powers. Most of these powers were pretty useless like being able to see really far away or super sensitive hearing, but every once in awhile, the person gained super powers. This happened to two brothers whose parents were taken away to work in the mines. Daniel was given the power of super speed, and Aidan received the ability to influence animals and even turn into ones that he shared water with. On Daniel’s fourteenth birthday, Argyle’s men showed up at Daniel and Aidan’s home to take away the older brother to work in the mines. This is when the real story starts as the brothers decide to fight back.

The story in itself is inventive, and I really enjoyed the rules that Scott L. Collins created with his world. The action scenes were also really fun, even though the bad guys that the group fought were two-dimensional. It brought up images of the old G.I.Joe show where the faceless army of Cobra shot aimlessly at the heroes while G.I.Joe could take out these identical drones with ease. A great enemy that the reader can connect with is a plus with any adventure series, and I don’t feel the enemy here. They turn out to be faceless robots that I have no passion for and seem to be placed in the story to give the heroes something to fight. Argyle might turn into that villain eventually, but once again I was reading the exposition of the story and was never really given the opportunity to meet him.

I also was never able to see the world that the heroes were traveling in. I think the world is just as important for any fantasy series. It has to become a character in of itself, and I could never see the landscape and how the world played out in a strategic fashion. I would have liked to have visualized this a little more.

A lot of time was also spent with the characters doing nothing but nursing injuries. I can see the importance of doing this in real life, but I never found this to be very engaging unless the injury that they are nursing is something huge and moves the story forward. There are many moments in this story that seemed to be placed there for filler and didn’t seem to have much to do with the overall story. I could be wrong about that though because it is a bigger story and these small details that I think are unimportant now could come back later to be something bigger.

For the most part, the story was entertaining and the history that Scott L. Collins has created makes me want to continue on with the series. The problems I had with the story were minor compared to the overall enjoyment of the story and I can see the story getting more exciting as it progresses. Now that I have made it through the exposition and the story can start to be told, I will continue to follow the adventures of Daniel and Aidan to see where they will eventually take me.

The Riddle of Prague by Laura DeBruce

Being a world traveler, I was instantly drawn to this book. Not only did the title include one of my favorite cities in the world, but it also promised a mystery with international intrigue. Opening the pages of the book, did not leave me disappointed either. Overall I would give the story four and half stars out of five.

The story follows a young lady, Hana Silna, as she travels by herself to Prague to claim a home she has just recently discovered was in her family before the Communists took over. The government of the Czech Republic has been trying to return these house back to their rightful owners, but it takes time due to the fact that many of the records are either lost or very old. Hana would love to come back and claim this family landmark with her mother, but due to a rare disease that has hospitalized her mom, Hana is forced to do this on her own, or so she thinks. The heroine soon finds herself in the middle of an international mystery that involves Americans, Russians, ancient royalty, and gypsies as tries to find Edward Kelley’s buried flask. This is no ordinary flask, but contains a powerful potion that gives certain imbibers of its precious liquid eternal life. Some people want to use the flask for good, whereas others want to use it for their own selfish gain. The problem is Hana can’t figure out which one is which as she looks for help in unraveling the Riddle of Prague.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. From the flight over to Prague to the very end, Laura DeBruce left the reader guessing as to what exactly was going on and who Hana could trust in her endeavors. My favorite part was she set in one of the most amazing cities this world has to offer. The location become a character in itself as you are transported to some of the more iconic locations that Prague has to offer. The history it delves into focuses on the Bohemian nationals and their interaction with the gypsy culture. There are a lot of characters to follow and sometimes I got confused as to who was who, but this also added to the mystery because it left you wondering who was the good guy and who was the bad guy. The slight elements of fantasy that Laura DeBruce intertwined with her story were subtle which added to the charm of the ancient city rather than try to include this element to make the story fit around it. A love triangle also was not overdone so as to turn off male readers, but felt natural in its design. Overall, the biggest problem with the novel was the use of the Czech. Not many people know this seldom used language, and Laura DeBruce could have given the reader more insight earlier on as to what the character were saying, but that is such a minor problem in an otherwise fantastic story. The mention of another of my favorite cities of the world, Dubrovnik, made me excited for a sequel to this book even though it looks like she might be holding off the use of this place until the finale. I still look forward to the second book, and highly recommend that you get started on this series while Laura DeBruce works on its next installment.

Welcome

I guess you are here because you have discovered one of my books and enjoyed it enough to find out more about the author, me. Either that or you’re a potential employer who is investigating me to see if I would be a good fit for your organization. In which case, surprise, I write books as well as teach. Some might look at that as a bad thing, and if so, please explain to me how.

For whoever finds my site, I want to welcome you, and also allow you the opportunity to follow me on a regular basis. Anybody is welcome as long as you keep your posts appropriate, and respect the other followers to this site. As long as everybody follows those two simple rules, I won’t have to kick anybody off. Let the friendly banter begin.

I am hoping to create an interactive site that everybody can enjoy. Of course, I will keep you up to date on the latest writings coming out of my head, and I will also let you know when and where I will be in the world, so someday you might be able to meet me in person. Most people regret that decision, but who knows, maybe you’ll be in the minority.

I will also tell you about my world-wide travels as this is something I do on a regular basis. I’ll show you pictures from places I have been (this one is from Dubrovnik, better known to fans of The Song of Ice and Fire as King’s Landing), and tell you the exciting stories that happen to me along the way. You are also welcome to ask me any questions you may have about the place I have been, and I will try to answer them in a timely manner.

I know it all sounds amazing, and I can see you wondering why you haven’t been a part of this fantastic experience so far, but let me tell you about the most exciting part of following this site – the interactive part. You were probably wondering when I would get to that part I had promised you earlier. Well, I plan to create a list every month, and I want you to participate in its formation. I do love countdowns, but I am always disappointed in them. So I have decided to take matters into my own hands. You will be able to post your top ten of each monthly list and at the end of each month, I will comprise the total list to give you the countdown for that subject. Look for each new subject on the first day of each month, and the final list of the previous month by the fifteenth.

Otherwise, it is very nice to have you a part of this experience, and I look forward to all of our future posts together.