 |
The Fractured Publisher A Humorous Gallery of Press Releases |
 |
||
| Back Issues Staff Submissions Disclaimer | ||||
|
Current Articles:
|
THE SECRET
Hi, Reader-of-this-Article. Please be quiet. I want to share a secret with you. My name is Elden. I’m the dolphin who serves as the main character’s guide in the children’s fantasy adventure novel, THE FISHERMAN’S SON, and in its sequel entitled THE CITY OF THE GOLDEN SUN, by Marilyn Peake. The main character is Wiley O’Mara, a twelve-year-old boy. He’s an incredible hero. Oh, no. Here he comes. Shhh. I don’t want him to hear about this secret. Wiley walked with six other boys from the ancient city under the ocean to the forest. The boys all wore tunics drenched in seawater. As the cooling liquid fell in steady drops from his garment onto his feet, Wiley became aware of the hard solidity of earth beneath him. He was back on ground, heading toward his village. The boys entered the forest. The world cooled around them. Shafts of sunlight cut through the tall, thick, green canopy overhead. Insects buzzed. Birds sang and called out. A white rabbit darted into a splash of sunlight illuminating the thin dirt path ahead. He looked at the boys quizzically, wrinkled his nose, then darted off through the thick underbrush. Wiley took a deep breath. “Do you smell that, Neil? That’s the wonderful scent of pine trees.” At that moment, the wind rustled through the canopy and shook a perfume mix of pine and aromatic flower into the air. Salty tears ran down Neil’s face. At six years old, Neil was the youngest of the boys. His soft, golden, curly hair bobbed up and down as he walked. Wiley rubbed his hand on the top of Neil’s head. “Neil, do you know what we’ll probably find at my house?” Neil looked briefly at Wiley with glistening hazel eyes. “What?” “Strawberry jam and cake! Remember those?” Neil smiled briefly. “That’s good.” Reader-of-this-Article, over here, in the ocean, it’s me again - Elden! Quick, while Wiley’s distracted by Neil. Here’s what I wanted to tell you about Wiley. See how good and kind he is. Oh no, I think he heard me. Shhh. Not a word. The boys trekked on for some time. Eventually, they reached that part in the forest near Wiley’s home that opens up to the sky. The place where the large, oval lake with the mirror surface is surrounded by trees. Clouds moved swiftly across a pale blue sky. White cotton reflections danced across the oval lake, huge tufts of cotton used by an invisible giant to clean her oval mirror. Wiley looked up quickly at the sound of splashing water. Rings spread outward from a point near shore. Suddenly, the calm serenity of the lake was pushed aside as a large, fat, purple fish with black eyes jumped from the water, then returned to its watery home. Wiley pointed. “I know that fish! I’ve seen him before!” As Wiley pointed, a woman shimmered into view, floating above the lake. “Lucinda!” The woman was small, not quite five feet tall. She had long golden hair that cascaded to her waist and green crystal eyes. She wore a light purple dress that fell to her ankles with a pure white sash tied around her waist. In her right hand, she held a golden staff decorated with gemstones. She wore matching golden slippers, also sprinkled with gems. “Hi, Wiley. Hi, boys. How are you?” The boys stared. Neil’s mouth had dropped open. Reader-of-this-Article, I guess you’ll have to see the surprise for yourself. I’ve got to go join Lucinda. Don’t go away. You’ll be a part of the surprise! As the boys stared and Wiley smiled, a dolphin popped out of the lake. Water droplets spun around him, dancing with tiny rainbows. Wiley’s brown eyes opened wide. “Elden! Wait, how can you be here? How did you get here from the ocean?” Elden’s eyes twinkled. “It’s magic. I wouldn’t miss this for the world!” Suddenly, the lake and all of the land around the lake filled with animals. The white rabbit hopped over to the shore. Birds congregated in the trees nearby, singing strong, happy songs. Fish of many colors jumped in and out of the water like brightly colored threads embroidering cloth. Lucinda and Elden studied the lake. A white beluga whale breached the surface. “Surprise!” Lucinda, Elden, and Beluga shouted in unison, “Surprise, Wiley!” Reader-of-this-Article, it was a surprise party for Wiley! He worked so hard in THE FISHERMAN’S SON and in THE CITY OF THE GOLDEN SUN, we had to say thank you! He will have a very hard time in the final book of THE FISHERMAN’S SON trilogy. We just had to let him stop, take a break, and enjoy himself. After all, he’s only twelve years old! Well, I must get back to the party. Will you join us for some cake and strawberry jam? We’d love to have you!
|
|||
|
© Copyright 2004 The Fractured Publisher |
||||
