The Road to Nirvana

The Road to Nirvana is a coming-of-age story told through the now ancient eyes of Theodore Herald. The manuscript shares a plethora of life-lessons told through a series of engagingly charming vignettes intended to sweep the reader, gently at first, into the raging torrent of modern history to its inevitable, though dramatic conclusion. Embedded comfortably alongside this story is a viewpoint of appalling viciousness, deceit, and corruption as told by Jimmy DeMarco and his hoodlum in training, The Count. Consigned to the dustbin of history the town of Glory fights desperately for survival. Evil paralyzes the populace. Set in the fictional 1950s town of Glory, Teds steady maturation is vastly accelerated when a series of brutal murders force him to choose between a trusted confidant and mentor or the status-quo and the rampant racial prejudice that dominates the town. The victims are discovered partially dismembered in shallow graves near his friends home by a survey crew for an improved road that links Glory with the neighboring town of Nirvana. This is a cautionary tale that reminds us that the folly of youth may come back to haunt us. It invokes the boyhood adventure of Tom Sawyer with the courtroom drama of Earl Stanley Gardner while recalling a simpler time. It also recounts the ugliness of society before the term politically correct was a part of our daily lexicon. Theodore Herald, who is at best a devil-may-care youth and at worst a juvenile delinquent, is suddenly thrust into the harsh spotlight of notoriety when he testifies on behalf of his friend. The metamorphosis from gleeful purveyor of skullduggery to responsible adult is like flipping a light switch. Unfortunately, Teds credibility is called into question when his colorful past is revealed. Lives hang in the balance as a deliciously twisted ending unfolds.