I’m talkin’ about that ONE book which increased your appetite to a feeding frenzy for becoming a voracious reader without let up. For me, my no-turning-back moment, except for turning back the pages to read that ONE again and again, occurred in third grade. A nine-year-old so smitten with 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' by L. Frank Baum, I signed it out from the school library several weeks in a row.

Years later, life imitated art for conveying the central themes in Baum’s classic, when I composed “Mr. Wizardo,” a Contemporary novella off the beaten path of the yellow brick road. This novella of 18,535 words is part of an anthology comprised of adult fairy tales, 'Once Upon a Fabulous Time,' co-authored with fellow Indie Fabs: Aliya DalRae, R.M. Gauthier, JB Richards, Lyra Shanti, and Joanne Van Leerdam.

The anthology was recently chosen an “Official Selection” for the category of “short story collection” in the 2018 New Apple Summer eBook Awards for Excellence in Independent Publishing. As we Fabs say, “Huzzah!”

Ironically, I’m not a reading fan of fantasy per se, preferring books in the genres of Literary Fiction, Dark Fiction, Contemporary, True Crime, Detective Stories, and Mystery. Yet, there’s no mistaking the impact of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' through its powerful and pervasive themes which smack of realism:

Duplicity. Illusion. Individuation. Self-Realization. Female Empowerment. Enlightenment.

There’s no place like the home one makes between the pages of an engrossing book.

*Name that ONE book which defined your reading experience and had a profound effect on your life.