A French prisoner struggles to survive in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II. A delinquent youth is obsessed with a cemetery ghost. Good and evil fight over the soul of a zombie. A grandmother thought to suffer from mental illness predicts the future. Car trouble leads to an encounter with an angel. A chief must calm a volcano before it destroys his village. A human tries to dissuade elves and dwarves from going to war. A bride confronts deception in an effort to reunite with her bridegroom. A boy encounters superhuman army ants that escape from a military laboratory and move into his bedroom closet.
These stories and more are featured in Real Dreams: Thirty Years of Short Stories, a collection of 15 short stories I wrote between 1981 and 2011.
Each story reflects changes in my writing style and interests over time. I wrote the earliest story, How Little Big Chief Calmed the Mountain, in 1981 at the age of ten, and the latest, Evil | Live, thirty years later. The stories are grouped by genre to help the reader identify each style. They feature some common themes, including hope, dreams, light, darkness, perseverance, and spirituality, wrapped up in some novel ideas. Enjoy these diverse and timeless works three decades in the making.
Story Synopses
Vichy (1990) tells the story of Jean-Marie Daubert, a spy for the French Resistance during World War II who was captured and sent to Gross-Rosen concentration camp in Poland (then Silesia). It’s a sobering story of love and loss told through letters from Daubert to his wife Corinne.
The Ballick Eye (1988) is a ghost story about a delinquent youth sent by his parents to live with an aunt who is determined to straighten him out. Can a cemetery ghost turn his life around?
Evil | Live (2011) is a twist on the traditional horror story. Good and evil engage in an epic struggle for the soul of a zombie.
The Grandma Conspiracy (2004) tells the story of an elderly woman with the ability to predict the future whose family believes she suffers from mental illness. The story is narrated by one of her grandchildren who struggles to help her.
Room G-13 (1993) is a horror story with a twist. Strange sounds emanate from the maintenance man’s room at a college dormitory, leading one student to investigate what’s really going happening there.
The Factory Worker in the Corner Office (2007) is an allegory about a white-collar worker who deals with a difficult boss.
Saved by Hope (1988) is a true story based on an encounter I had with an angel during the summer of 1987.
Mysterius, Lord of the Unknown (1987) tells the tale of the Greek god of the unknown. The ancient Greeks dedicated some temple altars to an unknown god. Mysterius is an interpretation of this deity.
How Little Big Chief Calmed the Mountain (1981) is an allegory inspired by the May 1981 eruption of Mt. St. Helens. A village leader must appease an angry volcano before it erupts and destroys his village.
The Emissary’s Battle (2005) is a story set in a fantasy world. A human envoy must use diplomacy to diffuse a conflict between elves and dwarves before it leads to war.
Kirche and the Mirror (1992) is a religious allegory. On the day her bridegroom returns, the bride must confront deception and illusions before reuniting with him.
Suits (1989) is a science fiction short with an ironic twist. A child dreams of an alien invasion.
Verda (1997) ponders the existence of a second moon orbiting Earth capable of sustaining life and humanity’s efforts to colonize it. The story explores themes ranging from space exploration to environmental preservation.
G.I. Ants (1983) is a story about a boy’s encounter with a group of superhuman army ants who escape from a military laboratory and move into his closet.
High Flying Deutschman (1988) tells the story of a German exchange student’s quest to learn baseball and join a championship high school team.
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More About Real Dreams
世界冒険シリーズ第一弾『Kilimanjaro: One Man’s Quest to Go Over the Hill』には、私自身がアフリカ最高峰キリマンジャロへ挑戦した記録が記されています。当事40歳だった私は、中年の危機に直面していました。そこで、生活を一新するためにキリマンジャロへの挑戦を決意しました。本書は中年になった私が挑戦したキリマンジャロ制覇までの道のりとその他の様々な試練を乗り越えた現実の記録です。当事、私は外交官としての仕事に行き詰まり、迷いとストレスを感じる日々を過ごしていました。そして2010年、新しい生活へ向かって飛び立つために、アフリカ最高峰であるキリマンジャロに挑戦することを決心しました。中年になってから、長年勤めた外交官を辞めて自分の夢を追いかけることには大きなためらいがあります。私にとっては巨大な挑戦であるキリマンジャロを制覇することができたら、著作業という自分の夢に向かって進んでいく不屈の精神を養えるに違いない。私はそう信じていました。2010の終わりに大いなる希望を抱いてスタートした登山ですが、すぐにキリマンジャロへ登ることがいかに困難であるかという現実に直面しました。「全ての人のエベレスト」として知られているこの山の山頂までの道のりは、これまで私が乗り越えてきた至難と比べ物にならないほど、想像を絶する試練でした。頂上に達するどころか、生き延びるために奮闘しなくてはならなかったのです。精神的かつ肉体的な強靭さを必要とするキリマンジャロ登山は、私の人生の最大の挑戦でした。この記録は、中年になったと感じ、困難に直面することがあっても生活を変える勇気が必要な人たちに是非読んでいただきたいと思っています。また、世界的に高い山々に登山しようと考えているアマチュア登山家達の参考にもなるはずです。キリマンジャロ登山への計画をじっくりと練ってから挑戦した私自身の考察やアドバイスが一杯詰っている本書は、キリマンジャロに登ろうと考えている読者に実行に踏み出す勇気を与え、様々な困難を乗り越えて頂上に達する助けになるでしょう。『Kilimanjaro: One Man’s Quest to Go Over the Hill』は2012年グローバル電子書籍賞佳作賞を受賞しました。私自身が登った登山路の写真も60枚以上掲載されています。 
World Adventurers 