The Papo Lady
Filha the Terra
by
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Adreano was a thirteen-year-old boy, who lived in a fantasy world. He tried to do everything that his mother expected of him to the best of his ability. Whatever free time he had was consumed in his secret project. At times he wished that his mother could have given him a brother or sister, it was not easy for him to be a only child. His mother was too concerned with everything he did, and he did not always have time to explain to her about his daily doings. His project was the Papo Lady, who had been part of his world since he could remember his first thoughts as child. Grandpa was alive then, and Adreano remembered cold nights by the fire, with grandpa telling tales of the Papo Lady over and over again. To Adreano they were no tales; the Papo Lady was real, as real as the things she did. Grandpa remembered her, and his father before him remembered her. She came to town every ten years. The last time she came, Adreano was too young to remember her, but through grandpa's stories, he had some vivid memories of what had happened then. Grandpa never forgot a detail, and Adreano wanted to be sure that he would keep the good quality of grandpa's stories engraved in his mind. Some day he would have a chance to find out for himself without a doubt that grandpa's stories were really true. In Frederico entertainment for a boy of his age was a movie theater, which Adreano enjoyed as often as money and time allowed. Once a year a circus came to town, and everybody kids and parents, waited for the circus with great excitement. Then there was one more occasion. The Seventh of September Brazilian Independence Day, Adreano participated in every year, but he could not understand why they made such a fuss over it. Of course, he had his own reason for feeling this way, but he kept it to himself. Independence Day, the people would lined up on the sidewalks while school children paraded through the streets in their blue and white uniforms. The parade over, the people would gather at the park in front of the church. Adreano knew by heart, step by step what was going to happen. A teacher behind the microphone would ramble in a long speech on how the people should be grateful for those heroes of the past that gave them freedom. Some of the students stood tall and proud, reciting saying of poets from the past. Finally, after many grateful speeches, they closed the celebration with everyone singing the Brazilian national anthem. Adreano was always relieved when everything was over; he never understood why the Papo Lady, who was real and did come back every ten years was hardly acknowledged by people.
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About the Book
This is a journey of story telling. Once you begin to read you will feel impelled to continue. The Papo Lady is about belief and how we perceive our beliefs and what we make out of them. In the end, they will free us or enslave us. The story is set in a small town in the south of Brazil. I wanted to capture a naive mentality not spoiled by the media, as is the world we live in today. This is something I grew up with; simple people living everyday lives who find themselves faced with extraordinary situations that they don't really care to understand. A thirteen year-old-boy takes it upon himself to find out the truth. It is thrilling and suspenseful, his journey to find the truth. He comes out of it a changed boy and so are those who went along. My editor commented, "I enjoyed your plot very much. You manage to keep the reader's interest sparked as to what will finally happen to all your characters. I had the feeling that your story was primarily about people, and you kept it a story of people in most interesting narrative style."
About the Author
I am a native of Brazil, and I grew up there, but most of my education was completed here in the United States. I write about life in its bare essence, always attempting to grasp hidden meaning of our existence. I am enchanted with life and its colors, how this complex being survives the unthinkable and continues to thrive, always having a story to tell. I have already published a poem book called A Quest of Existence, which is out of print right now but soon to be published again. I have received two honorable mentions from the World of Poetry and The New American Poetry. I am married with three children and two grandchildren Shayla and Cameron who are the apples of my eyes.