Symbolia
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
Just then a gorgeous red and
purple butterfly landed on a blossom right in front of Luke and Lucy. And for a
moment Lucy forgot that she and her brother were hiding and eavesdropping on a
native tribe, and she let out a little “O-o-o-o-oh” of surprise at the
beautiful sight.
“Quiet, Lucy!” hissed Luke,
but it was too late. A flurry of thousands of brilliant butterflies rose from
the bushes surrounding the children. Several tribal men jumped up from the
circle, rushed out of the hut, and swiftly grabbed the hiding children. Lucy
and Luke were dragged, kicking and screaming, into the center of the circle
inside the large, round hut. Now Luke and Lucy could see the native people
clearly. All the men wore small red loin cloths. Some had elaborate feathered
ornaments attached to a corded band on their upper arm. Most of the women wore
short red grass skirts and brightly colored feathers in their ears. Some had
painted faces; some did not.
“Spies!” said the tallest of
the men who had captured them. “Hiding behind the bush and listening to our
council! They must be sent by the Giants!”
Luke and Lucy struggled to
get away but to no avail. The warriors holding them were far stronger than they
were, and soon their hands and feet were tied with strong vines. “Who are you?”
asked Grandmother DawnWalker, peering hard at the children. “Where do you come
from and why are you here?”
Lucy was pretty scared at
this point. These natives looked innocent enough a few minutes ago, but now
they were all looking at her and Luke in a really fierce way. Then she heard Luke saying, “It’s not my
fault. It was all Lucy’s idea. Morningstar told us not to leave the Sacred
Path, and I didn’t want to do it. It’s all Lucy’s fault!”
“Okay,” said Lucy to the
native elder, “so it was my idea. I admit it. I was curious. That’s why we were
listening to your meeting. But we’re not spies,
and we don’t know any giants! We came here from another world,
and we have to Walk the Wheel all the way around Symbolia so we can get back
Home.”
Grandmother DawnWalker
peered even harder at the children, her eyes narrowing as she heard what they
were saying. “Two children from another world, “ she mused, “Walking the Sacred
Wheel?” Everyone in the circle was silent as Grandmother DawnWalker continued,
“There’s an ancient rhyme about this.”
“What does it say,
Grandmother?” asked the circle, almost in unison.
The
elder paused thoughtfully. “It’s a prophecy song,” she began. “My mother used
to sing it to me as she swung me to sleep in my hammock.” DawnWalker rolled her
eyes, as people sometimes do when they’re trying to remember something from a
long time ago. The circle was quiet. Lucy and Luke no longer struggled to free
themselves from the vines that bound them. Finally Grandmother DawnWalker
continued. “I have it now:
‘When giants come to MotherLung
and crush the sacred trees,
Two children from another world
may bring them to their knees.
If they can Walk the Sacred Wheel
and learn from all they meet,
Our ancient Mother Symbolia
will guide their dusty feet.
Give them fire and give them food
and help them on their way.
They come to save Symbolia
and bring a brighter day.’”
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
Symbolia is a humorous and inspiring story of a brother and sister from our world who journey to the magical world of Symbolia, where they find that they must follow the Sacred Path to get back Home. Along the way they are captured by the Abbo tribe in the MotherLung Rainforest, and later encounter the diapered dictators at the Gulf of Simonsez. Their Path leads them into Krule City, then on to adventures with the Neggies in the Deep Depression and into Shadow’s Underground Maze to dig for the Gold of Self-Understanding. It's a fun adventure story for children of all ages, a spiritual allegory for adults with ears to hear, and a socio-political satire for those with eyes to see.
Comments from readers:
“The
main thing I liked was all the adventures the two children, Luke and
Lucy, went
on. Each place taught them a lesson. When they were together, they
worked as
one. Another thing is it had a lot to do with the real world, like for
instance
Giant Aity Entee (AT&T). There was a great big message, like the
River of
Lyf and all the pollution, or the Morstuffians worshipping at the
Temple of the
Mighty Maul. It’s like a mirror of our own world, with our troops in
Iraq,
looking for oil. But in the story the Giants are taking the oil out of
the
MotherLung Rainforest. All I can say is that I loved it! Thank you."
~Jared Water, Age 11
“I
really, really liked Symbolia and
wanted to hear it all after the first chapter.”
~Quinna Water, Age 9
~Solen Willare, Age 12
About the Author
Sylvia Anderson is a student of consciousness and a paradigm pioneer. After a powerful spiritual experience in the mid-1960’s and four decades spent following her ideals through various spiritual and communal experiments as a single mother. Wherever she lived, she always found time and energy to spend time with whatever children were around, feeding them, teaching them, playing with them, and reading to them.
She was especially inspired by The Narnia Chronicles by C. S. Lewis and started writing a book for her own children that would be both an exciting adventure for kids of all ages, and also a fun, mind-expanding experience for adults. She carried that in-process manuscript around with her through various alternative venues, working on it along the way, and reading it to whatever kid-friends she was sharing life with at the time.
Sylvia is the genetic mother of two and grandmother of four, as well as the spiritual grandmother to a larger, extended family. She is also the author of another children’s book, The Story of Little OM, available here soon, and is working on Symbolia Too, as well as her book of memories, called EdgeWalker Woman. She has now cycled the sun seventy-six times and considers Symbolia, along with her other writings, to be a debriefing of what she has learned in this lifetime that is worthy of being passed on to future generations.