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A Man For All Seasons
Author Karina McRoberts brings a unique style of storytelling in her book A Man For All Seasons. This fascinating book is a beautiful work of science fiction and includes an enthralling account of Vidor’s mission to conserve nature from those who want to destroy it for their own benefit. Vidor and his two animal friends work in sync to make a meaningful contribution to saving nature and nature’s creations.
McRoberts is persuasive in her writing. She leads the book in a unique setting with extraordinary characters; for example, a raven who talks and thinks like a human and understands climate change is an interesting character. As a reader, one can appreciate the clarity she presents with her storytelling – the characters’ personalities, how they communicate, the background, and other small details that bring them to life. A Man For All Seasons is filled with relatable dialogue between characters, which adds appeal to readers, allowing them to fall in love with the plot and the setting. Parts of this captivating novel are reminiscent of other sci-fi movies and Disney animated films that are well known in pop culture.
One notable thing about this novel is the length of the chapters. McRoberts keeps the chapters short and sweet. One can move to the next chapter with a breeze and finish the book in one sitting. Overall a quick read and challenging to put down.
The friendship between Vidor and Clarissa is precious, and so are the animal characters. In Vidor’s plan to save nature from destruction at the hands of humanity, he also makes an effort to give dying people dignified death, which is so heart-touching. There are good guys and bad guys in this book, and the ending is justified. This book will appeal to readers across genres with a not-so-usual plot and a fantastic cast of characters.
Pages: 121 | ASIN : B09QVTXS77
Nature Is Imploring Us
Ursamer: A Treasury of Feel-Good Stories Book 2 follows a young Inuit girl who tries to find someone that will understand her message about global warming. What was the inspiration for your stories?
Ursamer – the name came into my head. Sound is very important to me as a musician, but also as a writer. Translated, Ursa and Mer mean Bear and Sea. So, I thought I would write about polar bears and what is happening to them. I also wanted to write about climate change from a different slant. Everyone talks about the physical changes to the ice caps, but not so much how this is affecting those who live there.
Ursamer encounters very different people each time she arrives in a different place, how did you decide on where she would appear?
I tried to imagine what it would be like from her perspective and the difficulties she would have in conversing with the people she met. They would be so culturally removed from her. I wanted to show how different people are affected in different ways, but that we’re all in the world together and things are not looking rosy. Someone old and homeless in New York City (Ursamer can’t see why an elder is not treated with respect), famine-stricken refugees in Africa (they are desperate to the point of lost humanity), and me-dominated rich shoppers in a giant mall – the on-demand types. (It’s all about them, and they are totally clueless about what’s going on in the real world, which is, in essence, their world too.)
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
That nature is imploring us to turn ourselves around. The main thing for me is that humanity STILL doesn’t get it. The global pandemic is something that has never happened before. (Yes, others have, but they go away, at least for a while. I have a PhD in disease ecology, so I know what I’m talking about here). This virus is different – it’s not going away.
But, we have not learned from it. This is nature shouting a HUGE wake-up call. We’re a small step ahead with vaccines, but then we just keep going with our self-centred agenda – over-populating, over-consuming, polluting, degrading, destroying…
The ”On Demand” species. Uggh.
Listening is also a central theme of this story. The vast majority of people do not listen. Poor communication is a huge problem.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
Well, a few. A comedy/social justice novel – it should be out by the end of the year.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Where has she come from? What is her story? She has something very important to say, but no one is listening!
A sweet, poignant tale about climate change, Ursamer is ideal for children ages 8 and older.
Ursamer
There is something wrong with the world, and there has been for many years. A change is taking place, and, if left unchecked, it will forever alter the world as we know it. Something else strange is happening, and none of those who encounter this anomaly can explain it. A unique young girl and her stunning sled dog appear in random places, and, as suddenly as they show up, they are gone. They have, but one goal in mind and only have a short time in which to accomplish it.
Karina McRoberts, author of Ursamer: A Treasury of Feel-Good Stories Book 2, has delivered a socially-conscious book designed to build a more solid understanding of global warming and its most certain impact on the environment. But, more importantly, McRoberts’s tale illustrates how challenging it is for those struggling to raise awareness to successfully make their point to society.
This beautifully written short story is constructed so that young readers will easily be able to follow the story and the message the author is trying to convey. Each short chapter takes readers to a different location with Ursamer and her dog Nuga. The frustration she feels is apparent, and as her block of ice melts, her hope diminishes as well. Topics of language barriers, misunderstandings, and ignorance are presented alongside the message of climate change. However, this educational story is not all sad. There are moments of joy and understanding, and showing kindness and compassion still exists.
Ursamer: A Treasury of Feel-Good Stories Book 2 is a thought-provoking short story for children between ages eight and twelve, ideal for older elementary and middle-grade students. While the book’s topic is one that younger readers can and should begin to explore, it would make for excellent guided reading or as a teacher-led book due to the vocabulary and writing style. This is also the perfect story to introduce the topic of climate change to younger students.
Pages: 33 | ASIN : B09J1VN6N9
Treasury of Feel-Good Stories
Dargo: Eco Hero follows a lonely young man as he rises from despair in his going-nowhere-fast job to his new position as hero for the environment. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
This came from many sources. Part from a dream (the character’s first name and the bone thing). Part from my childhood adoration of my older brother. Part from a recent visit to Northern California, where I was shocked by mile after mile of freeway with memorials to fallen highway patrol officers, many with Hispanic names (hence Fernandez). Part from my own experience of being bullied in the workplace. Part from my ongoing love affair with music. Part from my life-long love of nature. Part by the First Nations American elder who saved his people from annihilation due to his translatory skills and eloquence of speech. Part from the ordinary cold-war Russian soldier who did NOT hit the red button to signal incoming nuclear attack (otherwise, we would not be having this conversation, I suspect). All this reminded me of what just one person can do, even though they may feel at the end of their tether.
Dargo is an intriguing and well developed character. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
There are plenty of people who don’t fit into everyday society. So many have suffered as a result, and of course still do. I wanted to say that no matter how hard things get, be exactly who you are.
And please BE. Don’t give up. Things will turn around. Hang in there. There may be 7.5 billion people and counting in this world, and the pressure to conform to the idealised ‘thing’ is greater than ever, but we need YOU! As Samara Jones learns in The Girl with Ten Diamonds, my companion novella to Dargo, “You can’t clone a soul”.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
This disconnect between humanity and nature, and how that problem might be addressed. Because it absolutely must be! You can’t save it if you don’t love it, and you can’t love it if you don’t know it.
Also, personal redemption. So very, very important in this increasingly crowded and competitive world. I wonder how many fell through the cracks-of-no-return just today…
So, as Dargo discovers, he begins by lifting spirits, and that includes his own.
I really hope this book lifts readers’ spirits in these very tough times we find ourselves in. Especially important for those trying to save the Earth. It’s a tough gig, and I hope Dargo can provide a little solidarity and joy.
Find nature and you will find yourself — worked for me!
Thanks for reading.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
Kahnilla the Dragon. She will be the 6th instalment in this Treasury of Feel-Good Stories. This series follows the style of Dargo – examination of serious, topical issues through humorous story-telling.
The series has stories for all ages. Kahnilla is another adult fairy-tale. It deals with hate and its cost, and how young people and others learn to hate by following wrong information. The story focusses on the importance of true listening, thinking for oneself, and getting one’s facts from reliable sources. We really need to, more than ever!
Kahnilla is in production now, and will hopefully be out early next year.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
A lonely young man suffers a massive defeat. When all is lost, he meets a fiery fortune-teller who pleads with him to save her.
Can he re-invent himself as a hero?
A light-hearted but poignant little story, Dargo is humorous and heart-warming; a fairy-tale for adults.
You can also read this to your children who care about Earth. And, if they don’t, Dargo will help them to do so!
An enjoyable timely tale that will appeal to the magic in all of us.
Illustrations
Dargo
![Dargo: Eco Hero! (Treasury of Feel-Good Stories) by [Karina McRoberts]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/510jroDCXzL._SY346_.jpg)
Poor Dargo Fernandez. He doesn’t want much out of life. In fact, he really wants nothing more than to belong. At the rate he is going, he won’t even accomplish that much. His life is more of an existence than anything–he has no social life to speak of. When Dargo comes face to face with the fact that even his meager position in the company is in jeopardy, he heads for home with his heart on his sleeve. Wondering how he will be able to pay his bills, Dargo finds himself creating a laundry list of new worries on his journey home. Before he can even begin to resolve his issues, he is quite literally swept away to face a whole new challenge
Dargo: Eco Hero, by Karina McRoberts, follows main character Dargo Fernandez as he rises from the depths of despair in his going-nowhere-fast job to his new position as hero for the environment. McRoberts’s work hits on a few genres but hones in primarily on fantasy. In fact, it gives me the best kind of Wizard of Oz vibes. The author has nailed the same type of warmth as L. Frank Baum but puts her own unique spin on main character Dargo and his band of merry cohorts.
The ecological lessons conveyed in McRoberts’s work are huge ones. She is successful in creating quite an impact with her words and the experiences of her cast of characters. I was especially impressed with the mixture of personification and metaphors found throughout the writing. The imagery she creates leaves readers breathless at times. Her writing is timely and gives voice to the environment in a way no other writer I have seen has been able to do.
Dargo: Eco Hero is a short read, easily digestible in one sitting, it packs an important punch–and one we all need to feel right about now. Protecting and appreciating the earth for the miracle it is tops this author’s list of priorities. Readers looking for a hard dose of truth in their fantasy reads will appreciate McRoberts’s style and character development. I highly recommend Dargo’s story to anyone looking for something different, something fun, and a book that will leave them smiling.
Pages: 85 | ASIN: B083RBML74
