Calek's Tale by Wayne Faust

A boy named Calek lives in the town of Refuge on a quaint island in the northern Great Lakes. Growing up, he constantly heard stories about what happened on the Mainland before he was born, a huge conflagration that engulfed the entire world. All that remained were the Forsaken - drooling, mindless monsters who found their way to the island in boats, killing and maiming like rabid dogs. The people of Refuge fought them off with much loss of life, surviving as the last remnants of humanity and dreaming of the day they will repopulate the Mainland and start the world anew.

Sometimes Calek wonders if all of that really happened. It's what he's always been told, but maybe Hezekiah, the Spiritual Leader who runs things on the island, made the whole thing up. It would be a good way to keep people afraid so they continued to follow his Revelations. But if none of that happened, what about the rows of graves in the Refuge cemetery, all from the same year?

When he's not pondering these mysteries, Calek's mind is filled with visions about the Old World, and how ancient things can be put together in entirely new ways. Because he has a bright, shining gift. His father knows how dangerous that gift could turn out to be. But Calek is just eleven years old and his dreams will not leave him alone...

Calek's Tale is the first book in a new trilogy written by Wayne Faust. He' been a full time performer and songwriter for over 45 years. (waynefaust.com) From writing songs all those years, where you have to say everything you need to say in three verses or less, his prose is tightly-written and gripping. He's had over 50 short stories published in various places around the world, and that talent has richly carried over into the Calek books.

With vivid descriptions of the northern Great Lakes (Faust spent several summers performing on Mackinac Island), richly-drawn characters, and a plot full of flashbacks, mystery, and suspense, this book will keep you listening until the end.