Review:

The Thundergod’s Gold & House Of the Fire Demon

From http://www.lakelandtimes.com

Adventure stories for the young adult
,,by Joyce Laabs--Features Editor

Reading "The Thundergod's Gold & House Of the Fire Demon" by William N. Edwards (Milrose Publications) returned me to the days when I could hardly wait for the next Nancy Drew mystery to be published.

A perfect book for the middle school boy or girl and young adults, the two novellas in the book are filled with adventure as the young people search for hidden treasure.

In The "Thundergod's Gold & House of the Fire Demon," Rick and Teri (brother and sister), and their mother, leave San Francisco and return to Phoenix to escape members of the mob who want to collect a gambling debt. It was their father's debt; and he was killed by the mob trying to collect it. Now they are after them.

They are on their way to Aunt Maudie's home. It was her husband, Smitty, who prospected in the Superstition mountains and claimed he found the Lost Dutchman's Mine and the gold within, but was killed before he could get out more than a few nuggets.

Aunt Maudie is sure the gold is still there; has even found a map, and feels they can find it and solve their problems.

They set out on the Apache Trail which will take them to the Superstition Trail in the mountains, and it is there the adventures begin. I'm not going to give away the story line -- only say that the young readers will be held spellbound as the story advances.

In "House of the Fire Demon," the search for hidden gold is again on. This time the searchers are good friends Mike and Shari.

Mike's father inherits a house in Olema near Mill Valley, Calif., but because of a recent stroke, it is Mike who takes it upon himself to repair the home and make it presentable for sale.

He learns early on that there is something about the house that people won't discuss. On his first visit, he understands why people call it "spooky.' And he learns that former owners, John and Sarah Maloney had been "consumed by fire" in the kitchen.

His task is overwhelming, and one he is not looking forward to as strange, unexplained events keep happening; but it is a necessity as his mother needs the funds from a sale to pay his father's medical bills.

It seems as if every page in the novel deepens the mystery and leads to more adventure, confirming the notion that the house is cursed.

Sheri joins Mike, and together they try to solve the mysteries the house holds and confront the "fire demon."

Edward began writing fiction after he retired as a member of the U.S. Army Air Corps. During his time in service, he served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, earning 33 decorations that include two Distinguished Flying Crosses, a Bronze Star, eight Air Medals and the Joint Services Commendation Medal. This is his third novel.

He is married and lives in the San Francisco Bay area.

The 213-page book sells for $24 and would make the perfect gift for a young person.

Joyce Laabs can be reached at

features@lakelandtimes.com.

The Miracle of EDSA

Kenrick Bobb
For Ambassador Magazine
kbobb@ambassadormagazine.com

When I first picked up The Miracle of EDSA I was a little taken aback by the cover as the picture of the statue of the Virgin Mary was prominently placed on the cover. The book, immediately gave the impression that it was a religious novel, but upon opening the book you are quickly immersed into a world of intrigue, as you travel on a journey featuring cutthroats, killers and high stake espionage.

The novel follows the pains that a mother will go through to find her son that she thought was killed during childbirth.

When Leigh Jackson, (the star of this book) a Philippino-American anti-Marcos activist learns the child that she had thought died at birth is still alive,a grown man living in the Philippines, she returns to her homeland to search for him.

Her quest takes Leigh into hostile guerrilla territory, then into the streets of Manila where her heroic young nephew, who believes prayer can stop tanks, leads an unarmed resistance against President Ferdinand Marcos' military forces. Concerned for his safety, she too becomes engulfed in the People Power demonstrations against Ferdinand Marcos' dictatorial rule. Leigh learns to fight, to survive, and most of all, to believe.

In an exciting and entertaining manner, The Miracle of EDSA brings to light an important historical event that has been ignored by North American educators and religious scholars. "The peaceful overthrow of Marcos' government, and the role played by the Virgin Mary should now become common knowledge to all freedom-loving Americans," said Edwards.

In his thirty-year United States Air Force career, Edwards has often been inspired by heroics, but never so much as when the people of the Philippines stood against Marcos' military forces, with faith in God as their only weapon. "This Historical event was an ideal setting for my new novel, but I needed to know more about these courageous people."

Edwards found the answer in his wife of fourteen years, Mila Esguerra Zulueta. He said he began writing The Miracle of EDSA shortly after his marriage to Mila. Bill and Mila made a trip to the Philippines so Mila could pack her personal belongings. While Mila was sorting through huge files of music, he was left by himself in the home of her sister, Linda Esguerra Alba, who fortunately had a magnificent library.

"I read everything written by late nineteenth and early twentieth century Philippine authors telling of their fight to throw off the yoke of the three hundred-year colonial rule by the Spanish. As an avid life-long student of history, I recognized that American high schools and universities have largely ignored the most profound thoughts and views of intellectual Philippinos on the Spanish-American War," said Edwards.

He continued these readings, and my admiration of the courageous stand by the unarmed People Power rebellion of 1986, caused me to start thinking about highlighting the issue of the Philippinos' struggle for freedom in my novel. Eleven years later, after traveling with Mila throughout the Philippines, researching, writing and polishing one draft manuscript after another, The Miracle of EDSA was published.

Although Edwards calls his novel fictional it speaks to you like a personal account. You could picture him as the long lost American Agent lover of Leigh Jackson as they rediscover love amidst all the disasters and mishaps.

The clear precise manner in Edwards' writing will bring you into the rural life of the Philippines. The view is so realistic that you will feel as if you are right there in the jungle feeling the rain, the growing plots of rice and the pain felt when the star of the book encounters one block after another in finding her lost child.

This is a must read for freedom lovers and for a story of a woman's strength and courage despite all odds.

THE LEBANON (MO) DAILY RECORD
SUNDAY, MARCH 24, 2002
Book Review

'EDSA' offers feel of Philippine Revolution by
Murray J. Darby

"The Miracle of EDSA" by William Newton Edwards. Published by Milrose Publications.

The people of the Philippine Islands have known many hardships and were liberated by Americans twice--once from the colonization of Spain and again from the despotic imperialism of Japan.

Many American heroes were made at Corregidor, Bataan and other hot spots during World War II. But even more Filipinos, known and unknown, labored under the pressures of their heroic actions, their lives often ended in the mud of the rice paddies and jungles by the bullets and bayonets of the invaders.

This book depicts the heroism of some of those Filipinos who struggled to remove the yoke once again, but that of a tyranny of a different sort: the homegrown oppression of an absolute monarch -- President Ferdinand Marcos. This time the bullets and bayonets of death are not from invaders, but from their own people in the Philippine Army and law enforcement, who took their orders from headquarters.

Ferdinand Marcos fought against the Japanese during the war, and afterwards was backed by the U.S. government as one of our strongest allies against communism. He did so much good, which was largely overlooked because of his regime's corruption.But, eventually, the repressive measures taken against the common people became too much to bear, and there was a revolution, which at first was partly violent, but became successful only when its advocates practiced strict non-violence against Marcos' soldiers, even to the extent of sitting in front of armed tanks, singing hymns of praise to God!

In his novel. "The Miracle of EDSA," Colonel Edwards depicts the period leading up to and including the overthrow and departure of Marcos. He does so using actual events and fictional characters. Leigh Jackson is a Filipina-American who is drawn into the guerrilla movement in her search for the child she learns is alive and was not stillborn in childbirth as she had been told by family members. Some of those same family members and their friends use her search for her child as a means to get Leigh to cooperate in their struggle against Marcos.

This sort of betrayal and twisting of realities in order to achieve their goals is rife within the guerrilla movement. There are many factions, much like the warlords of Afghanistan, and loyalties can blur and fade away within them.The depiction in the book of the rural life brought back memories of when I was there in the late 1960's.

While the slums of Manila were the worst I've ever seen, some of the more fortunate homesteaded jungle plots, clearing land and growing rice, building their nipa huts of split bamboo on bamboo stilts, with palm frond roofs. The Marcos government created the program which allowed some people to leave the cities to farm. Yet as fortunate as they were, there were only two tools in one family's home which I visted for a while... a large spoon for stirring food and a sharp machete. At a long table made from bamboo, a dozen of us ate our meals of plain boiled rice from a large common bowl, using our hands for utensils.

The poor were not the only class of people in the Philippines, though. The wealthy upper class, many of whom Marcos had befriended, were, of course, his most powerful supporters.

In many novels, the good guys usually slaughter the bad guys and never get a scratch. This novel is much more realistic, and there are many casualties among the guerrillas. Some of the rural folk who are turned in by spies are treated very badly by the police and army, whole villages sometimes being destroyed because of one person's disloyalty to Marcos.

This novel has the feel of the Philippine revolution -- the heartaches and unimaginable sadnesses associated with family losses, sometimes for no reason at all, and the joys and aspirations emanating from the successes, many of which were accomplished without bloodshed, thank God.

A few of the things that happened seemed miraculous to those most dirrectly involved, but one event which occurred and made the soldiers withdraw really does seem unexplainable in scientific terms, and it's called, "The Miracle of EDSA." If you want to find out about that and other such happenings, I can recommend reading the book, especially if you are interested in the events leading up to the overthrow of Marcos and the installation of a new president, Corazon (Cory) Aquino, wife of Benigno (Ninoy) Aquino, who had been assassinated by the men under one of Marcos' generals.

"This action packed novel is based on real events that took place during the Filipino people's uprising against the Marcos regime.

It follows the adventures of a nurse, Leigh Jackson, as she unwillingly joins a guerrilla band, opposing the government forces in the Philippines.

The book presents a story of the Philippine people in a fight for freedom. I had not realized that the struggle to overthrow President Marcos' dictatorship had been so intense. There is jungle fighting, the assassination of Benigno Aquino, torture of prisoners and women and men sharing the leadership of the guerrilla band.

Virgil, Leigh's nephew, is one of the leaders of the non-violent movement. It is finally climaxed with a peaceful demonstration during which the miracle is manifested. The bravery of the people involved is inspiring.

This is a short novel, and moves along fast for easy reading."

Reviewed by Mary Grace
The Ringling Eagle
December 13, 2001
Ringling, Oklahoma

Milrose Publications
235 Westlake Center #26
Daly City, CA 94015-1404
Attn: Bill Edwards.