Happy Release Day to
Strange Country Day by Charles Curtis!!
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Happy Book Birthday, Charles!
Alexander Graham Ptuiac, the son of an inventor, wants to play for the school’s football team. During tryouts, and under the watchful eye of the team’s coach, he suddenly manifests mysterious superhuman powers. Alexander makes the team, but not before the some ill-intended adults take notice, putting his life in danger.
Alex struggles to suppress and control his strange new abilities, worried about exposing his secret and being kicked off the football team. Then he befriends Dex, a diminutive classmate who can somehow jump as high as ten feet in the air. Seems Alex isn’t the only one at school with a secret.
As the school year unfolds, Alex will find himself the target of bullies, holding hands with his first crush and discovering the shocking truth about himself and his parents.
(There’s something weird about Sophi, the girl who
Alex has a crush on. During their first date that includes a train trip into the
nearest city, they find themselves in the middle of the equivalent of New York
City’s Times Square)
“You’re like all
the tourists. You can’t stop looking at all the pretty lights,” she said as we
weaved our way through the foot traffic.
“You have to admit,
this is incredible for someone who hasn’t been here before.”
“I guess.” We
stopped at a corner and waited for a green light.
Sophi looked down
the block at the scene, the endless colored lights dancing on her face. She
stared up at one of the signs, which featured a massive cup of soup with actual
steam rising out of it.
“I can sort of see
it. Just imagine how much energy it takes to keep everything running,” she said
as she put her hand against the streetlamp.
The light above her
immediately went out, as did the stoplight connected to it. I opened my mouth
to wonder aloud what had happened, but nothing came out as we watched as the
signs ahead of us began shutting down one by one. One second a screen was
filled with a skinny woman drinking a soda. The next second, gone. The steaming
soup was no longer illuminated, and the blinking lights around an advertisement
for a new musical stopped.
“Sophi?”
I felt someone
reach out to grab my arm.
Zzzst!
As I yelped from
the shock, everything came on again all at once, temporarily blinding me and
the rest of the mob around us. There was a buzz of concern as everyone wondered
what had happened.
“Probably a
temporary blackout. I‘ve seen it happen,” Sophi said immediately before I could
ask. I looked at her quizzically as people started walking around us.
Charles Curtis is a writer and journalist based in New
York City. He has reported and written for publications including NJ.com (where
he is currently the site’s sports buzz reporter), The Daily, ESPN.com, ESPN the
Magazine, Bleacher Report, TV Guide and Entertainment Weekly. Charles has
covered the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, golf, tennis and NASCAR. He has also written
about television, film and pop culture.
In addition, Curtis has also written, produced and was
featured in videos for ESPN.com and The Daily. He has made radio appearances on
stations including 92.9 The Ticket in Bangor, Maine, WLIE 540 AM in Long Island
and on morning shows across Canada via the CBC.
He can be reached on Twitter: @charlescurtis82.
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