“To be ignorant of the lives of the most celebrated men of antiquity is to continue in a state of childhood all our days.” Plutarch
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A fascinating way to discover accurate history, ancient history and antediluvian history
is to read my latest historical fiction book MYSTERY OF THE STURBRIDGE KEYS prior to the Christmas holiday season. So many people say the reason for the season is not exactly what the truth reveals. The subtitle of this book is CHRISTMAS UNLOCKED.
What modern day Christmas enthusiasts have done is like taking a roll of factory made cookie dough out of the refrigerator, putting it into a bowl, mixing it up, repackaging it into a square shape, and handing it out to your neighbors saying that what this really is , is your starter dough for a new bread recipe.
This book begins at the Christmas by Candlelight Celebration held at Old Sturbridge Village, an 1830’s living museum. Brie is the 13 year old female heroine who comes forth in this day and time when the world is in need of light, love and understanding of world events. By better understanding our history, human beings of every race, color, creed, gender in every country on this planet, can make better decisions affecting our every day lives, the our futures.
Brie attends the Christmas By Candlelight Celebration with her cousin and best friend, Abby, their brothers, mothers and Grammy Rose. The family lives in the town of Mendon, Massachusetts where I grew up. Readers will find familiar fond references to Lake Nipmuc, the Nipmuc Indians in the greater area from Rhode Island to the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire to western New England, the history of Morgan horses named after Justin Morgan who owned the first of this breed in America, and the Rev. Adin Ballou who began the first commune in the neighboring town of Hopedale and the effects still lingering today.
By a life-altering event while at this celebration, half the family spirals back in time to experience and discover first hand what they had studied in school in history classes, becoming part of the very fabric of history itself. Brie babysits baby Jesus until he is two years old, encounters the Magi when they make their memorable appearance, and further back in time, interacting with Noah and the Nephilim, later meeting Alexander the Great and the time of the Sanctuary of the Great God’s and Greeks conquering the Medes and the Persians, up to the time of the Romans, how immigrants flocked to America for freedom from oppression and a better way to live, and how the Panic of 1837 affected the residents of Old Sturbridge Village.
Meanwhile the other half of the family learns unlikely connections between President Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin, who share the same birthday, and learn by attending the Friends Quaker Meetinghouse all about how the Underground Railroad flourished in this area. They also about all of the writings of Charles Dickens while touring the Freeman Farmhouse. The Freeman Farm was an actual real working farm in real time in Sturbridge in the 1830s. Readers will learn how Silas Freeman, the youngest son of Pliny and Delia Freeman, chose to switch careers from farming to become a driver for the Stagecoach travel system through Hartford, Worcester and Providence. The family also experiences an encounter with a wolf while enjoying the outdoor living manger scene featuring a Bactrian camel, in a fictional cooperative venture with Southwick’s Zoo, a real attraction in Mendon, Massachusetts.
Modern day Christians say that Jesus is the reason for the season. This is half true. Today we acknowledge the birthday of Jesus on December 25. But it was most likely in late September or early October, when the people could walk the roads to the city in which they were born to fulfill the decree of Caesar Augustus for all the inhabited earth to be registered. Also, December 25 would be far too cold for the sheep to be out in the fields grazing on frozen blades of grass, nor would the shepherds be able to follow them over icy rocks nor sleep by night on the snow and icy ground.
Reading this book will reveal the lesser known, true origin of all of today’s Christmas customs and traditions, like mistletoe, decorated trees, wreaths and specialty foods, which were born some 2,000 years earlier.
This book is the first in the MYSTERY OF THE STURBRIDGE KEYS series. There have already two successful book signings, selling out at Barnes and Noble Bookstore in Millbury, MA, and The Bird Store And More in Sturbridge, MA. While this book is rated for people of all ages, I personally think that it is best understood from pre-teen to adult.
https://www.iuniverse.com/Bookstore/BookSearchResults.aspx?Search=Mystery%20of%20the%20Sturbridge%20Keys