NO RAPTURE
STROKE VICTIM SETS, REALIZES LOFTY GOAL
Presque Isle, Maine, Oct 17, 2009
The story sounds as if it had come from one of director Frank Capra’s heart-warming films. Instead, it is a true-life story of the early twenty-first century.
After being disabled, stroke victim Stephan Zimmermann, 63, a former professor and entrepreneur, set the goal of writing a novel to help his recovery. The stroke affected his mobility and speech.
“Many stroke sufferers would simply have given in to the consequences of the terrible disease,” Zimmermann said. “I was simply unwilling just to be another medical statistic!”
Two and half years later, the former teacher released his 376-page novel, “No Rapture.”
“The book is realistically spiritual, not religious in the conventional sense,” Zimmermann said from his home in northern Maine during a recent interview. “While set at a religious conference in Damascus, Syria, ‘No Rapture,’ is intended as a wake-up call to all the major faiths, Christianity, Judaism and Islam, to heed today’s problems of mankind, war and nature.”
The story pits the three protagonists against the natural disaster of an earthquake in the ancient city while facing the constant threat of war in the Middle East.
Damascus has played a pivotal role for thousands of years in the region, and became a major center for religious activity for the three western faiths for centuries.
In an unusual gesture for a novel, Zimmermann is donating part of the proceeds from the book to charity. The book was released through Lulu.com.
“I have chosen the Kids Creating Peace organization to donate a dollar for every copy of the book sold,” Zimmermann stated. “I have initially targeted ten thousand copies of the novel. This may be ambitious for a self-published book without major backing, but if we adults don’t solve our social, political or religious problems, perhaps our children will. The readers will decide. ”
Kids Creating Peace helps at-risk Israeli and Palestinian children in the war-torn area. It provides both physical and spiritual help for the kids to foster mutual understanding.
The volunteer organization operates under Spirituality For Kids Foundation (www.sfk.org)
CONTACT:
Stephan Zimmermann
panaxus@panaxus.com
www.panaxus.com
Presque Isle, ME 04769
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
