New Book by Derald Hamilton, Twice Upon A Prequel & Three Shorts

CALABASAS, Calif. - April 10, 2013 - PRLog -- Twice Upon A Prequel & Three Shorts, by Derald Hamilton is a book crafted of several short stories tying heavily into relationships, values, and religion. However, you don’t necessarily have to be a devote worshipper of God to truly appreciate the life lessons sprinkled throughout the book.  Each short story, while being tied closely to religion in some format, expresses attributes of new beginnings, self-sacrifice, and the repercussions of our actions that most can relate to and even ask, “What if?”

In the first story, “The Astonishing Elmo Piggins,” the reader is taken into a world of growing up as a preacher’s kid, focusing heavily on the daughter Lawanda and how her upbringing influenced her younger brother Elmo. Growing up with his father’s strict rules and firm punishments, Elmo saw Lawanda rebel from daddy’s hold and the church as she disappeared after the burning of her music records and became a mega singer and songwriter. While focusing more on Lawanda, the reader doesn’t necessarily see how the family’s upbringing has affected Elmo, that is until he returns from the Navy proclaiming his recent calling is to become a minister. And while most might believe that his father would be proud, he seems more bitter than anything since he wasn’t the one who influenced Elmo’s decision, but rather the navy was the culprit.

The “Rebirth of Reginald Dexter” is a story of starting over. After teaching psychology for years, professor Dexter is now forced to retire at 65 years-old and has no idea what these next years have in store for him -- a adequate presumption most have during this time. While feeling out of place at home with his younger wife of several years, Dexter turns to the church for guidance, where he decides not only to go back to school for ministry, but also tackles extreme activities such as skydiving, in efforts to push past his fears and live each day as though it were his last.

Being an outsider is a main theme in “Taken Up Before The General,” where young Daryl MacGregor is introduced as the army brat that just can’t catch a break. Looking back in his childhood days, he’s witnessed several acts of conformity and rigidity from high ranking officials and his overbearing father, making it clear that he views authority figures in a light less flattering.

Taking on a different kind of military view, is “The War Comes Home,” where the focus is the wives of the soldiers. Here, we are taken into the world of the base wives’ club where we meet Laura Porter and her struggle to keep conformity in the home for when her husband returns from war. While she’s been told change is not something you want to administer when a soldier returns, she’s faced with questioning how she can pretend the world they once shared together before war is the same now, especially with their young daughter has turned into a tomboy, the son is now a dancer, and the oldest is in college and living with an older boyfriend.