Texas Book Festival announces 2020 Lit Crawl schedule

This year’s Lit Crawl will take place from November 7 through November 15. Photo: Texas Book Festival, used with permission.

Texas Book Festival will be hosting their annual Lit Crawl events virtually this year during the Festival, with several evening times between November 7 to November 15 along with two Sunday brunches. The events include storytelling sessions, spoken-word performances and themed discussions, ranging from topics including moments of pivoting, celebrating Black creativity and more. Featured authors include Kathy Valentine, Natalie Diaz, Kelly J. Baptist, and more. (Texas Book Festival, 2020)

For the evening event “Literary Death Match” and brunch event “Tarot Town Hall with Typewriter Tarot,” the first 100 registrants per event will receive a special Camp Mocha cocktail kit from Desert Door Texas Sotol. Cocktail pickup will take place on Saturday, November 7 from 12p.m. to 5p.m. outside the Texas Book Festival office (1023 Springdale Road, Building 14, Suite B, Austin, Texas 78721). All recipients must be 21 years of age or older, with proper ID, and must wear a mask to pick up the cocktail kit.  Sparkling water from Rambler will also be available. 

Lit Crawl Austin 2020 schedule (all times CST)

The 2020 Virtual Texas Book Festival will take place from October 31 through November 15. As always, all Lit Crawl events are free and open to the public thanks to the generosity of the Texas Book Festival community. To support the Texas Book Festival, Lit Crawl Austin and participating authors, donations can be made online. For the first time ever, Texas Book Festival is offering an exclusive Lit Crawl armadillo enamel pin. Donations of $25 or more to Lit Crawl will receive the one-inch pin, perfect to embellish denim jackets, backpacks, tote bags and more. 

With a vision to inspire Texans of all ages to love reading, the Texas Book Festival connects authors and readers through experiences that celebrate the culture of literacy, ideas, and imagination. Founded in 1995 by former First Lady Laura Bush, Mary Margaret Farabee and a group of volunteers, the nonprofit Texas Book Festival promotes the joys of reading and writing through its annual Festival, the Texas Teen Book Festival, the Reading Rock Stars Title I elementary school program, the Real Reads Title I middle and high school program, grants to Texas libraries and year-round literary programming.

Pearl announces Fall 2020 events

Feliz Modern POP’s Maker Kits for Dia de los Muertos. Photo: Pearl, used with permission.

Pearl is proud to announce its virtual and campus-wide programming for fall 2020. The season will kick off with autumn activities to enjoy at home followed by a socially distant Día de los Muertos celebration featuring in-person and virtual altars. The fall festivities will continue with culinary content for Thanksgiving including curated curbside boxes available for purchase. (Pearl, 2020)

Farmers Market – Pearl will continue to host the Farmers Market on Saturdays from 9a.m. to 1p.m and Sundays from 10a.m. to 2p.m. Safety measures remain in place, including mandatory masks for vendors and hand sanitizing/washing stations throughout the footprint. Guests have the option to use Pearl’s Farmers Market Curbside service on Fridays between 3p.m. and 7p.m. 

Pearl Farmers Market will feature pumpkins for purchase from Braune Farms so families can carve their own Halloween creations at home. The market will also offer Halloween themed goodie boxes available online starting on Friday, October 23. The market will host the 28th Annual Herb Market on Saturday, October 17 and will feature specialty herbs and other items. The herb of the year is Rubus. Though Fiesta was canceled this year, Pearl will honor the beloved tradition by selling Pearl and Pearl partner Fiesta medals through Farmers Market Curbside. Medals will be available to purchase online beginning October 30 through December 1.    

Fall – To celebrate fall harvest, Pearl will release a series of videos featuring Hotel Emma’s chef, John Brand. Brand will share his favorite pumpkin recipes using seasonal produce from Pearl Farmers Market’s regional producers and family farms. The videos will be released on Pearl Farmers Market social media pages on October 21 and 22. Pumpkin carving stencils will also be available at the Pearl Farmers Market to take home at no charge to be picked up on October 24, 25 and 31. Stencils available while supplies last. 

Día De Los Muertos – Pearl reimagines its annual Día De Los Muertos celebration, honoring loved ones who have passed, as a largely virtual experience. In addition to the onsite community altar, videos of altars at two offsite locations will be available to view on Pearl social media pages. Altars will be located at the Mexican Cultural Institute and at the Carver Community Cultural Center.

The Mexican Cultural Institute and the Consulate of Mexico in San Antonio, in partnership with the San Antonio-Mexico Friendship Council (SAMFCO), are proud to create an altar in honor of Manuel Felguérez, one of the earliest and most prominent proponents of abstract art in Mexico, who passed away this summer from COVID-19. In December 2019, Felguérez was recognized by the government of Mexico City as a figure of Living Cultural Heritage for a lifetime dedicated to the arts.

The Carver Community Cultural Center has invited local artist Kaldric Dow to create an altar dedicated to those who have lost their lives to social injustice. Pearl’s annual community altar will be on view at the Pearl Shade Structure from November 1 to 8. Masks will be required when visiting the altar. The altar will be created by Jon Hinojosa, Artistic Executive Director of SAY Sí, with help from SAY Sí alumni and staff. The theme of the altar is Amor y Esperanza (Love and Hope) and is dedicated to those who have lost their lives to COVID-19. The altar will consist of four levels and four sides, representing the four stages of life, the four points of the earth, the four seasons and the four mathematical points upon which the pyramids were built. SAY Sí is developing an interactive app where people can leave names of their loved ones in lieu of leaving physical mementos at the altar. 

The public can purchase Maker Kits from Feliz Modern POP beginning October 13. Options include a Catrina Collage by local artist Regina Moya or a Sugar Skull Piñata by Manola & Maria and Lua Bash. Kits include instructions and materials and how-to demos by the artists will be available on Pearl’s Facebook page on November 1.  

The Mexican Cultural Institute will have a booth at the Farmers Market on Sunday, November 1, where they will give out ceramic skull banks which kids can decorate at home. The Farmers Market information booth will be giving out marigolds. Banks and marigolds will be available while supplies last.

Azul Barrientos will round out the Día de los Muertos celebration with a special, online performance that commemorates the traditional Mexican holiday. The performance will be available to view on Pearl social media pages on November 2. Hotel Emma and La Gloria will each have altars on display and Pan de Muerto will be available at Hotel Emma to complete the socially distant celebrations at home.

Thanksgiving – Guests hoping to avoid crowded grocery stores this holiday season will be able to purchase everything needed for a Thanksgiving feast at Pearl Farmers Market Curbside. Products include a box with ingredients and recipe cards for a variety of Thanksgiving sides, turkey brining kits, pies and centerpieces. Thanksgiving products will be available for preorder starting November 1 through 21, with curbside pickup on November 24. There will be no curbside pickup the Friday following Thanksgiving.

“While we’ll miss being together for some of our most popular signature events, we will honor this time of year with special offerings through Farmers Market and new virtual programming and culinary content.” – Elizabeth Fauerso, Pearl’s Chief Marketing Officer

Whataburger has sweets, treats and crafts for Halloween

Whataburger’s PEZ are here for Halloween season. Photo: Whataburger, used with permission.

Halloween is just around the corner and if you are celebrating at home this year, Whataburger has cooked up some serious fun. Whether it is crafts with the family, Halloween costumes or tasty treats like the Whataburger PEZ®, Spicy Chicken Sandwich and Hatch Green Chile Bacon Burger,  there is s something exciting for every ghoul or goblin. (Whataburger, 2020)

From October 15 to October 25, guests can buy five frightfully delicious Whataburger PEZ® and get one free on the Whatastore by using code “BOO” at checkout. They come in Whataburger’s iconic orange and white colors that are perfect for the season. Each dispenser is individually packed with three orange-flavored candy refills.

Whataburger has been making burgers since 1950 when Harman Dobson opened a humble hamburger stand in Corpus Christi, Texas.  He wanted customers to take one bite and say, “What a burger” so he named his stand on Ayers St “Whataburger.” Whataburger now has over 800 locations across the country and continues to deliver fresh, made to order meals every day with superior customer service.  Community support includes charitable giving and volunteerism to nonprofit organizations that focus on children’s charities, cancer research, hunger assistance, disaster relief and military support.

New release: ‘Here She Is’ by Hilary Levey Friedman

‘Here She Is’ is Hilary Levey Friedman’s new book about American beauty pageants. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Hilary Levey Friedman is a sociologist at Brown University, where she has taught a popular course titled ‘Beauty Pageants in American Society.’ She is a leading researcher in pageantry, merging her mother’s past experiences as Miss America 1970 with her interests as a glitz- and glamour-loving, sometime pageant judge, and a mentor to Miss America 2018. Friedman also serves as the president of the Rhode Island chapter of the National Organization for Women. Her first book, “Playing to Win,” focused on children’s competitive afterschool activities. Her latest release, “Here She Is: The Complicated Reign of the Beauty Pageant in America” offers a fresh exploration of American feminist history told through the lens of the beauty pageant world and was recently featured in the latest issue of Ms. Magazine.

In the 21st century, beauty pageants are still thriving. America’s most enduring contest, Miss America, celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2020. In “Here She Is,” Hilary Levey Friedman reveals the surprising ways pageants have been an empowering feminist tradition. She traces the role of pageants in many of the feminist movement’s signature achievements, including bringing women into the public sphere, helping them become leaders in business and politics, providing increased educational opportunities and giving them a voice in the age of #MeToo. She explores how pageants became so deeply embedded in American life from their origins as a P.T. Barnum spectacle at the birth of the suffrage movement, through Miss Universe’s bathing beauties, to the talent- and achievement-based competitions of today. The book is a look into how pageantry has morphed into culture everywhere from The Bachelor and RuPaul’s Drag Race to cheer and specialized contests like those for children, Indigenous women and contestants with disabilities. Friedman also acknowledges the damaging and unrealistic expectations pageants place on women in society and discusses the controversies, including Miss America’s ableist and racist history, Trump’s ownership of the Miss Universe Organization, and the death of child pageant-winner JonBenét Ramsey. It presents a more complex narrative than what has been previously portrayed and shows that as American women continue to evolve, so too will beauty pageants.

Book review: ‘The Book of Ceremony’ by Sandra Ingerman

‘The Book of Ceremony’ by Sandra Ingerman. Photo: amazon

Sandra Ingerman, MA, is an award-winning author of 12 books, including “Soul Retrieval: Mending the Fragmented Self,” “Medicine for the Earth: How to Transform Personal and Environmental Toxins” and “Walking in Light: The Everyday Empowerment of a Shamanic Life.” Sandra is a world-renowned teacher of shamanism and has been teaching for close to 40 years. She has taught workshops internationally on shamanic journeying, healing and reversing environmental pollution using spiritual methods. Sandra is recognized for bridging ancient cross-cultural healing methods to our modern culture, addressing the needs of our times.  In her book “The Book of Ceremony: Shamanic Wisdom for Invoking the Sacred in Everyday Life,” Sandra Ingerman presents a rich and practical resource for creating ceremonies filled with joy, purpose and magic.

According to the author, her purpose in writing this book is to share what she has learned over the years, hoping to inspire others to lead healing and blessing ceremonies. Starting with the Introduction, Sandra Ingerman defines a ceremony: “Every shamanic journey a shaman takes, every healing method a shaman works with, is considered a ceremony.” She goes on to briefly describe the history of ceremonies and look back at the first ceremony she performed in 1982. The book is divided into for parts: Part One: The Power of Ceremony, it clarifies the basics of what constitutes a ceremony, how to prepare and perform one, Part Two: Sacred Transitions, Part Three: Ceremonies to Create Energetic Balance and Part Four: Life as a Ceremony, it includes examples of blessing and healing ceremonies for people and places, as well the community as a whole. The final part of the book includes other resources for further information on the practice of shamanic journeying.

Shamanism has been around for tens of thousands of years and has been a serious practice with the sole purpose of helping the community thrive. Today’s ceremonies are used to improve health and the quality of life and with so much negativity going on in the world, for serious practitioners, shamanic ceremonies are now more important than ever. The author connects ancient shamanic practices with modern culture and makes them relevant to today’s issues. The book touches on all topics related to ceremonies, including how choose the space, preparing ceremonial items and the types of ceremonies: for weddings, births and new beginnings.  Some of the ceremonies are familiar ones while others include newer adaptations of known ceremonies, the most poignant being the ones to honor death: burying a pet, plant ceremony, honoring trees and honoring environmental losses. All this information is given in plain and easy to understand language without being condescending to possible newcomers. While it may not be for everyone, “The Book of Ceremony” has resourceful guidance for readers who are genuinely interested in shamanic ceremonies.

“Once we wake up and recognize that other spectacular dimensions of reality exist, we experience a new sense of awareness about how to connect with nature, the flow of life, and the web of life.”

*The author received a copy of this book for an honest review. The views and opinions expressed here belong solely to her.

New release: ‘Invisible Girl: A Novel’ by Lisa Jewell

‘Invisible Girl: A Novel’ is Lisa Jewell’s new novel. Photo: amazon

Lisa Jewell is a British author of eighteen novels including “The Family Upstairs,” “Then She Was Gone” and “Watching You.” Her novels have sold more than 4.5 million copies internationally and her work has also been translated into twenty-five languages. She is one of the most popular authors writing in the UK today and in 2008 she was awarded the Melissa Nathan Award For Comedy Romance for her novel “31 Dream Street.” Her new book, “Invisible Girl: A Novel,” an obscure thriller about a young woman’s disappearance and a group of strangers whose lives intersect in its wake, was just released this week.

According to amazon, in “Invisible Girl,” Owen Pick’s life is falling apart. In his thirties and living in his aunt’s spare bedroom, he has just been suspended from his job as a teacher after accusations of sexual misconduct—accusations he strongly denies. Searching for professional advice online, he is inadvertently sucked into the dark world of incel forums, where he meets a charismatic and mysterious figure. The Fours family lives across the street. Headed by mom Cate, a physiotherapist, and dad Roan, a child psychologist, they have a bad feeling about their neighbor Owen. He is a bit creepy and their teenaged daughter swears he followed her home from the train station one night. Meanwhile, young Saffyre Maddox spent three years as a patient of Roan Fours. Feeling abandoned when their therapy ends, she searches for other ways to maintain her connection with him, following him in the shadows and learning more than she wanted to know about Roan and his family. Then, on Valentine’s night, Saffyre disappears and the last person to see her alive is Owen Pick.

Garrison Brothers Distillery announces virtual Bourbon Brawl

San Antonio’s Alamo City, one of the five semifinalists for this year’s Bourbon Brawl. Photo: Garrison Brothers Distillery, used with permission.

Garrison Brothers Distillery, the first legal whiskey distillery in Texas, announced the virtual adaptation of its statewide bartender competition, Bourbon Brawl 2020. The contest was originally supposed to take place in May but was postponed in light of the pandemic. Now, in lieu of an in-person event, Bourbon Brawl 2020 will take place entirely online on Thursday, November 19.(Garrison Brothers Distillery, 2020)

Garrison Brothers has partnered with Sourced Craft Cocktails, a cocktail curation and delivery service, to provide custom cocktail kits for guests to order and receive prior to the virtual Finals event where one kit will be selected as the winner. The grand prize is $12,500 from a public charity called Good Bourbon for a Good Cause, founded by the Garrison Family and their staff in 2018. They will also get the opportunity to take the title of Bourbon Brawl 2020 Champions home to their respective Texas city.

In February 2020, contestants submitted a cocktail recipe to Garrison Brothers. A panel of drinks experts blind judged each cocktail and chose 75 bartenders to proceed to the next round. Each of the 75 bartenders’ venues featured their cocktail for two weeks, while the Garrison Brothers team visited each location to judge the cocktail along with the service. After that, they selected 25 mixologists to compete in the semi-finals, five from each of these five major Texas cities: Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio.

The semi-finals and final event of Bourbon Brawl 2020 were initially slated to take place throughout March, April and May. After postponing the events several times due to COVID-19, the Garrison Brothers team decided to change the format so it could still take place safely this year. The five semi-finalists from each city have collaborated to create one cocktail that represents their city using ingredients from a list provided by Sourced Craft Cocktails.

The Bourbon Brawl 2020 cocktail kits are available online for $212.40 and for pre-order through Sourced from October 12 through November 12. The kits will be delivered just before the Finals event on November 19. Guests are encouraged to order the five-in-one cocktail kit that includes everything needed to make two full servings of each of the following cocktails:

Fort Worth’s Chisholm Two-Step

The Chisholm Two-Step will put some boogie back in your boots with a jolt of Chai Tea Latte concentrate and a complement of sarsaparilla-infused Simple Syrup, giving an entirely new meaning to the legendary “Texas Tea.”

Dallas’ Snake In My Boot

Do not let the mellow coconut sugar syrup and warm, smooth bourbon goodness fool you: the combo of tart cherry juice and muddle jalapeno slice ensures that this snake has plenty of bite.

San Antonio’s Alamo City 

Just like the Alamo, this simple South Texas sipper is easy to remember. With notes of fruit and rosemary adding a bit of lightness to a generous pour of Garrison Brothers bourbon, the Alamo City would be a perfect companion to any day on the Riverwalk.

Austin’s MIA (Missing In Austin)

Go off the grid for a while with this fruit-focused delight, featuring pineapple juice, grapefruit juice and plenty more. When you wrap up these fruity notes in the warm caramel cradle of bourbon, you get an entire night on Sixth Street all rolled into one.

Houston’s The Pho-Kit 

Say “Pho-Kit” and turn your cocktail into a savory meal in a glass. This unique combination of curry powder, chili oil and fish sauce melds with honey syrup to bring out every spicy note you can find in a pour of Garrison Brothers.

Each city’s semi-finalists have been invited to Austin for the Finals event on November 19, where only select Garrison Brothers staff will be in attendance. The select staff will judge each cocktail in person in a socially-distanced, COVID-safe environment. Guests are invited to tune in virtually, taste each cocktail, and vote on the winning drink amongst themselves.

“This partnership with Sourced not only makes Bourbon Brawl 2020 possible despite the event limitations of the pandemic, but it also prepares Texas bartenders to create the ‘cocktails of the future.’ By challenging them to create cocktails from ingredients that ship well and working through the process of curating a cocktail kit with Sourced, they’re learning valuable skills that will hopefully help them evolve with the industry.” – Dan Garrison, founder and proprietor of Garrison Brothers Distillery.

Taco Cabana announces return of enchiladas with Enchilada Fest

Enchiladas are back at Taco Cabana with Enchilada Fest. Photo: Taco Cabana, used with permission.

Back by popular demand, Taco Cabana’s enchiladas are back with more variety and options than ever before. Starting today, Wednesday October 14, guests can enjoy Enchilada Fest, a celebration of Taco Cabana’s signature cheese enchiladas with a choice of six new sauces including: Suiza, Ranchero, Green Chile, Tex-Mex, Sour Cream or Queso. The six new enchiladas are available at all participating Texas locations.  (Taco Cabana, 2020)

Two-enchilada plates will be available for $5.99 and three-enchilada plates will be available for $7.69. Each plate includes rice, refried beans, guacamole and two flour tortillas. Guests can top their enchilada with a choice of shredded chicken, ground beef or chicken fajita for $.99, or steak fajita for $1.29. Guests can also shop the convenient TC Pantry in-store or online and take home an easy-to-prepare 12-pack Enchilada Casserole for $24.99 to cook and eat at home, a perfect option for any family dinner or gathering. 

Enchilada Fest orders are available thru online ordering for front counter and curbside pick-up, via the drive-thru or by mobile order when using the MyTC! app. Select Taco Cabana dining rooms and patios are now open as well. 

In addition to Enchilada Fest, Taco Cabana is sweetening its fall menu offerings with the release of its new Caramel Apple Empanadas. Guests can purchase two Caramel Apple Empanadas for only $2.99. 

Taco Cabana, a subsidiary of Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRGI), was founded in 1978. The brand specializes in Tex-Mex-inspired food including enchiladas, fajitas, quesadillas, flautas, burritos, tacos, flour tortillas and a selection of made-from-scratch salsas and sauces. Restaurants feature open-display cooking, a selection of beer and tequila margaritas, patio dining, drive-thru windows, curbside pick-up and delivery. As of Jan. 1, 2020, Taco Cabana operates 145 company-owned restaurants in Texas.

“Not only has our internal TC family been asking for the return of our signature enchiladas, but more importantly, our TC guests have been asking for us to bring them back to the TC menu. We could not be more thrilled about their return and even more excited that we could bring six new flavors to our guests.” – Rich Stockinger, CEO and President of Fiesta Restaurant Group, Inc.

 

Book review: ‘The Body Is Not An Apology’ by Sonya Renee Taylor

‘The Body Is Not An Apology” by Sonya Renee Taylor

Sonya Renee Taylor is the Founder and Radical Executive Officer of The Body Is Not An Apology, a digital media and education company committed to radical self-love and body empowerment .Founded in 2011, it began as an online community to cultivate radical self-love and body empowerment. The Body Is Not An Apology now reaches over 1 million people each month in 140 countries with their articles and content focused on the intersection of bodies, personal transformation and social justice. Sonya is also an International award winning Performance Poet, activist, speaker and transformational leader whose work continues to have global reach. She has a B.A. in Sociology and an M.S.A. in Organizational Management and continues to be a fierce activist for global justice using the lens of intersectional Black Feminism and radical self-love. In her book “The Body Is Not An Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love” Sonya invites readers to reconnect with the radical origins of their minds and bodies and celebrate their collective, enduring strength.

“The Body Is Not An Apology” begins with a Prologue that explains where the phrase for the radical self-love movement, also the name of the book, started.  It goes back to 2010 at a Southern Fried Poetry Slam where the author uttered the words “your body is not an apology.” She reminded herself of the phrase whenever she felt a discouraging thought coming on and used it as the basis for the organization she founded to help others overcome body shame and its destructive effects. The book is divided into five sections: Making Self-Love Radical; Shame, Guilt and Apology-Then and Now; Building a Radical Self-Love Practice in an Age of Loathing; A New Way Ordered by Love and Your Radical Self-Love Toolkit.  They all contain Unapologetic Inquiries and Radical Reflections that help further explain that ideas that she is trying to convey. At the end, she includes extensive notes by chapter and resources for further readings on feminism, racial justice and LBTQIAA issues.

Having a positive self-image is important for the individual as well as the community and world as a whole. Sonya Renee Taylor’s encouraging messages involve having to put aside any toxic upbringings and changing the way we interact with others. It touches on subjects like body-shaming, body terrorism and homophobia. Readers should note that she touches on politics both to emphasize her points and to explain how she has been personally affected by other people’s racist and homophobic actions. A standout chapter is ‘Chapter 4: A New Way Ordered by Love’ section ‘Unapologetic Agreements’ that focuses on how radical self-love and communication can foster global change: “Have compassion for and honor people’s varied journey. Our journeys are unique and varied. Compassion births patience.”  It is a small book and thankfully, written in a down to earth and easy-to understand language.  This is important because her message of self-love, confidence and the importance of stopping body shaming and thinking we are not “good enough” is one that more people should take to heart. “The Body Is Not An Apology” is an impactful and empowering guide for readers who appreciate a book that challenges the status quo and arms them with compelling and life-changing advice.

“To be fear facing is to learn the distinction between fear and danger. It is to look directly at the source of the fear and assess if we are truly in peril or if we are simply afraid of the unknown.”

*The author received a copy of this book for an honest review. The views and opinions expressed here belong solely to her.

New release: ‘Elsewhere’ by Dean Koontz

Dean Koontz’ new book: ‘Elsewhere.’ Photo: amazon

Dean Koontz is the author of fourteen number one The New York Times bestsellers, including “One Door Away from Heaven,” “From the Corner of His Eye,” “Midnight” and many more; making him one of only a dozen writers ever to have achieved that milestone.  He has been hailed by Rolling Stone as “America’s most popular suspense novelist” and his books have been published in thirty-eight languages and have sold over five hundred million copies worldwide to date. In his new book “Elsewhere,” released this week, the fate of the world is in the hands of a father and daughter in an epic novel of wonder and terror.

“Elsewhere” is the story of Jeffy Coltrane, whose wife Michelle left seven years ago. Since then, he has worked to maintain a normal life for himself and his eleven-year-old daughter, Amity, in Suavidad Beach. It is a quiet life, until a local eccentric known as Spooky Ed shows up on their doorstep. Ed entrusts Jeffy with hiding a strange and dangerous object, something he calls “the key to everything,” and tells Jeffy that he must never use the device. But after a visit from a group of ominous men, Jeffy and Amity find themselves accidentally activating the key and discovering an extraordinary truth. The device allows them to jump between parallel planes both familiar and bizarre, wondrous and terrifying.  Jeffy and Amity cannot help but wonder if Michelle could be just a click away. They are not the only ones interested in the device. A man with a dark purpose is in pursuit, determined to use its grand potential for profound evil. Unless Amity and Jeffy can outwit him, the place they call home may never be safe again.