Our children, we say,
are our future. Yet in this modern
age, phenomenally sophisticated in
so many ways, we still imperil their
own futures around the globe. From
the killing fields of Kosovo, to the
wasted villages of Chechnya, and the
bloodbaths of central Africa, Indonesia,
Palestine and Northern Ireland we decimate
their families, shatter their security,
and harden their souls against the
world. And then this great army of
victims and orphans goes on to abuse
the next generation of children.
Yet sometimes the fortitude of the
human soul survives these traumas.
Sometimes the young spirit rises above
the terrible assaults inflicted on
it by the adult world, battles for
survival, learns from its ordeals,
and flourishes. It does not always
have to be a 'Lord Of The Flies' conclusion.
'The Journey' is one such story. It
concerns a small gang of two dozen
or so waifs, aged between five and
twelve, who are orphaned by one of
the planet's pointless ethnic conflicts,
and who have to make an epic journey
through an alien universe in their
search for a destination. In doing
so they are forced to invent their
own methods of organisation, arbitration
and survival, independent of any mature
advice or example. And when they finally
regain the adult world they are a radically
altered band, who force a confrontation
between the different cultures and
generations that has extraordinary
consequences.
*
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E X T R A C T
*
“......remarkably the doe was standing within
spitting distance, the only one left of the entire
herd. The pointed half of the spear was lodged
between her ribs, blood running down her fur and
already dripping on the snow. Her eyes rolled
in pain and fear, she turned and bounded backwards
at an oblique angle, towards the cliff edge.
"No," thought Lucian, watching her go. "Please,
no!"
Figures flailing on either side, incapable
of stopping her. One thin body directly in her
path, right at the edge of the cliff, crouching
arms wide like a lightweight wrestler singled
out as the last line of defence. Fabian.
"Oh God, why?" thought Lucian. "Why
Fabian?" He watched, helpless, as the encounter
unfolded in slow motion before him. He could see
on the boy's face the panic, the sheer bewilderment
at how to seize this one final chance. See his
eyes desperately searching for a way to grapple
the beast in the half-second left to him. See
them focus on the protruding spear shaft, a spark
of hope gleaming. See the transformation in one
fraction of time from nervous, incapable youth
to ruthless savage.”
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