Taking Flight

Avi has had quite a life. He and his wife, Sara, have lived and traveled all over the world, including some exotic-and occasionally less than hospitable-destinations. He's also met and befriended some colorful characters, including a man who can get you anything (for a price, of course), a tribal chieftain, an enterprising shopkeeper, a father who mourns a daughter lost at sea, a particularly hard-nosed and nosy businesswoman, and a desperate man who threatens to drive Avi off a cliff. In this collection of fanciful and offbeat stories, you'll also meet the amorous yet devious Lord and Lady Ryweinster, a talking Amazonian parrot, a champion MMA fighter, and an elderly couple who could have been headliners at a Catskills resort.

At the heart of the collection, however, is the story of the journey Avi takes to a world beyond this one, a fascinating domain where he reunites with his long-deceased mother and two of his siblings. His otherworldly guides help him learn the rules of this unfamiliar, magical realm, and he is able to spend some meaningful moments with the people who were closest to him in childhood and get a glimpse, perhaps, of what lies ahead for us all.