Author Spotlight: Andrew Szlachetko

I'm going to introduce you to Andrew Szlachetko.  He's the author of a children's book titled The Age of Not Believing.  I know I review books for an older age group,  but he reached out to me and since I'm not the right audience for his book, I thought some of you might like to know about it for your kids. Especially since it's about Christmas and that magical time of the year is fast approaching.

The Age of Not Believing:

A Christmas Tale

by Andrew Szlachetko

Charming children’s story promises to teach young readers that Christmas doesn’t have to lose its magic when they reach a certain age.

Thomas has reached the age of not believing, that difficult age when children start to doubt the magic of Christmas. After being teased by a group of boys about his visit to Santa’s grotto, a hurt Thomas decides he’s finally getting too old to enjoy the festive season. But on Christmas Eve, Thomas is woken by a mysterious voice, pleading for his help. Walking towards the Christmas Tree, from where the voice is coming, Thomas finds himself magically transported to the strange land of Semdar. Here he finds a world in crisis; the wicked Torga has cast a spell to banish Christmas forever! Thomas discovers that Torga’s spell can only be broken by someone at the age of not believing. When he is captured by Torga’s terrifying silver wolves and taken to her castle, Thomas realises that the fate of Christmas in the land of Semdar is in his hands. 

The Age of Not Believing is a colourfully illustrated book which seeks to remind children and parents of the true meaning of Christmas. The book’s author, Andrew Szlachetko, draws upon key messages on life skills, sharing and friendship to tell a fantastical tale to show that barriers can be broken and friendships forged when we take the bold step of ‘reaching out’ to those we fear or mistrust. As the narrative develops Thomas chooses to forgive Torga for her wickedness and in doing so brings the magic of Christmas back to Semdar. His act of kindness makes Thomas feel much more special about himself, than any gift has ever done, teaching young readers that the sense of goodwill we share during Christmas is the real key to its magic, not just the presents we receive.

About the Author: 

Andrew Szlachetko was born in Ealing, London, where he still lives today with his wife and fourteen-year-old son. Szlachetko works in the IT industry and this is his first illustrated novel for children.

About the Illustrator: Patricia Moffett has over twenty years’ experience as an illustrator. She has provided illustrations for many children’s books including MirrorStorm by Mike Wilks (Egmont Books) and Fairies by Alison Maloney (Carlton Books).

The Age of Not Believing (published by London Book Press, RRP £2.99 ebook) is available online at Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, Waterstones.com and Kobobooks.com. For more information please visit www.theageofnotbelieving.com.