~ From St. Louis Post Dispatch ~
Travel Section, Sunday, July 5, 1998
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~ From St. Louis Post Dispatch ~ Travel Section, Sunday, July 5, 1998 Table of Contents |
Stamp-related stories make summer reading fun
By Peter Rexford
School's out, summer's here and kids have 2 1/2 months to relax, play, socialize, earn a little money, get in trouble with firecrackers, accidentally flood the basement, make prank phone calls to Kenya or pretty much whatever I did.
But kids also know that summer fun can quickly disappear with just two dreaded words - summer reading. You know what I mean. In grade school our anticipation of summer vacation could eclipse even that of Christmas. In high school, however, that changed thanks to mandatory assignments to read laborious, linguistically cryptic or just plain dull "literature."
It's not that I don't encourage summer reading. But, from experience, adults should know that summer is a time for adventurous discovery and fun, the kind found in select lighthearted Mark Twain novels, humorous Dave Barry books and classic Hardy Boys mysteries. Forget about "Silas Marner" in the summer. Assignments like that only result in more sales and profits for the publishers of Cliff Notes (all generated three days before school starts).
For this summer there's a fun alternative sure to satisfy young and old alike. And, especially if you're a collector, you won't want to wait to find out what's in "The Mystery Box."
"The Mystery Box" is a series of short and curious stories by author Frederick Highland. Ever more intriguing is that each mystery in the book is inspired by a variety of exotic postage stamps contained in an old box. The mystery box was found by the author in the Portuguese colony of Macao during the Vietnam War. But that's merely where the story begins.
As Highland notes in his introduction, "I held onto the mystery box through many years of sailoring and travel. (The stamps) from Nyasaland, the Maldives and Egypt were instilled with a hold on me, a power to transport me to different lands and climes."
Readers will quickly find that Highland has great fun conjuring tales, mysteries and enigmas from the images on the many stamps. But they aren't merely plot elements in the tales. Often, the stamps become the integral backdrop for the action.
"The Mystery Box" has more than 120 illustrations and photos, and at the end of each story is the image and a more detailed description of the stamp involved in the tale. Although the book is advertised as being for all ages, the writing style will probably appeal mostly to those 13 years and over.
An especially nice "summer" aspect of "The Mystery Box" is that its 25 stories range from only four to 12 pages apiece. So it can be read, put down and picked back up without losing a beat. In a nutshell, it's great summer reading that blows "Silas Marner" out of the water.
In the words of the author, "My idea has been to offer the reader a method of traveling through time, swept along in the chase of suspenseful tales and beguiled by the stamps that provoked them." All in all, not a bad way to spend a summer evening.
Published by Ana Libri Press in Bellingham, Wash., "The Mystery Box" is available in book stores or directly from the publishers. It comes in both paperback ($16.95) and hardcover ($24.95) versions. Also available is a specially boxed set that includes the hardcover version and a selection of "mystery stamps," all housed in a unique cigar box for $39.95. Phone orders can be made by calling the publisher toll-free at: (800) 431-1579. [amg: Please note that the 800 number is no longer available]
Copyright (c) 1998, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
