Story Behind The Book
I began writing grandfather stories the day I encountered a group of high school boys at a local supermarket where my wife and I were doing some shopping. One of the young men had an attitude because I was seated where he wanted to sit, and from that came the story about the Young Wolves. The story cycle about the raven began the day a big raven flew over my head, cawing loudly. There are few louder and more insistent sounds than a raven's loud “Kaaaaa”, especially when it's right over your head. The minute I got back to our condo, I sat down at my computer and wrote a story about the incident. I thought it would be the only one. The raven had other ideas. I've ended up with twenty-one stories about him. Like all ravens and crows that I've met, he is pesky, sometimes annoying, and comes around whenever he wants, invading my space and occupying my time. So be forewarned: there will likely be more Raven stories to come; but this is all for now.
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Reviews
<p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;">"Set in Sapporo, Japan, the stories have the flavour of legends. Playful whimsy is anchored by descriptions of ordinary daily life in urban Japan. (In the stories about grandfather and his raven friend), the raven is a wise shadow to the trusting kindness of the old man. He speaks in a mysterious voice, which some people can understand, and others hear only as a noise. These stories are fun, and would be fun to read to a child sitting in a loving lap."</span></em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"> — Wendy MacLean, Quebec, Canada</span></p> <p></p> <p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"></span></p> <br /><p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;">"George Polley's stories are like that piece of chocolate that you have with your afternoon cup of coffee... short, sweet, and leaving you wanting another piece. Pleasant and thought-provoking, the series of grandfather and the raven stories left me hoping there will be new adventures to come in the future."</span></em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"> — Shawn M. Clankie, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Center for Language Studies, OtaruUniversity of Commerce, Otaru, Japan</span></p> <p></p> <p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"></span></p> <br /><p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;">"Grandfather and the Raven’ is a delightful collection of life fables.<span> </span>They are distilled wisdom that warms you all the way down, leaving you looking forward to another reading in the future."</span></em><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"> — Jean Sullivan, Seattle<br /><br /><em>“I just finished reading your book 'Grandfather and the Raven'; very creative, full of wisdom and simply a pleasure to read! I almost finished it in one go as it was very interesting and I didn't feel like putting it down before finishing! Thank you so much for making my day by providing me a book that rejuvenated me :).”</em> — Meam Wye, author of “Shining History – Medieval Islamic Civilization”, Pakistan</span></p> <p></p> <p style="line-height:150%;margin:0pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height:150%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"></span></p> <br /><em><span style="line-height:115%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;">"Speaking as a parent, it is always a delight when something I would regard as more wholesome than constant Japanese-based cartoon battling succeeds in entrancing my children as well. George Polley's Grandfather and The Raven...are suffused with a gentle knowingness and humour, accompanied by a sharp disapproval of unprovoked violence (violent dogs, violent people, war). There is also a cannily and wryly portrayed running description of the relationship between the old man and his wife which serves to add welcome dabs of wasabi to the concoction. These tales are both freely flowing and naturally quirky. and clearly not targeted at a neatly-defined market segment nor containing artificial story-enhancer additives."</span></em><span style="line-height:115%;font-family:Arial;font-size:10pt;"> — Tim Roux, author of ‘The Dance of the Pheasodile’ and ‘Missio’, and Managing Editor of Night Publishing. </span>