Marvin Roth - Hanky and the Thousandsleeper

Hanky and the Thousandsleeper

A Novel by Marvin Roth

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of both publisher and author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

Title Picture: Arndt Drechsler

All characters and events in this book are fictitious.

Any resemblance to persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

Lulu Enterprises, Inc

Published by: epubli GmbH, Berlin, www.epubli.com

ISBN: 978-3-8442-3714-6

To all of my readers: Thank you for having the courage to think the unthinkable!

Also... I’ll be forever grateful to my family and friends on whose support I can count - always!

We have all heard of ghouls, ghosts, poltergeists, goblins, spirits and demons.

Have you ever wondered why?

As long as mankind has existed, we have contemplated the presence of these eerie creatures in our lives. Are they real or are they just figments of our imagination? Who is to say? The fact is that they have influenced the beliefs of the people of Africa, Indonesia, Oceania, of the Amazon region; but also the Romans, Germanic tribes, the Chinese, the Japanese and even the Catholic Church and the Muslims.

Indeed, there is even a branch of research dedicated to a discipline called animism (a word derived from the Latin meaning faith), which is based on the belief that all objects and phenomena do have a soul that leaves the body after it dies and that continues to live elsewhere.

The culture of celebrating feast days to drive out demons and spirits is very much alive today. Even you, dear reader, may have participated in such celebrations! If you’ve ever been invited to a German wedding, you definitely have! On the eve of the wedding, bride and groom usually hold a party for friends and family called the Polterabend?

The tradition of the German Polterabend dates back to the 16th century. The correct name is actually Poltergeistabend (Poltergeist Eve). The guests bring old China and throw it to break it into a million pieces to show the poltergeists that their work has already been done and that there is no need for them to break more dishes. As a result, the young couple will hopefully get a good night’s sleep.

Yet this is only one example of “modern” life that reminds us that spirits are still very influential figures.

Now it’s time for you to join Hanky as he embarks on an exciting adventure.

I hope this story will keep you enthralled for many enjoyable hours,

Marvin Roth Palm Beach /Florida

My deepest gratitude goes to my beloved wife Conny for her indispensible input, support and the patience to read my manuscripts more than just once!

She made some of her most inspiring comments very early in the book when I had arrived at the scene depicting the beat sitting inside the rabbit and the dog spots the rabbit.

With a lot of emphasis she simply said:

“You better don’t do anything to the dog!”

Our friend Patti put it into even more definitive terms when we ran this small episode by her:

“Don’t kill the Dog!”

I also would like to express my special thanks to my copy editor and very dear friend Irina Launhardt, who edited the manuscript with great dedication and commitment.

And yes, what would a book be without a publisher?

It would not even exist.

Thank you very much, Rolf Bingenheimer:

You and your Transgalaxis Publishing Company have paved the road to the stars for this author.

For English version, my special thanks to Julie Corley. Without her I couldn’t have published my novel in English.

The Author, Marvin Roth, moved from Germany to Florida in 2001.

It was his lifelong dream to live in the USA. Marvin was a child between two worlds as his father was an American Soldier in Germany and his mother was German. Marvin was born and raised in Germany and although he enjoyed growing up in the German culture he has also grown to love the American way of life. He and his wife Cornelia travelled across

the USA and truly fell in love with the Americans and the beautiful landscape in this great country.

Marvin published short stories in his early years and in 2004 he began working on his novel. The idea for “Hanky and the Thousandsleeper” came to Marvin in 2005. Marvin had to run his business in the daytime and could only work on the script during nighttime hours so it took 4 years to complete. In October 2009 his German publisher with the Frankfurt Book Fair presented Marvin’s “Hanky and the Thousandsleeper”. Since this event the book is now selling in several European Countries, like Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Holland, Belgium, Denmark, Finland and Sweden. Marvin hopes his book will be liked by the American people as well.

This years Frankfurt Book Fair Marvin presented his second Hanky story to the public in Europe and hopes to present it soon in the USA.

Marvin did not stop writing and soon will show more impressions from his World.

Morning crept across the forest meadow dragging along weary wafts of mist. Dew drops hung from the twigs of the beech trees, oaks and yews. The grass had that unhealthy blue grayish coloring of fall advancing upon the land. The day struggled into an awakened state slowly. Wan light appeared behind gray clouds that covered up the sun and ponderously chased away the cold of the night.

A small group of deer grazed on the edge of the forest. The animals came to this lonesome clearance almost every morning at the break of day before the woods and all of its noises would demand all of their attention. Here they felt safe and a predator had never made an appearance. Nonetheless, the animals, true to their species, were always very cautious. They took turns raising their heads looking around to check for any suspect movement, listen for any rustling leaves or cracking of a tree branch.

Yet everything was the same as always. The forest was quiet and only a barely noticeable breeze occasionally brushed across the tips of the grass.

A second later, in a mere instant, the peaceful setting suddenly changed. As if controlled by a secret command, the entire group ceased to graze and all of deer started into the same direction as if drawn by a magnet force. Visually nothing at all appeared to be different, and no strange noises could be heard. Nevertheless, something was definitely out there: a hunter, more dangerous and more sanguinary than any other. He made not a single sound, he was completely invisible yet he was filled with a lust to kill. The deer felt him awaken instinctively. They sensed the gruesomeness and the unfathomable. They perceived the evil as it groped for them.

With eyes wide open in panic and foam forming in front of their mouths as a result of hectic breathing and great fear, the animals trampled down the moist grass before they, running into each other, fled in the opposite direction into the woods.

Only the trampled down meadow and the sound of breaking branches, which became less and less audible bore witness to the fact that the deer had ever been here just moments ago.

A few miles from this spot, Ben Johansson, the farmer, made his way across Prisco’s bumpy dirt roads in his age worn 1950s Ford tractor. He was out early this morning because he and his wife Julie wanted to run some errands in town in the afternoon. Actually, New Bismarck was more of a village than a town. The only place to shop in town was the department and general store ran by old man Josh Biller. Of course there were also a few small stores that sold everyday necessities. All of these businesses could be found along the Main Street in New Bismarck. However, the village only had a total of maybe twenty five roads and a population of about three thousand. Nonetheless, he was looking forward to their excursion even though shopping was not one of his favorite past times. While Julie browsed the store shelves at Josh Biller’s, he planned to stop by Betty Sue’s a small country style restaurant right next door to Jose de Villa’s barbershop. He’d get an update on the latest gossip and spend a few hours hanging out with his friends. That’s how they had always organized their shopping days -ever since he had inherited the farm from his dad twenty three years ago.