by Adam Sidwell
“We don’t want to attract attention,” said Father, his yellow beard covering his belly like a thick blanket of hay. His mustache turned down at the corners – it meant that Father was frowning.
“I won’t,” said Torbjorn.
Torbjorn’s 9-foot-tall brother Storfjell shoved past him. “Good luck, my brother,” Storfjell said, punching Torbjorn in the arm. It nearly knocked Torbjorn off balance. “Do not settle for fish feet!”
I laugh my belly off, thought Torbjorn, frowning to himself. Fish feet were what you got when you’d been bamboozled. Torbjorn was not about to get bamboozled.
Torbjorn watched Storfjell chuckle as he ran up the beach into town. Storfjell was the only man 17 winters old who already had wrinkles growing out the corners of his eyes. His beard and mustache had turned silver early-on too. Father said it was because Storfjell had wisdom beyond his years. Sometimes Torbjorn wondered if that were really true. More like stuffy beyond his years, he thought.
Father also said Storfjell was his most responsible son. He counted on Storfjell to make reliable trades. Nothing extravagant or extraordinary, but Storfjell always brought back something useful for the clan. He was consistent, and that made Father happy.
When it came to Torbjorn, though, Father wasn’t so go lucky. He was always telling Torbjorn to be a man, but Torbjorn already felt like one. He was 13 winters old! He already had a full red beard. He could do at least as well as Storfjell. Today, he was determined to do better.
Torbjorn threw his wool cloak over the basket of muffins. He paused as he passed a reddish bovine that had rowed alongside them. He patted her on the head – he so loved their bovines – then set out on the sand.
He passed a few small fishing boats, rounded an outcropping of rock, and found the wooden walkway that led into the village.
Viksfjord was big. Just from the shore, Torbjorn could see four separate, fortified enclosures, at least a few dozen lean-tos, a handful of ramshackle huts, and eleven wooden longhouses. There must have been a few hundred people living there, and even more stopping to trade. It was the biggest village Torbjorn had ever seen. Maybe the biggest village in all of the North. There was even a longhouse with carved dragon heads pointing out either end of its roof.
And then there were the streets: they were bustling with shoppers and merchants. There were people shouting from their doorways, people pushing carts. Torbjorn made his way carefully up into the swarm.
This was the first time he’d gone into Viksfjord alone…
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I don’t think that the world would know about the Evertaster Series, or even me as an author, without the help of April Smith, Holly Baumbach, and Janae Rogers, all of whom were tireless in their efforts to arrange my book tours from state to state across the West. I also owe a big thanks to many enthusiastic booksellers, three of which are Amber Whitlow in Arizona, Laurie Aldern in California, whom I’ve shared adventures at many a school with, and Jennifer Zidon in Colorado.
Thanks to my editors at Future House Publishing: Helena Steinacker, who has a fantastic imagination, and Emma Hoggan, who is as precise as possible in very demanding circumstances (in other words, when I turn in my manuscript late).
And finally, thanks to my lovely wife Michelle, who I tricked into marrying me by saying the first Evertaster book was probably the last book I’d ever write. I’d thought that might be the case back then. Oh how things changed! She has since spent many nights alone, wrestling the kids to bed without my help while I was out on tour. She has incredible patience, and I’m grateful for her love.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
In between books, Adam Glendon Sidwell uses the power of computers to make monsters, robots and zombies come to life for blockbuster movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean, King Kong, Pacific Rim, Transformers and Tron. After spending countless hours in front of a keyboard meticulously adjusting tentacles, calibrating hydraulics, and brushing monkey fur, he is delighted at the prospect of modifying his creations with the flick of a few deftly placed adjectives.
If you liked his book, he’d love to hear about it.
Reviews keep him writing.
Find Evertaster: The Delicious City online and leave him a review.
Want Adam to come to your school?
Adam Glendon Sidwell has visited hundreds of schools across the country sharing his interactive assemblies and encouraging students to read and write. Adam uses visuals from his career as an animator for blockbuster Hollywood films such as Tron, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Thor to teach kids about writing structure, narrative, and theme. Adam’s assembly is the perfect educational experience for your school. For more information visit:
http://www.futurehousepublishing.com/authors/adamglendonsidwell/
Contact [email protected] to book Adam at your school.