Life Tree

If by some miracle, some fortuitous alignment of the stars and planets, you could go back in time to start over as an 11-year old – without the benefit of knowing anything that you know now or being able to change even a single breath in a day – would you do it? In this thrilling novel, one man experiences just that as he is transported back in time to his childhood. Get ready for an adventure like no other in "Life Tree".

On a cold rainy night while preparing for the next day's funeral, Peter McKinney sits in a bed & breakfast and stares into the night. Then through his memories, he slips back in time to the days preceding Christmas, 1964. The people, places, and events of his childhood were completely ordinary, even mundane, until that night during a similar storm. It was an evening that started off at a church Christmas party with food, fun, and friends. But Peter and his best friend Luke had unknowingly sparked a sequence of events that would change Peter's life forever. Surviving a near-tragedy that night only led to a shocking truth that Peter could never have imagined – especially at eleven years old.

This is a story of ordinary life. It may remind you of your own childhood, of laughter over silly things, imaginative play days, forever friends (or at least you thought they would be), and secrets that to this day your parents don't know about. It is about days free from worry when your only responsibility was making sure the dog got fed. It was a time when your parents seemed so different than they were when you got older. It was a time to dream of only the good things in life and to make wishes on stars. It was carefree, and happy, and once again – ordinary.

Until it wasn't.

Martha Amabile was born in Houston, Texas and is a proud Texan. She is a direct descendant Collin McKinney, who signed the Declaration of Independence for Texas.

In 1985 Martha became a volunteer with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Central and Southern Arizona chapter. The Foundation was still new, with less than a dozen wish granters in the entire country. Having limited staff – along with wish granting and public speaking – she wrote all the fundraising letters, form letters, and correspondence to parents who had lost a child. While with the Foundation, Martha had numerous articles published in the local newspaper.

As a single mother raising two boys (and at least as many dogs at any given time), Martha worked for engineering and law firms while her spare time was spent filling her computer with dozens of stories. When her first grandchild was born, she started a book. When her second grandchild was born 3 months later, she had added about 5 pages to the book. By the time the third grandchild was born (3 years later), she was about half finished. Today, that grandchild is 11 years old, and the book is a reality.

This story reflects many of Martha's own childhood memories of growing up in Texas – the greatest place she ever lived. Some of the book's characters were friends of her parents. Some are made up. It took a long time to finish this book journey because life seemed to always get in the way of serious writing. So now, as retirement looms, maybe she will try to finish (start) another one.

Or go back to bowling.