Meet the Author

Jeffrey B. Allen is a professor of writing at Northampton Community College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. As well, he is a Fellow of the National Writing Project at Penn State University. Allen is a board member of the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group. His articles on character development have been published in hard copy magazines and e-zines. Prior to establishing a writing career, he ran a successful architectural woodworking business for twenty-six years and, in 2006, received the Colonel Holt Business Achievement Award. Allen holds a 50-ton Coast Guard Captain’s license and has captained numerous ocean going sailing adventures. His true love has always been writing, and today he plies the craft of writing on a full-time basis.

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We meet our protagonist, twelve-year-old John Gerber. John's life is not that of an average pre-teen-not even close. John, his mother Ellie, and his sister Marny live in constant, paralyzing fear of John's father, Daniel. Daniel, or the beast as John calls him, is an extremely volatile man whose rage could explode on his family at any moment-and explode it does. John dreams of ending the beast's reign of terror, of taking his family away before it is too late. The first fifty pages of Part 1 are no fantasy as the author describes in vivid, shocking detail Daniel's unpredictable fury and a horrible example of violent abuse, as the beast leaves John and Ellie beaten and bloodied and kidnaps six-year-old Marny.

With the help of a mysterious taxi driver, John and Ellie begin their search for Marny. This is where the fantasy starts as it is believed that Marny is somewhere in the candy factory where Daniel was employed. Soon, John and his mother are aboard a train in an amazing land. The Land is a place that is all about creating the best tasting candy. The leader of the Land is called KyaSiftar. The Siftar's main rival is the minister of Southland province named Mengus. Desperate for power, Mengus has his sights set on dominating the land and controlling the new flavor creations. Mengus recruits the beast to aid in his conquest of the Land. He believes that gaining control in the Land is the key to overthrowing the World as well.

What is striking about Gone Away, Into the Land is Allen’s skilful narrative pacing in revealing bit-by-bit the various themes to the reader and permitting him or her to slowly discover it. Another plus is that Allen does not resort to is some kind of magic wherein he relies on the fantasy aspect in order to enable John to break out of a thorny situation by manufacturing a super-duper miraculous spell that the reader never even knew about. With its deftly constructed plot, episodic structure, a lovable hero, interesting secondary characters, and a dash of suspense, Allen’s fascinating debut novel is a haunting tale that jolts along at its own pace.

Moreover, Allen’s writing is extremely powerful particularly his imagery and masterful descriptions such as when John meets up with The Beast. And when all's said and done, we have a novel that is not only amazingly fitting for our times, but one that is rich and rewarding for anyone, young or old, wishing to ponder over insightful questions pertaining to our existence and journey through life.

 

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