Book Column

I had the opportunity this past year to serve as a judge for two categories of the Whitney Awards, given to outstanding fiction written by LDS authors. As a result of my experience, I got to read books by authors who were among my longtime favorites and to meet new authors.

One of the people I met at the LDS Storymakers conference where the Whitney Awards are given was Kathi Oram Peterson, author of "The Forgotten Warrior," a book I recently finished reading.

In this novel, sixteen-year-old Sydney Morgan is forced by a crisis to find her absent father, which in turn begins a chain of events leading her to the last place and time she would have ever expected --the time of Alma where she finds herself among the stripling warriors.

"The Forgotten Warrior" is Peterson's first novel and it is targeted toward young adults. Afew years ago I decided to really apply myself to my writing, Kathi says. Plus, I wanted to write something that would inspire the youth. I had attended a class about books nominated for the Newbery Awards and decided to read as many of them as I could. That was a wonderful experience! I learned a great deal by reading other authors. So, I decided to try writing for YA. I loved it!

Like many authors, Kathi found the road to publication long. I have a very deep file of rejection letters to prove it, she says. But that was before I turned my attention to YA.

I'm so glad I found a home that loved my characters as much as I did. "The Forgotten Warrior"was only submitted twice before it sold. Guess I finally found something that worked. he first publisher that read it didn't like Tarik and had a hard time believing a young woman could take on a Lamanite Warrior. Whatever . . . For years I've gone to karate meets with my son, and Ive met some very talented young women. One, who worked for the sheriff's department, could take down a man twice her size. My fans seem to love Tarik. And they believe that a modern-day young woman could take on Lamanite warriors, just like I do.

Of course, the main character, Syd, has been trained in martial arts, which gives her a definite advantage when it comes to fighting. About this choice, Kathi says, I didn't want to take away from the stripling warriors strong faith and their courage in facing a mighty foe. But I alsowanted young women to realize that with proper training they can do most anything they set their minds to. Giving Syd the ability to fight using karate helped to accomplish that, I hope.

Luckily, Kathi had a karate expert right at home to help her with the logistics and accuracy of her moves. My son's karate knowledge helped a great deal as I wrote the fight scenes, she says. Many times I'd read him a scene, he'd tell me that doesn't work, and make me get out of my chair so we could go through the motions. Nothing like acting it out to put things into perceptive.

Fans may have to wait awhile to find out what happens to Syd, who is stuck in ancient times at the end of "The Forgotten Warrior," however. Kathi says, "Book two is finished and in my publishers hands." There are rumors of the book being released next year, but no firm date as yet.

I have a Christmas book due out in October titled "An Angel on Main Street," she adds. Set in the 1950s, it is the story of a young boy, Micah Connors, whose father died in the Korean War. His little sister, Annie, is very ill and he fears she, too, will die. As Christmas nears, a nativity begins to appear in the town square. No one knows who is building it. Annie believes when the baby Jesus comes he will make her better. Even when Micah explains that the baby Jesus will only be a doll, she still believes, so he decides to find the nativity builder and the baby Jesus. No cliffhanger here, just a nice little Christmas story.

That sounds like a book that I'll be happy to read as well.