HEALER OF THE WATER MONSTER

Nathan, a young Navajo boy from Phoenix, Arizona, goes on an epic hero’s journey.

On the surface, 11-year-old Nathan is like many other boys. His parents are divorced, and he’s a little upset with his father. His paternal grandmother, Nali, is supportive, and he’s eager to spend the summer with her on the Navajo reservation in New Mexico, working on his science fair project. Nathan moves into her rural home, expecting a quiet summer. Instead, he has the adventure of a lifetime when he discovers something is eating Nali’s heirloom seeds. Wandering into the desert, he encounters Pond, an ailing water monster. Adults cannot see Holy Beings from the creation stories, but as a child, Nathan can; with the help of a communication stone, he enters a world of Navajo cosmology. He brings a message to his grandmother about the Enemy Way and helps his Uncle Jet, a traumatized Marine veteran skeptical about his family’s traditional ways, who is haunted by the shadow voice of an Ash Being. Healing—for the earth, the water monster, and Uncle Jet—is on the line as Nathan travels to the Third World to meet the most sacred Holy Being of all. The deeply grounded and original perspective of this story brings readers into both the worlds of Navajo blessing songs, rain songs, and traditional healing and everyday family relationships.

Hands readers a meaningful new take on family love.