A Tale of Seven Phones, Giving Up is NOT an Option!

By Tarif Youssef-Agha

One long evening, while the rest of the household slept, Blue and his sidekicks started a mission to save the children of America, and the World, from a merciless force intent on dragging them into a trap too gripping to escape.
Our brave heroes come face-to-face with challenges, obstacles and threats; but giving up is not an option.
This is a journey beyond imagination, a magical ride, with a rush to complete their mission before sunrise.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Erin Go Bragh Publishing
• Release date: Sep 18, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005635268

Tarif Youssef-Agha

Tarif was born in Damascus, Syria in 1957. He started writing short stories and articles in his early years of elementary school and free style poetry in his college years.He earned 2 BS degrees in Engineering and Literature from Damascus University.After a number of encounters with the brutal Syrian dictatorship regime, he decided that Syria was not a safe country to live in. He moved to the U.S. in the Eighties and restarted his life from scratch.He organized several poetry recital events in Houston in the years 2009 and 2010, glorifying the civilization, history and culture of his nation. As soon as the Arab Spring revolutions started late 2010, he instantly moved to their side one after one and step by step with his writings; he published 3 books in poetry and one book in short stories documenting them.In 2018, he published his 5th book ‘Hearts, Tears and the Journey of Life’ that contains collective poems of Love, Lamenting and Meditation.Seeing how the young generation was being attacked by a new kind of enemy, he took it upon himself to write this book. He is blowing the whistle on cell-phone addiction to draw attention to the underestimated danger it is going to create. On the other hand, he is opening doors for solutions. To him, giving up should NOT be an option.

Book preview

Created By: Tarif Youssef-Agha

Developed & Edited By: Kathleen J. Shields

Copyright

This book is a work of fiction. Places, events, and situations in this story are purely fictional. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

© Copyright 2020 A Tale of Seven Phones, Giving Up is Not an Option by Tarif Youssef-Agha - All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the author.

ISBN-13: 978-1-941345-76-4

ISBN-E: 978-1-005635-26-8

ASIN: B08HSHN59W

Character Design by Saffron Doll

Illustrations by Mike Forshay

Canyon Lake, TX

www.ErinGoBraghPublishing.com

Dedication

I dedicate this story to those who like to make a difference. And also to those who work hard to find solutions to save the present, and spare the future. But mostly to those who believe that giving up is NOT an option. This story is for all of them.

~ The Author ~

Houston, Texas

2020

Table of Contents

When Cell Phones Talk

Time to Party

When Silence Falls

The Vote

Making a Plan

Sabotage Time

Talking with Phones

Chip Development

Fire in his Eyes

Ernie’s Last Chance

Danger’s Brewing

The Secret Weapon

Arresting Resolution

A Race to the Rise

The Author at a Glance

Developmental Editor’s Notes

When I first read through Tarif’s manuscript, I fell in love with the idea of smart phones taking it upon themselves to save the human race from a problem they were tools in. It seemed like a great way to inform children about that problem, while entertaining them with an enchanting tale of adventure and triumph.

I loved the fact that the villain was another smart phone who was selfish and only worried about himself. I also liked how even the animal kingdom had a present voice to express their despair regarding their relation with the humans being affected by that problem. Plus, I really enjoyed the comradery between everyone to get the job done.

I found the story to have great promise, but discovered that the demographic it was geared towards was not the age range it was intended for. The story needed help. It needed editing, embellishments and enhancements. We needed to gear the vocabulary to tweens and add to the story to lengthen it for them. That’s where I came in.

I was given the privilege to escape into Tarif’s magical world, become the hero and the villain, while reenacting the entire adventure in my imagination. By doing this, I was able to describe the scenes in a way that was more aptly suited for the age-group the author wanted to attract. About half way through, even he joined in with multiple embellishments and additional side stories that really helped to add flair to the story.

It was a true joy and honor working with the author to produce this story and I pray it is enjoyed by many children, as well as, inspires everyone to face the obstacles the digital world is creating without anyone noticing, and do something to make a difference. If we all work together, we can accomplish anything we put our minds to.

Let’s get to work!

~ Kathleen J. Shields

Author’s Introduction

In my first book A Journey around the Arab-Spring Revolutions, which was published in English and Arabic in December 2014, I supported, with poetry, the struggle of the Arab people in five countries against their dictators, honoring their quest for Freedom, Dignity and Democracy.

In my second book The Chronicles of the Syrian Revolution, which was published in English in July 2017, I documented, also with poetry, the first six years of the Syrian uprising against the brutal Assad dictatorship, day by day and week by week, and why it was betrayed by the entire world. The Arabic version followed in a separate book published a few months later.

In my forth book From the Daily Life of a Syrian Citizen, which was a collection of short stories published in Arabic in August 2018, it was close and personal, where I talked about true events I experienced myself in Syria and put my life and other lives at risk. My fifth book Hearts, tears & the Journey of life, which was published in English and Arabic in September 2018, was both personal and emotional in the same time; falling in love here, shedding tears on deceased loved ones there, and also digging deep in the meaning of life, trying to make sense of a lot of things that are hard to understand.

"A Tale of Seven Phones" is my first children’s book. Witnessing the catastrophic direction the world is taking, I felt I had to blow the whistle, and that was how this book came to life. My wish is that this story finds its way to the hearts of those who can take this book to a higher level, and make it available to millions of children in the States and around the World. At one point, I invited my two sons, Sami and Evan, to read the story and give me a feedback from their perspective as 21 and 20 years old boys. I also gave them chapters 9 and 10 to develop and add side stories to them; they both did a great job.

I was honored to work with Kathleen whom I got to know participating in Book Fairs. She is a great, gifted author, who writes children books, and also owns her own publishing company, Erin Go Bragh Publishing. Her task of editing, embellishing and enhancing the story added a special one-of-a kind Texan flavor to my Arabian Nights style story.

So buckle your seat belt as a ride beyond imagination is about to start!

Chapter 1

When Cell Phones Talk

Some say technology is a blessing; others say it's a curse, but this story is not about whether technology is good or bad; it's about what we decide to do with it that matters.

It was a breezy, spring evening in Houston, Texas, which meant the mugginess was still thick enough to force one to grow gills to breathe, but the wind made it bearable to be outside. Nevertheless, the Robinson family made quick strides towards their neighborhood phone store located in the west side of the city.

When the door opened, the cold brisk air conditioning smacked their faces and drew them in to the commotion already taking place. A flurry of people had already swarmed the store, dragged in by the marketing promise of, Liquidation! Sale! Everything Must Go!

The Robinsons, Ray and his wife Sandra, were in the market for a first phone for their son Rusty. His eleventh birthday was fast approaching and it was something he had been talking about non-stop. While the chaos inside was that of an amusement park, it didn’t deter the parents from searching for that perfect gift.

Scanning the store, there didn’t seem to be much left on the shelves. Incredibly expensive, technologically advanced phones with all the bells and whistles were leaning back against their displays acting unconcerned. Their cases shimmered with newness. Their outlooks were calm. They knew it would only be a matter of time before they were picked up and carried off to some wonderful home and the adventure of a lifetime.

The older model flip-phones, however, were frantic. They were leaping up and down on their dust covered displays, flailing their arms back and forth, trying to gain anyone’s attention. The looks of fear filled their faces as they knew