Queens of the Judas Tree

Richard J. O'Brien

by Richard J. O’Brien

Mother had been luckier than me. She was from Goa. When she burst forth from Grandmother’s womb, she flew out of the house with the blue and black wings of a Morpho Menelaus butterfly, and she did not return home until she was nearly six months old. I was born with bee wings on my back, the length of my body, like translucent paper wings of a honey bee….

Richard J. O’Brien lives in outside of Philadelphia, PA. He received his MFA in Creative Writing from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Currently, Richard teaches first-year composition and literature at Mercer County Community College, Stockton University, and Temple University. In the distant past, he served in the US Army before the Berlin Wall came down. After that he attended Rutgers University where he studied writing and literature.

 

ECKLEBURG BOOK CLUB | The Garden of Fragile Things by Richard J. O’Brien

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In the late 1970s, Joe Godwin was just twelve years old, living in a working-class neighborhood. Plagued by bullies and a volatile home life, Joe spends his time with his three friends in search of adventure. The discovery of an abandon mansion during a simple camping trip in a state forest sets a series of consequences in motion between the boys, the inhabitants of the mansion, and the others who occupy the garden behind the colossal home.


What People Are Saying about The Garden of Fragile Things

“From the first paragraphs, The Garden of Fragile Things holds you in its charm. Anyone who is young, anyone who can or wants to remember the mystery, enchantment, and fragility of youth will enjoy the rich mystery of O’Brien’s Garden of Fragile Things. You won’t want to put it down — and you probably won’t either until there are no more pages to turn.”

~Thomas E. Kennedy, author of In the Company of Angels, Falling Sideways, and Kerrigan in Copenhagen (A New York Times Notable Book)

The Garden of Fragile Things is a literary dark tale that chronicles four boys’ coming of age against paranormal forces that operate between two worlds.

A dark fantasy bildungsroman in the tradition of Stephen King’s It and Robert McCammon’s Boy’s Life (although, frankly, much better than McCammon in almost every way), Richard J. O’Brien’s The Garden of Fragile Things tells the story of Joe Godwin and three friends all growing up in Yorkville, New Jersey, in the 1970s. In addition to the usual friendships, bullies and sexual awakening traditional in the coming-of-age tale, Joe and his friends also encounter murder, ghosts and something across Hobbs Creek in Franklin Forest—something “eldritch,” to use one of the novel’s recurring words, part Tolkien, part Lovecraft—that will change them forever.

~R.G. Evans


Publisher’s Information

  • PUBLISHER: Dark Alley Press/Vagabondage Press
  • ISBN: 978-0692393222
  • DIMENSIONS: 5.2 x 0.6 x 8 inches
  • PAGES: 236]
  • PRICE: $15.95
  • RELEASE DATE: 06/16/2015
  • PURCHASE HERE

  • Recommended Works by Richard J. O’Brien

    Favorite Eckleburg Work: http://eckleburg.org/product/fiction-new-10/

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    Post dot.com boom, prior to 9/11, something is amiss in Silicon Alley. In less capable hands, this mystery of sentient computers, double-dealing backstabbers, and the patented (or at least should be) paranoia that accompany such dealings would be almost too much of a cliche. Pynchon delivers palpable insight to NYC prior to and in the days after 9/11. If you are a new fan it’s as good as start as any; if you’re an old fan, well, follow the bouncing ball… READ MORE


    The Ghost Writer by Philip Roth

    Roth’s book that introduces his alter ego Nathan Zuckerman who, in the 1950s, becomes the overnight guest of his idol, the writer E.I. Lonoff. At Lonoff’s farm house, Zuckerman meets Amy Bellette who may or may not be the iconic victim of Nazi persecution. The Ghost Writer serves as a study into the balance between literature and life, as well as a statement on compromise and consequence of sacrifice. READ MORE


    Discussion Questions for The Garden of Fragile Things

    1. Do you consider Joe Godwin an unreliable narrator? If so, why? If not, what is it about his narrative that makes reliable?

    2. What events within this story, barring the paranormal occurrences, do children miss out most on in present-day society?

    3. What clues within this novel might tip the reader off that Joe Godwin the narrator may not be as kind and innocent as he seems to be?


    About Richard J. O’Brien

    Richard J. O’Brien grew up in New Jersey. Presently, he lives in Pennsylvania where he writes stories and novels in which things go horribly wrong. When he’s not writing, Richard can be found teaching first-year composition at Temple University, Rowan University, and Stockton University. In addition, he is an instructor with the Eckleburg Workshops where he teaches a course on domestic fabulism. He completed his MFA in Creative at Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2012. His stories have appeared in 13 Horror, Disturbed Digest, Encounters Magazine, the now-defunct 13 Stories, Ghostbreakers: Sinister Slueths, Sex and Murder Magazine, and others.




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    In the late 1970s, Joe Godwin was just twelve years old, living in a working-class neighborhood. Plagued by bullies and a volatile home life, Joe spends his time with his three friends in search of adventure. The discovery of an abandon mansion during a simple camping trip in a state forest sets a series of consequences in motion between the boys, the inhabitants of the mansion, and the others who occupy the garden behind the colossal home.