The Man Who Thought he was Tarzan - Tapa blanda

1992: The story centers on high school students and a beloved teacher, Mr. Navarre, a skilled martial artist, who has a mysterious past that was taken away from him by amnesia following an explosion that was an attempted murder but did kill the woman he loved. His past haunts his present and the dangerous enemies he faced years before will return to threaten him and his students Within the forgotten memories was a time as a teenager who, after the traumatic sudden death of his mother believed he was someone else to forget his grief and protect his working class Queens, NY neighborhood from thugs. Now in his adult present three of his students are kidnapped by an old foe; he knows he must save them but this will require that his memory comes back so that he becomes once again The Man Who Thought He was Tarzan. This novella is a tribute to traditional heroes, loyal friendships, close knit neighborhoods, and the virtues of honor, justice and courage for those readers who are young and the still young-at-heart who love comic book characters that are all too human and not just invincible. Today they are represented on TV with the Flash and The Green Arrow and movies like Spiderman and the Batman Trilogy. The story thrives on the details of the writer's experiences as an English teacher and his realistic depictions of students is based on this. David Garrett Izzo has published three novels, three plays, four short stories, and poetry as well as 16 books and 60 essays of literary scholarship. www.davidgarrettizzo.com A review of the Fantasy Novel: Maximus in Catland: Gival Press. This is a charming book that should definitely appeal to younger readers. For those among us who adore felines, as the author clearly does, there is the additional benefit of seeing an alternate history for beloved pets! David Garrett Izzo has written a fable set in a time when big cats were a sentient and, indeed, heroic race, while human beings were the greedy, cruel newcomers. The spiritually aware cats have to counter the power-mad and evil human Reltih, and the trio we first met as kittens -- Huxley, Maximus and Princess -- now grown, join forces to lead the battle against the human. Catland has all the necessary ingredients for a successful fairy tale: good and evil, unrequited love and loving loyalty, heroism and ancient wisdom. When one spells the name of the cruel and avaricious human leader backwards, the fable becomes parable, and, much like C.S. Lewis's Narnia books, can be interpreted as straightforward fantasy or something a little deeper. -Rambles, Jenny Ivor Maximus the First is a giant lion-sized black cat with a shiny white chest and burning yellow eyes. Maximus was stolen as a kitten and cared for in captivity by a wise, magical eagle named Wystan and watched over by a wizard named Gerald. The first half of the book involves Maximus’s rescue by the red-and-tan tabby named Huxley. The second half recounts Maximus’s conflict with the evil humans, likened to Nazis with names that are cyphers for Hitler and Mengele, men who have chosen 'Second Nature' (the Dark side), that is, ego and power over collective identity and common good. Maximus in Catland is, in fairy-tale style, another examination of the idea of the Truly Strong Man—or, in this case, Cat—which is one who would give his own life for the sake of transpersonal good (what in Catland is called 'Great Mystery'). I liked this little book. As a cat-lover myself, I thoroughly enjoyed the images of giant housecats bounding to the rescue. Izzo’s writing is very descriptive. This book is a treat—with a truly mystical message." —Toby Johnson, Lambda Sci-Fi award winner for Secret Matter