Launch of the Ebook Sequoia

Sequoia

Sequoia – a short story

Today, I’m officially launching my brand new ebook “Sequoia – a short story”. It’s free on all amazon stores today, so you can grab it right away and enjoy it!

Now, what made me write “Sequoia”? I really don’t know anymore. This is one of the tales that simply flow from mind to keyboard. I was reading a lot of shamanic books, meditating, thinking about nature, energy and how it is all interlinked. Fun times, and somehow, all this coaleced into this story.

Here’s the blurb, for all of you who want to know more:

Hi, I’m Max. Hardworking, book-loving person who feels special about trees. My favorite one lives in the botanical gardens, a fairly young sequoia. To me, they are the most majestic beings in the world. However, I approach them with caution now, after what happened to me.

I still can’t explain it very well. Imagine putting your hand on the tree, feeling the rough bark, thinking loving thoughts to it, and then suddenly plunging into darkness. That’s what happened to me. I ended up in a whole forest of sequoias, and soon found out I wasn’t in the good old US of A anymore. Fortunately, I made some friends, and discovered a possible way of getting home … and change the world with it.

But like I said, I’m careful about sequoias, these days. And you might want to treat them with respect, too.

Of course, the sequoia is another part of myself that made it to the story. I’ve always felt partial about sequoias. The ones in the Northwest of America are utterly fascinating, and I still regret I never managed to see them during my exchange year in California. I saw a huge part of the United States then, but we never went up north along the coast. So, I missed them. And I still miss them.

On the other hand, when my parents built the house I grew up in, my mom bought a baby metasquoia on a whim. (That’s the Chinese relative of sequoias, a real living fossil.) That little seedling did so poorly, she even got the money back. Yet the baby tree clung to life, despite a fungal infection. It eventually started growing, and went from handspan high to about two feet.

Then a cold winter came with much snow. And the local hares had very little to eat. So they gnawed at that part of baby metasquoia that was up above the snow. The poor baby lost about a foot of its hight. It took it two years to recover from that. Then we had to move it and planted it in another part of the garden. And for the next several years, my father took out a bet with a neighbor, betting that the tree would be bigger than the neighbor’s wife at the end of summer. I believe my dad lost that bet three times in a row …

By now, that tree is 40 years old, and it’s towering over the house. My family no longer owns it, but I have permission to come and visit whenever I feel like it. Sadly, it’s fairly far away from where I live now, but I have been back and admired my old friend.

And yes, just like Max, I also talk with trees. Granted, they rarely answer me.

So, if you feel like giving “Sequoia” a try, here are the links to the three main amazon stores. Remember, it’s free today:

“Sequoia” on Amazon.com
“Sequoia” on Amazon.co.uk
“Sequoia” bei Amazon.de

I’d love to get comments and reviews!

About Hannah Steenbock

Hannah Steenbock is an author, dreamer, and coach. She has published several short stories in English and German, as well as one novel in German. In 2013 she started self-publishing her work. In 2014, she has won two awards for her short story "Sequoia".
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2 Responses to Launch of the Ebook Sequoia

  1. I saw the giant Sequioas in California when I was really small – of course, when you’re that age, majesty isn’t what hits you, it’s the fact that one of them had a tunnel carved into it big enough for a car!

    Still, I do remember it, even after all this time!

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