Saving Starfish

Hope Punk, fantasy

Author – Marti Waltheim

Written in a three-novella format. An exploration of the Starfish Principle – we can make a difference, however small.

A journey from the Namib Desert to an urban upliftment project in Birmingham, UK, and on to gangland in East Harlem, NYC.

The journey begins in the Namib Desert when Marti and Bridget film a documentary about the remaining Bushmen. Their folklore says that when Verlorenpan has water in it, a good rainy season will follow and the desert will burst out in bloom. The pan begins to fill when the old borehole is sunk deeper into the massive underground aquafer and the folklore comes true.

Three young women mysteriously vanish from the Burmingham community. The Trust is called in when the police decline to investigate. They will not intervene if the girls have been lured into the drug, pornography and sex syndicates. Locating them is a challenge. Getting the perps into court requires a lot more pressure on the Crown Prosecution Service and the legal system in a case beset by political interference, racial tension and cover-ups.

Reverend Jessie Adams and his small team embark on an urban renewal project in East Harlem, NYC. They must gain gangland support, avoid conflict with the drug lords and convince the community that the refuse, decay and crime can be cleaned up. Jessie is gunned down on the street just when progress is being made. The project must go on.