Anthony M Alioto

Fall semester, 1969: a socially awkward student, Sylvian Matreya, returns to a small Midwestern university in order to continue his studies in physics. Despite his efforts to avoid student activism, he becomes a sought-after recruit by the Great Truth Cloud (a psychedelic hippie cult) and the People's Will (a violent band of revolutionaries). Both seek to indoctrinate him and bring him into their respective movements. But why? Why him? Up to this point in his life, Sylvian has been invisible. People call him an ""idiot."" After the revolutionary murder of a student, our ""idiot"" seems to drop through the floor of reality into a murky, fantastic world of wild plots and stranger people. And in so doing, Sylvian discovers his own surprising destiny.

Fall semester, 1969: a socially awkward student, Sylvian Matreya, returns to a small Midwestern university in order to continue his studies in physics. Despite his efforts to avoid student activism, he becomes a sought-after recruit by the Great Truth Cloud (a psychedelic hippie cult) and the People's Will (a violent band of revolutionaries). Both seek to indoctrinate him and bring him into their respective movements. But why? Why him? Up to this point in his life, Sylvian has been invisible. People call him an ""idiot."" After the revolutionary murder of a student, our ""idiot"" seems to drop through the floor of reality into a murky, fantastic world of wild plots and stranger people. And in so doing, Sylvian discovers his own surprising destiny.

THE 12TH CHAPTER OF GENESIS IS A NEW BEGINNING. The Lord tells Abram to leave his homeland and go to a country which the Lord will show him. And; "I will make you into a great nation..." He will become: EXALTED FATHER. There exists a different version of the story, written NOT by Moses as tradition has it. This other-telling, recently discovered and translated here for the first time, comes from the pen of the priest-wanderer named Marduk. In Five Books, Marduk describes the fateful journey to the Lord's Mountain, the destiny of the Exalted Father, and, most shockingly, the truth about the Lord.

IT HAS BEEN SIX THOUSAND YEARS SINCE THE CATASTROPHE. The Earth is a rotting graveyard, save for a small refuge of green lands and pure waters. Those who rule the unpolluted gardens, the secretive Sublime Elect, teach us that the daemon Yomah corrupted our world. Yomah is a bungling god, a lesser power from a lower realm. Beyond exists the High God. We believe the High God has finally sent a savior to destroy Yomah and restore our world. The Elect, however, preach our savior is in fact the daemon himself, returned to poison the last vestiges of life. Such a creature must be hunted and killed. These Ten Epistles tell our savior's story. They are the only true account of his time among us, written by his beloved disciple, the blacksmith Anbar.

"A pilgrim's report from that eerie country which may be on everyone's itinerary. . . and makes the way easier." Anthony Alioto was diagnosed with end stage renal disease in 1993 and was forced to go on dialysis for several years before receiving a successful kidney transplant in 2000. In "The Ninefold Path," he invites readers to join him on a harrowing personal journey through a labyrinth of tests, "what can I expect" meetings with medical staff, surgeries, and near-death experiences. He spares no detail in his desire to provide a guide for others living with a chronic disease - and their families and friends - on how to navigate the oftentimes rough waters of modern medicine." The Ninefold Path" is for all of those wearily traveling through chronic illnesses and for those by their sides wondering what to do. It is a celebration of the extraordinary individuals in medicine who relieve the suffering of strangers each and every day. In cataloging detail, there is inspiration plus a call to compassion and serenity.