To See a Narwhal
by
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Happiness is not an accident, nor is it a lovely romp in a flowery field. Only the strong can obtain true happiness. It must be demanded and captured. It must be cultivated so that it doesn’t escape. It must be aggressively protected from the drama of those that want to take it away—and there are many, many that want to take it away.
Happiness is not for everyone, in fact, it’s probably not for hardly anyone. It’s too difficult to get and most humans are damn lazy. But if happiness is obtained, as Matthew shall soon see, life becomes extraordinary.
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About the Book
Growing up in a small Minnesota town during the 1980s was not easy for Matthew. He was abused by the Catholic Church, bullied mercilessly by his peers, and neglected by public school teachers. To complicate matters, he is also gay. Matthew’s path of self-loathing led to an adult life that’s unfulfilled and depressing. To survive, he regularly retreats into the lives of three friends he invented while growing up.
Nikail, the oldest of Matthew’s friends, is a space-cowboy from the planet Infinia. He’s locked in a deadly dispute with an evil warlord. A second friend, Dr. Nicholas Wells, has been with Matthew since junior high. Wells is a world-renowned Egyptologist on the cusp of making the biggest discovery of his career. Mr. Jack Hartman, Matthew’s friend from his celibate young adult years, is a handsome English teacher who is secretly dating the most eligible bachelor in town.
Imaginary friends are fine for children, but they might not be the best way for a grown man to cope with his mental state. In To See a Narwhal, Matthew navigates the complicated institutions of religion, work, relationships, and identity. He attempts to seek happiness in the real world—a world he eagerly escapes from all too often.
About the Author
Michael Fridgen loves snow, theme parks, and Christmas. He has written both adult and young adult fiction and was a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award. Fridgen’s work about gay people during the Holocaust, The Iron Words, topped the Goodreads list of World War II books for several weeks in 2014 and is used in schools across the country. He’s written three books about the theme park industry and is the author of Jacob Marley’s Ghost. Fridgen lives in Minneapolis.