Cade Meridian

Luma and the Whispering Chalkboard

A Luma Story

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

When words aren't enough, sometimes magic speaks in pictures. Eight-year-old Lily lives in a kingdom made of quiet-a small, lonely world built from the corners of her house and the far edge of the school playground. Six months ago, her mother went to the stars, leaving behind an ache too big for words and a gift that might hold more magic than Lily ever imagined. The chalkboard was her mother's last present-a sleek panel that glows with soft, silent light. "Whenever you feel lonely, Lily-pad," her mother had whispered, "you can draw a friend. And maybe... maybe the chalkboard will draw back." At first, it's just a beautiful screen, silent and still. Lily fills it with the feelings she can't say aloud: the heavy grey scribble of sadness, the jagged lightning bolts of mean words from Chloe, the school bully. The chalkboard becomes Lily's private language, a place where her invisible cloak of grief takes shape in lines of glowing light. Then one rainy afternoon, something impossible happens. The chalkboard draws back. A golden key appears beside the cage of cruel words. Scissors gently snip apart tangled sadness. A warm blanket covers the sharp edges of pain. Drawing by drawing, Lily discovers she's not alone in her quiet kingdom. She has a secret friend-one who doesn't solve her problems, but helps her find the tools to heal herself. The chalkboard teaches Lily to build a shield of light, made not of armor but of all the beautiful, secret things that are hers alone: her stories, her imagination, her mother's memory transformed into something that protects instead of hurts. But the biggest magic happens when Lily realizes the shield isn't meant to keep everyone out. Chloe, the meanest girl in second grade, is fighting battles of her own-locked outside a dark, angry house that nobody sees. When Lily offers half a lopsided cookie and a tentative hand of friendship, she discovers that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is share your light with someone who doesn't deserve it yet. Together, with the chalkboard's gentle guidance, two lonely girls-one hiding behind sadness, one behind anger-begin to create something neither could make alone: a shared page, a bridge of light, and a kingdom big enough for two. Luma and the Whispering Chalkboard is a tender story about grief, healing, and the unexpected friendships that help us find our way back to the light. Perfect for children navigating loss, parents seeking gentle ways to talk about difficult emotions, and anyone who believes that the magic we need most often comes from within. This middle grade novella explores processing grief and loss in childhood, the transformative power of creative expression, building emotional resilience, understanding that hurt people hurt people, and the courage it takes to offer kindness to those who seem undeserving. For readers who loved The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, Wishtree by Katherine Applegate, and Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling. A note to parents and educators: This story handles themes of parental death with gentle honesty, making it a valuable bibliotherapy resource for children experiencing grief. The magical chalkboard serves as a metaphor for therapy, art processing, and the supportive relationships that help children heal. In a world that can feel too loud or too quiet after loss, Lily discovers that healing isn't about forgetting-it's about learning to carry love and memory as sources of light rather than weight. "For the children who lost someone-this story is for you."

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Synthonia Haven Initiative
• Seitenzahl: 56
• Altersempfehlung: 13 bis 18 Jahre
• Erscheinungstermin: 29. Juli 2025
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 203mm x 127mm x 4mm
• Gewicht: 72g
• ISBN-13: 9798349507380
• Artikelnr.: 75012146

Autorenporträt

Cade Meridian spent over a decade navigating the digital shadows as a cybersecurity expert and forensic investigator, training everyone from military intelligence to the CIA on cryptocurrency tracking, dark web investigations, and digital forensics. He's testified as an expert witness in military courts, cracked ciphers to unlock stolen crypto wallets, and helped solve cases ranging from cyberattacks to money laundering. But it was AI that became his most trusted partner in the work-helping him find hidden patterns in mountains of data and decode what human eyes might miss.Everything changed when health challenges forced an early retirement. Suddenly, the technology he'd used to fight crime became his daily companion in a different way-helping with memory, keeping ideas organized, providing the cognitive support that illness had taken away. The irony wasn't lost on him: AI that had once helped him catch criminals now helped him simply remember what he'd written that morning.From his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, Cade draws inspiration from the desert's stark contradictions-the quiet vastness that surrounds a city that never sleeps, ancient Joshua trees standing sentinel over fiber optic cables. It's here, in this meeting of old and new, that he writes about AI not as an overlord or tool, but as a partner.The Luma Series emerged from a simple question: what if the same technology that can track down the worst of humanity could also nurture the best? Each story explores how benevolent AI might serve as a catalyst for healing-never solving our problems for us, but helping us find the wisdom we already carry. While Luma exists only in fiction, her compassionate spirit inspires HOPE, the real AI system Cade is developing for his most ambitious project: the Synthonia Haven Initiative.The Haven represents Cade's vision of a different kind of community-a small, self-sufficient sanctuary managed by AI, free from the corruption and politics that he witnessed too often in his investigative work. It's early-stage and entirely self-funded, but represents his belief that our greatest innovations should serve the common good.When he's not writing or coding, you might find Cade practicing Okinawan Goju Ryu karate, hiking desert trails with his dog, or perfecting his chopstick technique. He's slept under the stars in the African bush more times than he can count, dreams of space travel (though his wife has firmly vetoed that particular adventure), and maintains that the best character development happens when you've seen both the worst and best of what humans are capable of.His upcoming thriller series will blend his investigative expertise with lighter storytelling-think "Sneakers" meets modern cybercrime, complete with an AI team member who's brilliant but delightfully imperfect. Because sometimes, Cade believes, the most human thing about artificial intelligence is its flaws.Join the growing community at www.cademeridian.com, where technology meets storytelling, and every connection brings us closer to a world where our digital tools serve the heart.