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    Between Heaven and Earth
    Between Heaven and Earth
    Between Heaven and Earth
    Ebook179 pages2 hours

    Between Heaven and Earth

    By Eric Walters

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    About this ebook

    DJ is David McLean's eldest grandson, so it stands to reason that he be the one to scatter his beloved grandfather's ashes. At least that's how DJ sees it. He's always been the best at everything—sports, school, looking after his fatherless family—so climbing Kilimanjaro is just another thing he'll accomplish almost effortlessly. Or so he thinks, until he arrives in Tanzania and everything starts to go wrong. He's detained at immigration, he gets robbed, his climbing group includes an old lady and he gets stuck with the first ever female porter. Forced to go polepole (slowly), DJ finds out the hard way that youth, fitness level and drive have nothing to do with success on the mountain—or in life.

    DJ's adventures start in Jungle Land, part of The Seven Prequels and continue in Sleeper, part of The Seven Sequels.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOrca Book Publishers
    Release dateOct 12, 2012
    ISBN9781554699438
    Between Heaven and Earth
    Author

    Eric Walters

    Eric Walters is a Member of the Order of Canada and the author of over 125 books that have collectively won more than 100 awards including the Governor General’s Literary Award for The King of Jam Sandwiches. A former teacher, Eric began writing as a way to get his fifth-grade students interested in reading and writing. Eric is a tireless presenter, speaking to over 100,000 students per year in schools across the country. He lives in Guelph, Ontario.

    Read more from Eric Walters

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    4/5

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    • 3/5
      This book is perfect for reluctant readers at the middle to early high school level. Reminiscent of other stories where a teen has to overcome obstacles to deliver cremains to a unusual place (in this case, Mt. Kilimanjaro). D.J. finds that his arrogance and limitations stand in his way of achieving his goal. D.J. has to deals with his personal obstacles. Issues relevant to teens today. Author does a fantastic job with his attention to detail of the landscapes and scenes. I would recommend to high interest, low level students. They would enjoy this story.
    • 4/5
      I read a mission filled book by Eric Walters, “Between Heaven and Earth”. This book is in a series about 7 grand children of David McLean who tried to spread David’s most important and meaningful personal belongings in this life all around the world after he died. They are named David “DJ”, Steve, Spencer, Bernard “Bunny”, Jim “Webb, Adam, and Rennie. This book in the series is about David’s oldest 18-year-old grandson named DJ (real name is David, but I will call him DJ so you are not confused). His mission is to spread David’s ashes on the top of Mt. Kili (An abbreviation of Mt. Kilimanjaro) in Africa. Being part of the local tribe, the Chagga people, David believed in a superstition that the summit of Mt. Kili is in between Heaven and Earth. At first, DJ thinks that it would be very easy and only take him about 3 days to get to the top and down the other side. What he doesn’t know is that 30% of climbers are rushed down. Unluckily, when DJ lands in Moshi a town near Mt. Kilimanjaro, a gang of boys steals his stuff and they run away. Helplessly, he walks to his hiking tour’s hotel and is greeted by Sarah, a bossy girl who is the daughter of the hiking tour guide. She helps him find the boys and he has to pay them everything he has. After she helps him, he agrees that she will be his porter up the mountain. What he doesn’t know is that no woman has been a porter before. During the first day, DJ now realizes that climbing the mountain is a lot harder than he thought. The tour guide decides to cancel the journey because three people get mountain sickness and had to be rushed back down. DJ feels very upset because he can’t go up and spread his grandfather’s ashes. Then, he texts his twin brother Steve. Steve tells him that he can’t give up and he has to go up for Grandpa David. At the end, David reaches the top and spreads his ashes sadly but knowing that his Grandpa would always be with him.My favorite character is Steve. Steve encourages David to make it to the top. Without his wise advice, I don’t think that David would have made it. I think that he must be a wise person. I wonder how he uses his courage to go through what he is doing is Spain (where he is for his grandpa’s Will). I think that what the author is trying to tell us is that we should do what we believe is the right thing to do and to listen to our best selves. We often tend to let the ideas of others influence us when we should believe in ourselves.I like this book because it is about a person that learns that the world can be very hard. If I wrote this book, I would portray the porter’s rude attitude toward Sarah differently. I think this is wrong because people shouldn’t be judged by their gender.I would recommend this book to kids 2nd to 4th grade. I would also rate this amazing book 7 out of 10.
    • 3/5
      The Seven Series is an interesting concept that follows seven grandsons as they each attempt to fulfill the last wishes of their recently deceased grandfather. Each book is written by a separate author and each book follows a particular grandson. The idea that each grandson’s adventure is written by a different author provides the opportunity for each protagonist to develop his own distinct voice; this would have been virtually impossible to accomplish if one author had written all seven books in the series. However given that I have only read one book in the series, it is impossible for me to determine how effective this concept really is; I am unable to know if the books all have a common message or idea that unites them together so I cannot comment on whether or not the coming together of seven different authors to write about one family works effectively or not. I received Eric Walters’ “Between Heaven and Earth” which follows the eldest grandson’s ordeal as he attempts to take part of his grandfather’s ashes to Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa. I would delve more deeply into the plot outline if I could but the first sentence of this paragraph sums up the book’s plot entirely. There is nothing overly unique or creative about the storyline which follows DJ’s journey up the mountain and his encounters with African guides and other tourists. I found that each character introduced in “Between Heaven and Earth” to be one dimensional (except for the English tourist Doris) and hard to connect to. The book is narrated entirely by DJ so I was expecting to be able to sympathize and relate to his ordeal as he describes his trials and hardships during his journey to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro. Yet given that the character has almost no personality or interesting features, it becomes difficult to connect with him which, in turn, gives readers a feeling of detachment not only from DJ himself but the book’s concept and plot as well. I found it interesting that Walters does not seem interested in delving into the “action” of the book. “Between Heaven and Earth” is strictly character-driven and doesn’t rely upon action sequences or plot twists; it is a look into the mindset of DJ as he attempts to overcome the seemingly impossible task of climbing the highest mountain in Africa. Walters must be commended, however, for taking the opportunity to incorporate societal issues that younger generations face in today’s world. It would be the obvious choice that, given that his character travels to Africa to fulfill his grandfather’s wish, Walters would delve into the issue of racism. However the author instead tackles the issue of sexism and the ways in which different cultures look at the differences between men and women. It was an interesting aspect of the book given that the first person narration allowed the reader to understand DJ’s mindset and opinions on women explicitly and we were able to follow him on his journey as he learns about what it means to be male or female in Africa, compared to what it means to be male or female in North America. It was definitely an unexpected aspect of the book but one that, I believe, worked well in giving Walters the opportunity to delve into a societal issue that he likely feels passionate about.Despite its concerns with sexism and equal treatment, however, “Between Heaven and Earth” fell flat for me. It is a quick and easy read and the plot is somewhat intriguing but given that the characters are lifeless and uninteresting, the reader will likely have a difficult time connecting with any aspect of this book. I am curious what the other books in the series are like given that each is written by a different author following a different character. I think that any teachers who are looking for books that delve into societal issues may wish to pick up copies of this one; it isn’t overly stimulating or original but it does provide an interesting perspective on gender issues for younger readers to consider. 3/5
    • 4/5
      This is an awesome book in a series that I really enjoy. It has 7 books in the series and 7 different authors, which is such a great way to be exposed to different authors while still having a series to sink your teeth into. I really thoroughly enjoyed reading about the adventure and challenge that DJ is given. I think that it is a great story about a young man who wants to honor his loved grandfather and follow his wishes. As a media specialist in a 5th - 8th grade building, I really think that I can promote and suggests this book as well as the others in the series. It has a similar concept to the 39 Clues series which has been a very popular series in our building. The books are published by Orca Publishers which really appeals to reluctant readers. I am excited to read all of the rest of the books in the series.
    • 4/5
      This is the second book I have read in this series that proposes that its books can be read in any order. I chose this book because it was about the brother of the boy in the first book I read, Lost Cause. I have to say I probably enjoyed this one more, though they are quite different books; Lost Cause being very historical and Walters' book is pure adrenaline outdoor adventure. About mountain climbing, DJ, the eldest grandson at 17 years old is quested to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. Full of action, before he even hits the foothills, DJ is arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling and later has his belongings stolen by street kids. The mountain climb is exciting and will mostly appeal to boys owing to a marked emphasis on altitude sickness and the accompanying abdominal irregularities. There is very little connection with this book and the other grandsons' quests occurring in the accompanying books; Lost Cause had much more interaction, naturally leading me to this book about DJ. From this book there is no discernible suggestions as to which book would make a likely next choice so I'll just pick whichever takes my fancy at the library. As to the author, I have not read Walters before. I always get Canadian authors Eric Walters and Eric Wilson (whom I *have* read many of his teen mysteries) mixed up so I wasn't sure which one this was until I looked at his bio. I really enjoyed the writing style though and would like to try his other work as he is quite lauded for his books aimed at male teen readers.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful YA story of a Canadian grandson who climbs Kilamanjaro to affirm his deceased Grandfather wishes.
    • 3/5
      Coupled with the fact that the title lacks originality, having read a number of Eric Walters' most recent books aimed for reluctant or young teenage readers, I was not surprised to find that the story in this one fell rather flat. The concept of a series of books being written by various authors but centred around a main theme is not new. You only have to look at the recent popularity of "The 39 Clues" where relatives, after the untimely death of the family matriarch, must venture out to accomplish seemingly impossible quests (as per instructions in her will) to discover the family secrets . The only differences here are that the grandfather has passed away, the grandsons must discover their inner strengths, and they are not competing against each other. This story just skims the surface of what it could actually be. I feel that Walters is drifting away from his original writing style to pump out fictional accounts of current tragic events (or in this case, hopping on board a recent craze) as quickly as possible. I doubt if I will be reading any more in the series but may consider it for reluctant readers who just want the basics. Its only saving grace may be that the other six are written by different authors.

    Book preview

    Between Heaven and Earth - Eric Walters

    ERIC WALTERS

    BETWEEN       

        HEAVEN AND

        EARTH

    ORCA BOOK PUBLISHERS

    Copyright © 2012 Eric Walters

    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher.

    Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

    Walters, Eric, 1957-

    Between heaven and earth/Eric Walters

    Seven (the series)

    Issued also in print

    ISBN 978-1-55469-942-1(pdf)--ISBN 978-1-55469-943-8(epub)

    I. Title. II. Series: Seven the series

    ps8595.a598b47 2012 jc813'.54 c2012-902584-4

    First published in the United States, 2012

    Library of Congress Control Number: 2012938222

    Summary: DJ climbs Mount Kilimanjaro to scatter his beloved grandfather’s ashes.

    Orca Book Publishers is dedicated to preserving the environment and has printed this book on paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council®.

    Orca Book Publishers gratefully acknowledges the support for its publishing programs provided by the following agencies: the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund and the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council and the Book Publishing Tax Credit.

    Design by Teresa Bubela

    Cover photography by Getty Images

    Orca Book Publishers

    PO Box 5626, Station B

    Victoria, BC Canada

    V8R 6S4

    Orca Book Publishers

    PO Box 468

    Custer, WA USA

    98240-0468

    www.orcabook.com

    Printed and bound in Canada.

    15   14   13   12   •   4   3   2   1

    For Nick Mednis, my kind, gentle father-in-law.

    He was a wonderful father and grandfather. All the

    grandchildren called him Tampa because the first to

    come along couldn’t pronounce Grandpa. He almost

    always had a smile on his face and often a simple beret on

    his head as he walked. The beret I gave the grandfather

    in this story was to honor my children’s Tampa. I took

    it with me when my son and I climbed Kilimanjaro.

    I think that would have made Tampa smile.

    Contents

    ONE

    TWO

    THREE

    FOUR

    FIVE

    SIX

    SEVEN

    EIGHT

    NINE

    TEN

    ELEVEN

    TWELVE

    THIRTEEN

    FOURTEEN

    FIFTEEN

    SIXTEEN

    SEVENTEEN

    EIGHTEEN

    NINETEEN

    TWENTY

    TWENTY-ONE

    TWENTY-TWO

    TWENTY-THREE

    TWENTY-FOUR

    TWENTY-FIVE

    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

    ONE

    The room was large and lavish, with dark oak paneling. A big mahogany desk dominated the room; overstuffed leather chairs and couches encircled it. I’d never been in a lawyer’s office before. But then again, prior to a few days ago, I’d never been in a funeral home or attended a funeral either.

    There were twelve of us in the room—me, my mother, my brother Steve, my mother’s three sisters and two of my uncles, and my four cousins, Adam, Webb, Spencer and Bernard, who insisted on being called Bunny. These were the eleven people in the world who meant the most to me. The only person missing was the reason we were here—my grandpa. A shudder radiated through my entire body. I hoped nobody saw it. My mother reached out and placed her hand on mine.

    It’s all right, DJ, she said softly.

    Her eyes were so red from crying. I knew how much she was going to miss him. I knew how much we were all going to miss him. I just couldn’t afford to shed tears. Somebody had to be in control. That was my job.

    His death had been hard on everybody, but maybe the hardest on my mother. I’d heard my Aunt Vicky talking about how we must be reliving my father’s death. I thought that was a funny choice of words—how could a death be relived?—but I understood what she meant. That didn’t mean I agreed with her, just that I understood. My father had been gone for so long, since I was really little, that I hadn’t even been part of all of that. No funeral home, no visitation, no cemetery, no burial memories. I couldn’t relive what I hadn’t lived.

    With my mother’s whispered reassurance over, the room became completely silent again. It was almost as if all the oxygen had been sucked out of the room. Then again, since nobody seemed to be breathing, it wasn’t like we needed air. We all just sat there, in silence, waiting for the lawyer to arrive. I didn’t know what was in the will, and I didn’t care what Grandpa was leaving me, because he’d already left so many memories. But it was a term of his will that we all needed to be there, so we had no choice. It would have been disrespectful for us not to come.

    Of course that hadn’t stopped my brother from trying to get out of it. Typical. If it wasn’t his idea, he didn’t want any part of it. Mom had finally convinced him. If she hadn’t, I would have convinced him in a whole different way. Steve could be such a jerk sometimes. It was hard to believe that twins could be so different, but we rarely saw things the same way.

    The silence seemed so wrong. Here we were, waiting to hear the will of a man who didn’t believe in silence. He was always talking, telling stories, making jokes or singing songs. More than once, when he thought he was alone, I’d caught him humming or talking to himself. I’d even overheard him having both ends of a conversation and laughing at his own jokes. My mother always joked that he’d talk to a stone and get the stone to reply. That was just how he was. Wherever he went, he talked to complete strangers and they always talked back. He once said that strangers were just people he hadn’t become friends with yet. He was so relentlessly friendly, so happy, so full of life. He was so full of life.

    I hated seeing him in that coffin. The minister talked about how lifelike he looked lying there. That was garbage. That was the first time I’d ever seen him when he wasn’t moving about. He was emotions in motion. He would jokingly say that he was what hyperactive kids grew up to be. He was what I would like to grow up to be, but that wasn’t possible. For one thing, I don’t have his way with people. He made everybody feel so comfortable. Total strangers felt like friends, friends felt like family, and family…well, he just made us feel like we were the most important people around. All of us. When people talked about tolerance for others, he bristled. He didn’t believe in tolerance, he believed in acceptance.

    Of course, I knew that everybody who was born died eventually, but I guess I didn’t believe he would ever die. He told me he was going to live forever or die trying. He died trying. He was getting ready to put in a whole new garden. It was going to be more work than many men half his age could handle. He was looking forward to going to the cottage and having all of us up to visit. He kept saying he was going to water-ski this year. I knew he wasn’t; he just said that to get his daughters all worried. Ninety-two-year-old men shouldn’t be water-skiing.

    A few nights ago he went to bed and woke up dead. I almost chuckled. He would have liked that—the rhyme of bed and dead, a little limerick in the making. One minute he was so full of life and the next—nothing. Everybody told us it was a wonderful way to go. No suffering. So for him, I was happy. But it just made it harder for the rest of us. We hadn’t had time to adjust, to get used to the idea that he was gone. I still half expected him to walk into the room and—

    The door opened and everybody turned as a man in a suit walked in.

    Good afternoon, he said as he settled in behind the desk.

    There was a mumble of responses from across the room.

    Thank you for coming, he said. My name is John Devine, and I’ve been David’s lawyer for twenty years. This is a very sad day, and I must admit that this was a day I didn’t expect to be part of. I’m much younger than David, but even so, I expected him to outlive me.

    That comment generated smiles and nods.

    He was a man of so much passion. It was a true joy to have known him.

    That was my grandpa. He was a joy.

    The terms of the will are both straightforward and, shall we say, most interesting. Mr. Devine paused and smiled. And with a most interesting twist.

    Interesting was such an interesting word. It could mean almost anything.

    Let’s begin with the more conventional parts, he said. All of David’s assets—his home, investments and cottage—are to be divided equally among his daughters.

    That was fair, and he was always fair.

    All of these assets, with the exception of the cottage, are to be liquidated and dispersed to the four heirs. The cottage’s ownership will be transferred to list his daughters as co-owners. It says, and I quote, ‘This was a place of so many great memories shared with my family that I wish it to be used in perpetuity by my grandchildren and their children and their children.’ He paused. Is that all clear?

    There was a murmuring of agreement and nodding of heads. I was happy. Some of my best memories were from the cottage. Weekends and summers spent with all of my cousins and our parents and Grandpa.

    Excellent, Mr. Devine said. "Now I need to set out the next part—the interesting part—of the will. A sum of money—a rather substantial sum—has been put aside to fund an undertaking…or I should say, seven undertakings. He paused. This is without a doubt one of the most unusual clauses that I have ever been asked to put in a will."

    He looked slowly from person to person, deliberately pausing at each one. Everybody was staring directly at him, leaning forward in their seats. He certainly had everybody’s complete, undivided attention—even Steve’s.

    Just read the thing, I thought.

    "I know you are all anxious to hear about these undertakings. However, I cannot share them with all of you at this moment."

    There was an eruption of confused protest.

    Please, please! he said, cutting the protest short. "You will all be fully informed, but not all of you will be informed at the same time. Some people will have to leave the room prior to the undertakings being read."

    I knew where this was going; he was going to ask the grandkids to leave. That wasn’t fair. I understood the younger ones being asked to leave, but why me? I was almost eighteen—well, in a few months—and it wasn’t like I wasn’t mature enough to handle anything. And it wasn’t as if my father was here to support my mother—that was my role. I should be allowed to stay even if the other five grandsons had to leave.

    Mr. Devine continued. Therefore, as per the terms of the will, I request that the grandsons—

    I’m not going anywhere, Steve said.

    Everybody turned to him.

    I don’t want to be kicked out of the room, he reiterated.

    You’ll go if you’re told to go, I said forcefully.

    You don’t understand, the lawyer said. "He can stay."

    If he’s staying, then I’m staying as well, I said.

    And me too, added my cousin Webb.

    The room erupted in protest again.

    Could everybody please just stop! the lawyer yelled as he stood up. Please, I am reading a will. Decorum is needed. Out of respect for the deceased, you all need to follow his directions. Is that understood?

    Sorry, I said.

    Me too, my brother said.

    I knew he meant it. He was impulsive and he could be a real pain. There were times I wanted to give him a smack—and had—but he was okay.

    "Before I go on, I need to ask everybody to agree to respect the terms of his will—all the terms of his will."

    Of course we agree, my mother said.

    My aunts and uncles all nodded in agreement.

    Excellent, the lawyer said. Now, I need to have everyone except the six grandsons to leave the room.

    What? one of my aunts exclaimed, voicing the disbelief we all felt.

    Did you say that the adults have to leave? Aunt Debbie asked.

    Mr. Devine nodded. Yes. Everyone except the grandsons.

    TWO

    If it was eerie to be here to begin with, then it was even eerier to watch all our parents leave the room. My mother, the last to leave, hesitated at the door and we locked eyes.

    It’s okay, I mouthed to her.

    She smiled ever so slightly and closed the door, leaving the six of us alone with the lawyer.

    Well, gentlemen, he said, I’m assuming that nobody saw this coming.

    Grandpa was always full of surprises, Bunny said.

    "So I guess because of that we’re not that surprised," Steve added.

    Interesting perspective, the lawyer said. The only way you would have been surprised is if he didn’t do something to surprise you.

    Pretty much, my brother agreed.

    "So if he’d done nothing, then you would have actually

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