WATCHING STARS

Two great cosmic beings traveling the cosmos are drawn into a struggle for a world’s existence in Lefebvre’s novella.

Our Mother and Her Love enjoy exploring the universe, wandering wherever their whims may take them. It is while traversing an abandoned star system that Our Mother gets sucked into a void, with Her Love following behind her. Upon waking, they feel compressed, small, stuck—and cannot remember their true natures. Our Mother and Her Love feel listless, like they know something is wrong; something is missing. They take a boat to a distant shore and start to create a new home for themselves. In a cave, Her Love finds a crystal that responds to the light within them. As their family and their community grow, so does the crystal, shining its light and hope across the land. Even after Our Mother and Her Love die, the crystal’s light and knowledge continue on in the world and down through the generations. Our Mother and Her Love are born again from time to time, and they always find each other to further spread the light and hope. But the void and its evil presence will not be denied, and so darkness also comes to their lands, and for countless generations, the people of Our Mother are subjugated and exploited. It is only with the continued rebirths of Our Mother and Her Love, and the aid of the crystal shard, that the darkness can be pushed back. With the author’s beautiful black-and-white illustrations included throughout the text, this fantasy novella tells a story of hope, endurance, and the ultimate triumph of light over dark, no matter how bad things get. Told in the manner of a folktale passed down to keep the story alive, the narrative can be seen as an allegory for much of human history. The engrossing, eons-spanning story, evocative illustrations, and Lefebvre’s poetic prose (“Life is beautiful, but attach not your heart to appearances that bloom and wither like summer flowers”) make for an enjoyable one-sitting read.

A powerful journey through space, time, light, and enduring love.