Winner of the Benjamin Franklin Award for 2005 Best Juvenile Fiction, and Book of the Year Award for Best Audio Fiction, awarded by ForeWord Magazine

Fourteen-year-old Leven Thumps is no ordinary boy, but that's exactly what Sabine and his dark shadows want him to believe. The evil forces know the fate of the world and the dreams of all mankind can be saved by only one boy with a powerful gift — a gift he has yet to understand or control.

Leven, a.k.a. “Lev,” lives a wretched life at the Rolling Greens Deluxe Mobile Home Park in Burnt Culvert, Oklahoma. But his life is about to change and his destiny be fulfilled as he learns about a secret gateway that bridges two worlds — the real world and Foo, a place created at the beginning of time that makes it possible for mankind to dream and hope, aspire and imagine. “Foo is an entire realm hidden in a fold of the mind, a very real place,” says author Obert Skye.

But Foo is in chaos, and three transplants from that dream world have been sent to retrieve Lev — Clover, a mischievous, fuzzy, foot-high sidekick; Winter, an odd girl who can freeze things; and Geth, the rightful heir to the monarchy of Foo. Lev's mission: to destroy the hidden gateway before Sabine can find his way out of Foo and into the real world where he plans to reign supreme.

Unfortunately, the gateway is on the other side of the world, time is running out, and reaching the gateway is only one of the ominous tasks. Destroying it will require an act of great courage and daring, something Lev is not at all certain he is up to.

Can this unique band of travelers convince Lev to do what only he can do? Can Leven even find the gateway? Will belief overcome doubt? It's a race against time to save the world . . . if only fate would step in and help.

“Splendidly unpredictable plot twists. . . . [With] deliciously menacing monsters, equally delicious turns of phrase, and sly riffs on everything from pop music to Harry Potter, the author sends Leven Thumps and company on a long, strange trip, culminating in a literally explosive climax.” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Excellent . . . palpable excitement and suspense. Kids and adults will enjoy this charming tale of good and evil.” — Publishers Weekly

“This rollicking, suavely told tale should captivate readers.” — The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books