Meet Fred Pilcher.

Fred Pilcher is a retired college physics teacher who knows from experience with his pupils that through nurturing, nearly all young people can become productive citizens. His great sadness is that in American society and in many other countries millions of underprivileged children are denied this nurturing. Both the children and their countries are poorer for losing what they could otherwise produce. As a scientist, Fred understands that critical thinking and following where the evidence leads are the only reliable ways to understand the real world.

Away from the real world of hard evidence, Fred reads science fiction and fantasy. His favorite childhood movie was the Walt Disney 1950 cartoon, Cinderella, and he greatly admires women who are both strong and compassionate. Fred brings together all of these ingredients in this story of a princess who becomes a wise and inspired queen with a personal mission to achieve productivity, prosperity, and happiness for all of her people.

Fred says “In describing her means to achieve her glorious dream, I have, through a series of adventures, presented numerous viewpoints of moral, educational, and political philosophy with which readers may agree or disagree. If these viewpoints stimulate vigorous discussion and argumentation, pro and con analysis, and the like, then this book will have achieved a useful place in the world of literature.”

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The Guest Post.

A THOUGHTFUL PERSON’S DISCUSSION OF “THE QUEEN OF XANA”

Since the dawn of civilization and of writing, people have contemplated what qualities a good leader must possess, and what constitutes a just and equitable society.  Starting with the earliest writings, people have also introduced elements of fantasy and the supernatural.  “The Queen of Xana,” set in the Middle Ages, is a different kind of story combining these ancient themes. Might the methods to achieve the worthy goal of prosperity for all in the Middle Ages also work in modern times? I invite you, the reader, to decide.

“The Queen of Xana,” an adult fantasy, not for children, is complete with a princess beautiful on both the inside and the outside, her fairy godmother, and an evil sorcerer.  But this is not the usual story of the handsome prince finding his beautiful princess. To save her people from the ravages of the sorcerer and become a magnificent queen, the princess must identify her handsome prince incognito in the crowd, and on her first try. She will not have a second chance, and, if she fails, she and all her people will be destroyed. Most readers probably believe she will succeed, and it is no spoiler to say that she does. But you will have to read the story to find out how. I believe you will find it heartwarming.

The princess becomes a queen, and marries her prince. As in most fairy stories, they are thereafter devoted to one another for life. They have frequent and fabulous sexual couplings. In a land in which promiscuity is apparently rampant, the queen and prince set a wholesome example of absolute fidelity and monogamy.

But this story is just beginning. The new young queen asserts her right to rule and inspire her people to create “the greatest prosperity the world has ever known, and to be shared by everyone.” Since the origin of the written word, authors have pondered the worthiness of the ruler to rule. Can she remain calm and rational when her country is in profound danger? Does she spend the resources of her country on the welfare of her people, or on extravagance for herself and wars of conquest? Can she identify people both honorable and capable to assist her in running her country? Does she listen to her people express their needs and respond positively to them? In all of these measures and more, the Queen of Xana through a series of adventures proves herself meritorious.

People are given great freedom to do whatever they do well, but abusing others is not allowed. Abusers are prevented from ever repeating their wrong acts. People should keep the fruits of their labor, but also be required to do useful work and not be allowed to become welfare parasites. The society of Xana is both gender neutral and age neutral. Talented children are valued by the queen.  On nearly every page there are allegories about what constitutes good government, good education, good service. These allegories may be controversial, and provoke argumentation and discussion.

People who admire strong women, like occasional sexual innuendos, and whose sympathies lie with the common people ahead of the fabulously wealthy, will find much to like in “The Queen of Xana.” Diehard conservatives probably won’t like it.

“The Queen of Xana” is available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle versions at

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Queen-Xana-Fred-Pilcher/dp/0692988963