Ever wonder where the great classical storytellers have gone?

The 19th Century used to be full of them- Jane Austen, The Bronte Sisters, Charles Dickens.

People who told a real story with real-life characters- even the minor characters were real.

Now in what they call the postmodern world of postmodern literature, there seem to be very few writers left who are also real storytellers.

Instead we get stock characters with stereotypical plots- or books with no plot at all.

I'm pleased to say this has all changed with Lulu Press's publication of Timothy Wood's novel First Samuel.

First Samuel is about the Bethlehem innkeeper who refused the Holy Family lodgings in his inn and instead sent them out to the stable where the baby Jesus was born.

As a result Samuel is cursed to wander the Earth until the Second Coming of Christ.

During his travels across time, Samuel meets the legendary Emperor Wu of China, is an observer at the last ancient Olympic games in Greece prior to the Olympics being banned by Emperor Theodosius the Great, meets England's great King Charles II and the great diarist Samuel Pepys.

The book ends on a dramatic note- September 11th, 2001 where Samuel is actually in the World Trade Center trying to arrange a series of loans for a new chain of hotels he's developing around the world.

The book reads like a history lesson- but an enjoyable history lesson as Samuel meets some of the most interesting characters of the last 2000 years
and observes many of history's most world altering events.

Throughout this journey across time, Samuel occasionally runs into another traveller and wayfarer across time- William Longhorn- who was the Germanic Roman centurion Longinus whose spear pierced the side of Christ.

It is a tale of both tragedy and hope, of sin and redemption.

It is the first book in a trilogy that Tim is writing about the wandering innkeeper of Bethlehem- Samuel.

Timothy Wood is a South African writer who suffers from dyslexia.

The fact that he was able to have a book edited and published is a remarkable achievement in itself.

But while Tim's writing in the original unedited version suffered from many spelling mistakes and grammatical errors as a result of his handicap, Tim's ability to weave together a compelling tale and offer vivid tantalizing descriptions of people and places was ever present.

Go to www.lulu.com and type in First Samuel.

Scroll down a few book titles until you reach The First Book of Samuel by SAREJESS (which is Timothy Wood's nom-de-plume).

The download is available for $6.25 US and the print edition is available for $20.25 US.