Imagine sitting in a cramped fish tank in a supermarket waiting for a customer to take a fancy to you for their supper – and when that moment arrives, you’re whisked out, purchased, and taken to your buyer’s home to meet your certain death. Not exactly a ball!
However, in Canada recently, nobody wanted the unusually rare orange lobster that languished in a tiny water tank with its claws tied together until a couple came along and took pity on it, buying it, not to eat, but to find a way of saving its life. To read the full story go to:
Rare one in 30 million orange lobster rescued from grocery store tank.
I was pleased for the orange lobster, happy that it went on to live longer and have a better existence than hanging around in a bubbly grocery store tank, waiting for its certain execution. But I’m a hypocrite. I eat mainly plant based foods and fish, and lobster is a favourite.
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My recent publications
Otto and Frankie, my latest novel, is about a dying man’s fight against injustice, his wife’s unusual affair, and the love from his long-lost daughter.
Otto and his daughter Frankie could not be more different. He’s rich, an acclaimed author, human rights activist, and lives in England. She lives in New York, just about survives from one pay cheque to the next and hasn’t seen or spoken to her father for twenty years. Dutifully reunited by his impending death, she’s amazed to find him a kind and noble man who, while grappling with his wife’s bizarre affair, champions for the world’s forgotten and dispossessed to his last. After Otto’s death, Frankie’s admiration for her father leads her into a dangerous and life changing pursuit.
Life in four stories
Recently I donated a substantial sum to the INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC) from the proceeds of this little book of shorts. ICRC help the most vulnerable communities fight COVID – 19.
Four shorts: two about life, love, and death; one a poignant and disturbing memory that dangles a question unanswered; and one a wild fantasy – plus the first chapter of my latest book, Otto and Frankie.
Nick Wastnage 