Life is Big

Alma-Jane, an impossibly curious 11-year-old girl who lives in NYC and the most genetically happy person alive, is about to die due to a rare mutation. Ayrton, Alma-Jane’s older brother and a math prodigy, declares war against Death, “the destroyer of Life,” and then suddenly takes off to Oxford, UK, to examine Albert Einstein’s brain. Meanwhile, Death and his younger brother, O.M. (Obituary Man), are overworked and in desperate need of a short vacation.

At the heart of all this, a motley crew of “Minor & Major Immortals” mingle: Socrates, Alma-Jane’s dead grandfather. Dr. Harvey, a neuroscientist who conducts research on “Pure Mighties,” lab engineered mice that lack a fear gene. Sabina, Einstein’s Kunderian mistress. Alfred Butts, Sabina’s best friend and the inventor of the Scrabble board game. Pablo Neruda, who builds bridges for a living and loves kite flying. And, finally, ΩNING, a 7-year-old humanoid who loves playing the piano. 

What connects all these characters is the belief that “wise-thinking” leads to a longer and happier future, and that it’s the only way to guarantee a “Life bigger than Death.”

"LIFE IS BIG is a thoughtful and imaginative modern story that connects living, dead, fictional and historical characters. For instance, Alma-Jane is a clever, perfectly happy, curious, and funny 11-year-old who possesses none survival mechanisms whatsoever. Then there is Death, the destroyer of life, who is very tired of “collecting” people and fantasizes of taking a long vacation while he bakes cakes and argues with his youngest brother OM. While in underworld, Albert Einstein (who lives with his Kunderian heroine, Sabina) spends his days playing Scrabble with Alfred Butts, the real inventor of Scrabble. Add to it Turritopsis dohrnii, the immortal jellyfish, that floats through the novel reminding the characters that they are stressing out about mundane egocentric trivialities and forgetting that life is filled with love, joy and kindness, and bigger than anything! All of this makes for a fascinating, whirlwind read for all ages, loaded with fun facts, amusing conversations and precious moments." Alex, NYC