The Izwuzz Machine

It was just another day for nine-year-old J.D. Boyd, getting chased on his bike by the same two bullies. That is, until the adopted kid with the bare feet and the beat up bike escaped his tormentors and maneuvered through the protective branches of an enormous willow tree. But this wasn’t just any willow tree. It had a built-in view screen wrapped completely around its massive trunk, and below that a computer keyboard supported by a cluster of roots. That’s when things started to get really weird for J.D. Boyd… The Izwuzz Machine is the story of a nine-year-old runaway who discovers, befriends and eventually lives in a technologically advanced willow tree. Izzy the willow (aka The Izwuzz Machine) is connected—she has instant access to the world of information swirling all around us. She knows all about what is and what was, but more importantly, she’s keen on using this information to help those who feel small and powerless. Izzy is of particular interest to J.D. After all, he’s always wondered who his “real” parents are and how he might be able to find out something (anything!) about them. In Izzy he finds motherly kindness, plus an opportunity he just can’t pass up. The next thing he knows, he’s sleeping in Izzy’s mossy nest, safe and sound, 8-feet off the ground. Pretty soon he has some interesting new friends: Miss Quito, a mosquito determined to never drink blood, Angie, a sunflower who likes to go on bike rides, and a stub-tailed rat named Norway. But J.D.’s not the only one interested in his family tree. Izzy also wants to know about her origins and whether or not she has a family. With the help of her friends she learns that there’s another special willow tree, one that looks a lot like her but has reached very different conclusions about history and the future—what was and will be. Could this other willow tree, who Izzy and her friends have taken to calling the Wuzz’llbe, be her father, or maybe even her twin brother? The Wuzz’llbe lives next at the edge of an old polluted pond, and even though he views history in a negative, pre-destined way, he too has a group of friends (actually, they’re more like intimidated acquaintances). There’s a gnat named Gnot that buzzes and bites, a computer virus named Wizzywig who lives within the Wuzz’llbe, and a part-time mechanic (and full-time grease monkey) named Doyle Fields, owner of Doyle’s Garage. Doyle proudly claims that his auto shop recycles used motor oil, but for some strange reason he spends more time visiting the Wuzz’llbe than he does working on cars. Oh, and then there’s Old Crow. He lives in the Wuzz’llbe’s topmost branches, right next to something called The Artifact, an item the Wuzz’llbe claims is proof that humanity is rotten. When the cowardly actions of the Wuzz’llbe directly endanger Izzy, J.D., Angie and Miss Quito risk everything to save her. Ultimately, however, it’s Izzy who figures out how to transcend her species and make the bravest choice of all. Originally conceived as an alternative way to teach children about history, The Izwuzz Machine is that and much more. It’s a little book unafraid of big ideas, one that pays homage to a number of children’s classics even as it marches into the future, embracing the world of computers, wireless communication and the Age of Information.

The author lives in Seattle, Washington and is the father of two beautiful girls. "The Izwuzz Machine" is his first work of fiction.