The premise of the Eagle & Cuckoo stories revolves around the idea that since the U.S. has become so corrupted by corporatism, greed, materialism, ignorance and Fast Food, the only living creature left with the character required to turn the country around is Eagle, symbol of America, and head of all the eagles in the U.S.
Eagles do have names – in E&C’s world - but the head of all eagles is just called 'Eagle.’ It is, in Eagle-world, a term of respect. Just in case you ever have to address him, you should know that you don’t say: “Mr. Eagle.” You just say: “Eagle.”
Similarly, Cuckoo, a very complex character as you will learn, is just called: “Cuckoo.”
Accordingly, the ageless and wise Cuckoo, the Watcher for The Place For Reasonably Good People (where you go after you die if you haven’t done anything too terrible), is tasked with preparing Eagle for his extraordinarily demanding task. Eagle is going to be taught the full scale of his future responsibilities, and will eventually morph into into human form and run for the presidency; and win. Will he live on as a human or revert to being an eagle? That is only one of many incredibly difficult decisions that Eagle has to make; and some have entirely unexpected consequences. A third option is that he will be assassinated. Recall that E&C is not just an extremely amusing satire; it is an action-packed thriller as well. And the action is frequent, violent, ingenious,and unpredictable.
An eagle as president! This is a crazy idea. The again, perhaps not given the caliber of many of the people who have sought this office. But the real point is to bring perspective to our current bizarre situation while also credibly describing Eagle & Cuckoo’s own surprisingly developed world. After a page or two, they will become very real to you; and Eagle and Cuckoo are particularly attractive characters. They are intelligent, witty, courageous – and almost human in the span of their emotions. But they are not human, which is precisely the point.
The entire Eagle & Cuckoo saga is told in three books – each a hilarious yet gripping full story in its own right – part satire, part thriller, part high adventure; and endlessly fascinating as a complete alternative character driven world is unfolded. Will there be other E&C books? Quite possibly.
How Eagle & Cuckoo Save America: The Beginning.
How Eagle & Cuckoo Save America: The Contest.
How Eagle & Cuckoo Save America: Mr. President
The following is what a good friend of mine, Mack McKinney, wrote on August 11 2012 after re-reading the first book with his wife, Bea.
“Hey Victor -
As I've said I have been re-reading E&C along with Bea and we've finished. I know at some point I've suggested you get 'em all done before publishing any but have changed my mind. At this point in history I think Book 1 would be a giant hit, and give you a cash flow to produce the rest if indeed there ever is an end to your trilogy [Recall Douglas Adams' 4th book of the Hitchhiker trilogy]. I'd like to send a few to a few special people, and bet lots of other people would too. You could so easily get on Colbert with the idea of the Eagle alone. And certainly Letterman, and then the newsier ones might even get involved. It's just such a wonderful fantasy with amazing tidbits of information interwoven. I love that book!”
High praise indeed, and deeply appreciated.
To be continued…
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