{"title":"Nicholas Hochstedler","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"the-stars-above-paperback","title":"The Stars Above - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSomething strange happened in the summer of 1999...\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLed by Johnny, their adolescent hero, a group of five boys discover an alien has crashed in the woods behind their house. While the visitor unwittingly wreaks havoc upon the small Indiana town, Johnny sympathizes with its loneliness, compelling the other boys to seek a connection with it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSet on the brink of the Midwest meth epidemic, the nosy neighbors, oblivious parents, and a close-minded sheriff believe the town to be overrun by \"junkies\"; meanwhile, Johnny and the boys spend the summer trying to help their extraterrestrial friend fix its spaceship and find its freedom among the stars. Johnny also finds love with a fellow misfit, although he can't shake the feeling that he, like his new alien friend, isn't built for Planet Earth.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWritten with lyrical prose and a fondness for 90's pop culture, The Stars Above captures the essence of millennial childhood and Midwest isolation.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50102859563231,"sku":"9798218657383","price":17.26,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/hqlOhLV-789798218657383.webp?v=1781087490"},{"product_id":"the-peony-sutra-paperback","title":"The Peony Sutra - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBodhi, short for Bodhisattva, lives a simple life of meditation and quiet introspection, with a flower garden at the center of his universe. He has spent a billion lifetimes trying to help others reach Nirvana before allowing himself the same reward. Unfortunately for him, his current stage of reincarnation is happening in the quaint, small-minded town of Pleasant Lake, Indiana. Unsure of how he got there, and with no family or friends to speak of, he's forced to make connections with the simple people around him.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Peony Sutra\u003c\/em\u003e fuses philosophy and humor with the everyday lives of blue-collar workers in small-town Indiana. It weaves the small tragedies of the mundane into a compelling story that explores three questions central to the human experience: who am I, what's the meaning of life, and what happens when I die?\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50104821285087,"sku":"9798218319991","price":15.1,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/oSQYTq_Lwp9798218319991.webp?v=1781111388"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/nicholas-hochstedler.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}