Haee's quest for the greater prairie (Haee and the other middlings, #3)

Young Adult, Middle Grade, Humor

By R.S. Vern

Publisher : Middling Industries

ABOUT R.S. Vern

R.S. Vern
R.S. Vern is the creator of the book trilogy: Haee and the other middlings.

She is often described as an oddly conflicted soul. Constantly torn between the challenges of saving the world and the reality of making a living, she calls herself a middling – urbanised, bored, and  More...

Description

Unable to find a reason to stay on, Haee leaves Whie and his banal life at Green Alley. Lost and nowhere to go, he lingers in Middling City and ventures into the back alleys in the city.

Desperate for a home, he finds himself drifting in and out of places he can never fit in.

Finally, he decides to return to a familiar place, Tom and Jane’s home – a place where he once found comfort and solace. But is this where he will truly be warm, happy and safe?

R.S. Vern’s simple and lucid tale is not so poetic, perhaps less intense, but likely to last following the likes of Edward Gorey and Shel Silverstein.

To watch book trailer, please go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KocLs1twAU4.

Are you a happy middling? “Haee and the other middlings” book series provides an insightful and delightful read at what it means to be functioning, breathing and living as we are today. Middling Industries offers its most acclaimed series “Haee and the other middlings”, taking a meaningful jab at the middle class of the 21st century. Created and written by R.S. Vern, one of today’s most serious social bloggers, this series of books skillfully explores issues on needs versus wants, the pointlessness of pursuit and the contradictions of living with and without rules, all through the ingenious eyes of a cat. Entertaining and insightful, this series of books is beautifully illustrated with thought provoking allegories suitable for older children and adults. R.S. Vern takes a simplistic view through her protagonist, cat Haee, clearly showing you how aimless and lost we are in the midst of making sense of our surrounding material environment. Scathing, but fair, cat Haee is as ordinary, average and conventional as it gets. But he deeply reflects the insecure and non-committal persona present in many of us today. R.S. Vern’s simple and lucid tale is not so poetic, perhaps less intense, but likely to last following the likes of Edward Gorey and Shel Silverstein. “Haee The cat with a crooked tail”, the first book of this series is the winner of IndieReader Discovery Awards 2013 under kid’s category.

“Bittersweet and seemingly simple, this story embodies the ambivalence the author feels about an average, middle-class existence – possibly mundane, yes, but reassuring in its certainties and not without its own joys.” - ilovebooks.com

“While “The Unconventional Life of Haee” is bold in its attempt to tackle serious issues of conservation, group dynamics and the importance of hygiene in the work place, it is not a classic in the canon of illustrated kid’s fiction. However, it does provide a welcome chuckle, even to the most hardened reader.” - Julia Lai, IndieReader

“R.S. Vern has captured the tone of urban life with perfect pitch. Boring, thrilling, life-affirming and threatening all at the same time, Vern's books shake us out of our daily routines and forces us to re-examine why we're living as we are. This is an author of the post-capitalist, post-colonial era we find ourselves navigating, with rigid career courses but adrift nonethesame." - Auden Whitbeck, Middling

“HAEE is a beautifully illustrated and thought-provoking modern-day allegory suitable for older children and grown-ups alike.” -  Maya Fleischmann, IndieReader

“This is an interesting book, focusing on the ideas of need versus want, what is self-fulfillment and exploring our motivations.....I suspect it is one of those books that you can turn to again and again and find different things, dependent upon your mood.” - Sarah Burns, The Kindle Book Review

“...the book resonates strongly with adults. As children, they are allowed to roam free and explore the world. As grown-ups, they must abide to stringent schedules and deadlines, while constantly running the risk of feeling mechanical. Haee's excursions will not only capture the imagination of children, but will also get a laugh out of adults as they anticipate the release of the next book in the Haee series.” - US Review of Books

“Are we not as happy as those who are much better off in this world?” After this statement I was hooked! Then seeing that first cat just blew me away! I love all the artwork!” - Jessica Porter, Readers Favourite

"The author provokes us into thinking outside the box. She wants us to ask: "Is that it? Is that what life is all about? Being perfect? Doing all the politically correct things and having it all?" Sure looks good on the surface ... but the illustrations show otherwise.

I like how she combines illustrations and words. I would say the illustrations tell an equally, if not more, compelling story of the ironic messages she is trying to convey. A picture means more than a thousand words, people say. How clever of her!

I recommend this book to everyone: young adults who are about to embark on their journey of life and adults who outwardly think they have got it all but are unhappy inside. The presentation and approach in this remarkable book is simple and clear enough for children and teens to benefit from it, too!" - Allbooks Review International

“The plot bears features of an allegory, as it contains several levels of understanding. "The Unconventional Life of Haee" can be read and enjoyed as a simple tale woven around an alley-cat, although it has a deeper layer of ideas inter-twined in it. The themes are not made lessons. They are presented just as parts of the world it describes.” - Gayani Hathurusingha, Readers Favorite

“...features the adventures of a black cat, told in text with voice overs and animations.” - The Straits Times

“How does one leave a middling – that is, average – life behind? And what does an unconventional existence look like?” - ilovebooks.com