Michelina Pagano The Road to Jude

The Road to Jude

Michelina Pagano

Treble Heart, 2004, $6.95

ISBN: 1931742936

She wakes up frightened as nothing seems right as she looks around and only sees a cement sidewalk that as far as her eyes can look goes on forever. There is no grass or dirt or people; only endless pavement. Adding to her trepidation is that she cannot remember her name, where she is from, or how she ended up by herself on this concrete. Every direction she looks is the same so she just begins to walk towards smoke in distance.

When a man accosts her by asking who she is, she bravely tells him she does not know. He says likewise he has no idea who he is either. Since he wears the clothing of a fireman, she dubs him "Hero" and he attracted to her eyes calls her "Pretty One". Though both confused they continue their trek together as he mentions the old woman who insisted "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind" before she seemingly exploded into nothingness. This is the start of a quest hoping to find civilization, but in truth seeking deeper answers to why and where; answers that will leave both seeking much more on a spiritual plane consisting of cement and one weird edifice.

THE ROAD TO JUDE is a strange yet enlightening allegorical tale that grips the audience from the moment Pretty One realizes she is alone on a cement jungle and never slows down until the journey on THE ROAD TO JUDE is completed for the moment. The action is limited somewhat, but readers will not care as the trek feels like a walk in the Twilight Zone yet is much more; slowly Pretty One, Hero and readers will comprehend the whys of a wonderful metaphysical tale that delves into the spirituality of humanity.

Harriet Klausner