Blog Tour: THEO AND SPROUT: A JOURNEY OF GROWTH by Joseph Gergen

Blog Tour: CHOOSING LOVE OVER PRIDE b... Blog Tour: LOSE IT FOR THE LAST TIME ...

Blog Tour: THEO AND SPROUT: A JOURNEY OF GROWTH by Joseph Gergen

Theo and Sprout: A Journey of Growth

by Joseph Gergen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE: Literary Fiction (YA)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB:

WhileTheo longs for some guidance through the perils of adolescence, the guidance heknew his family wouldn’t give him, he isn’t prepared for Sprout, his innerDivine Feminine, to present herself and offer it to him. In fact, he doesn’tappear to have a choice since Sprout, sassy and confident about her presence,won’t go away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Excerpt One:

SPROUT. My brother had no idea the impact the nickname hederisively gave me would have. Neither of us knew how unwittingly appropriateit would become. Was it destiny or self-fulfilling prophecy? I don’t know.Memories and dreams and possibilities like to mix together. As far as my pastis concerned and the makeup of who I am and what shaped me, I can make nodistinction between memory and reality and dream. I usually don’t try.

While I certainly don’t remember all of my childhood, andmany aspects are densely foggy, I remember with clarity the day my lifechanged. I was preparing for school in the basement bathroom—the small, crampedbathroom that seemed more like a large porta-potty with a shower than an actualbathroom. Wet towels covered the floor and almost all available surfaces.Countless toiletries jumbled themselves wherever space allowed them to balanceor stack. Most of these did not belong to me. They belonged to my collection ofbrothers and sisters. I had a toothbrush. I knew that. Usually, I foundtoothpaste. If I absolutely needed a less common toiletry, I picked through abaffling array of products, many of which I had no understanding, until I foundsomething useful.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If they made a movie from “Theo and Sprout,” Three Songs Iwould like for the Soundtrack

I’m not sure how they would make a movie out of “Theo andSprout” with the gender-bendy, physical twist going on between Theo and Sprout,but I would sure like it if they gave it a shot. I’ll leave the cinematiccreativity to the professionals. Maybe David Lynch or David Cronenberg would begood directors, but that’s for another post.

Here we’ll talk about the soundtrack for the awesome moviethey’ll make. So in no particular order, here are Three Songs that would gowith certain scenes. If you get a chance, certainly go take a listen.

1. “I’ll be Your Mirror” by Velvet Underground andNico

In Chapter 1, Theo sees Sprout in thebathroom mirror for the first time. Amidst all the confusion, Sprout tries toexplain why she’s there. Once back in his bedroom, Theo works to come to gripswith situation and eventually tries to find a way to get dressed. I can hearthis playing as he paces the room, sits down, gets up, tries on clothes, sitsdown. A soothing voice that’s there tohelp.

I'll be your mirror

Reflect what you are, in case you don'tknow

I'll be the wind, the rain, and thesunset

The light on your door to show thatyou're home

When you think the night has seen yourmind

That inside, you're twisted and unkind

Let me stand to show that you are blind

Please put down your hands

'Cause I see you

2. “And She Was” by The Talking Heads

In Chapter 3, there is a flyingtheme, the kind of flying escape you have in dreams the dreams of liberation.In this song as in the story the idea of flying seems inexplicable at first butthen becomes accepted. She just was. And so were Theo and Sprout.

And she was lying in the grass

And she could hear the highwaybreathing

And she could see a nearby factory

She's making sure she is not dreaming

See the lights of a neighbor's house

Now she's starting to rise

Take a minute to concentrate

And she opens up her eyes

The world was moving and she was

Right there with it, and she was

The world was moving, she was

Floating above it, and she was

And she was

3. “Man” by Neko Case

In Chapter 26, the climatic chapter, Theoand Sprout have a final confrontation with Theo’s older brother. While at firstI thought Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Going to Take It” would be a good fit, Ithought more fitting would be a statement of unabashed confidence in who theywere. A this is who I am statement. “Awoman’s heart is the watermark of which I measure everything” is the perfectembodiment of what Sprout stands for.

I'm a man

That's whatyou raised me to be

I’m not anIdentity crisis

This wasplanned

I'm a man

As in a citizen of mankind

It's what kind of animal I am

It's that simple, oh

I'm a man

And not just casually

I pull this barge full-time

The tree house cannot support me

I'm not the runt of the litter

The fat-finger bullies were no match for me

I still taste them in my teeth

I'm a man

I'm a man's man, I've always been

Make no mistake, what I've invested in

A woman's heart is the watermark

Of which I measure everything

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Author of “Theoand Sprout”. Born and raised on the plains of North Dakota. Moved to TwinCities because it’s actually warmer. Enjoy creating in whatever form it takes,including writing, painting, and furniture making. The enjoyment is in thedoing. Looking to add a little magic to the world through art.

Other booksinclude “Without a Pang” and “Methane Wars.”

Social Media:

Website: https://josephgergen.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeGergen or @joegergen

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joegergen/ or @joegergen

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100079140443073

Book Reviews:

https://reedsy.com/discovery/book/theo-and-sprout-a-journey-of-growth-joe-gergen#review

https://chicklitcafe.com/?s=theo+and+sprout

https://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/2022/08/theo-and-sprout-a-journey-of-growth-dedicated-review

Books Availableat:

“Theo andSprout” available as eBook, paperback and audiobook Amazon: