Through the Gateway

by John Bloom

Jackson Layton is fourteen, a soccer star of his small town and is about to become one of the most important people on the planet. Revealed to him on a cross country trek, Jack learns he must make it to a secret summit, which will establish the direction for all human existence. Hot on his trail is a rogue military leader, who has been preparing for centuries to kill the chosen delegate, and will do what is necessary to accomplish his mission. Jack must not only put up with people trying to kill him, but also deal with his new found crush on his trek mate and best friend Maddie.

298 pages, Paperback

First published December 10, 2010

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

John Bloom is a journalist and entertainer born in Dallas, Texas, who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and now lives in New York City.

While serving as New York bureau chief for United Press International, he was an eyewitness to the events of 9/11 and was nominated by UPI for the Pulitzer Prize. His work for Texas Monthly magazine has been nominated three times for the National Magazine Award, and he has written for dozens of newspapers and magazines, as well as being a columnist for the New York Times Syndicate, the Los Angeles Times Syndicate, and Creators Syndicate. He graduated summa cum laude from Vanderbilt University, where he was a Grantland Rice Scholar for his work as a teenage reporter and columnist for the Arkansas Democrat.

In 1982 he created the pseudonym of "Joe Bob Briggs," using that pen name anonymously until he was outed in 1985. He then performed under that name on a number of television shows and at live venues, winning two Cable ACE Awards for a show called "Joe Bob's Drive-In Theater" on The Movie Channel and a similar show called "MonsterVision" on TNT.