One of the Most Successful Children’s Novels in Kickstarter’s History,
THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN, Preps to Launch with Support of
Key Ministry, Parenting and Educational Endorsements.
Kickstarter Campaign reaches goal in four hours, Labeled
“Project We Love” by the crowdsourcing giant.
CINCINNATI, OHIO. May 5, 2016 – By merging action/adventure with unforgettable characters, laugh-out-loud humor and unexpected plot twists, THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN has established an epic new franchise that kids are raving about and parents, teachers and family organizations are applauding. Veteran TV Executive Brian Wells has heard the requests of parents and educators, and is committed to creating engaging content and exceptional storytelling that instills positive character.
THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN begins when a dangerous organization invades Jake Herndon’s seventh-grade sleepover. He escapes along with two classmates, Lucy and TJ, only to face a 48-hour fight for survival on the streets of Chicago. The kids unravel a mystery dating back to the Civil War and discover an incredible secret about Jake’s family. Along the way they learn unexpected lessons about courage, family and friendship.
While the series is targeted to readers aged 9-14, parents, entertainment industry professionals and family organizations are joining in a rare convergence of praise, stating that THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN succeeds both as riveting action with great characters and humor and a story that reinforces the kind of character parents want to see in their kids.
The first sign that the book was meeting such a strong need came when the Kickstarter campaign reached the incredible milestone of achieving it’s $10,000 goal in under four hours. This instant success caught the eye of the team at Kickstarter, who named THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN a ‘Project We Love’ shortly after the campaign began. By the completion of the 30-day campaign, the book had topped its Kickstarter goal by an incredible 620%, selling thousands of pre-orders and generating an equal amount of donated copies for underserved youths.
“As my wife and I tried to find great, engaging entertainment options for our kids, we realized that other parents and teachers shared our struggle,” explains Brian. “We couldn’t find stories and series for our children that were both flat-out awesome entertainment and reinforced the kind of character we wanted to build into our kids. Our thought became, ‘What if we created an adventure series that was first a fast-paced roller-coaster adventure with great characters and humor and also wove in themes such as family, friendship and compassion?’”
Brian operates under the principle of ‘criticize by creating’ – instead of complaining about what’s out there, being part of the solution by creating better content. This concept has helped bring to life 15 television movies that have been applauded by millions and endorsed by family organizations across the country. THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN is no different, and is already receiving accolades from organizations such as The Association of Christian Schools International, Parents Television Council, Focus on the Family, American Family Association, Great Homeschool Conventions and others.
Not only is THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN designed to provide an exciting and entertaining reading experience for middle school students, it also delivers several additional long-term benefits.
First, Brian has taken 140 of the top vocabulary words that middle schoolers need for success, and has invisibly woven them into the story. THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN seamlessly becomes not only entertainment, but helps middle school readers stay sharp for school during summer and winter breaks.
Second, the characters in THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN discover lessons in mercy, compassion and charity. To support these themes, the creators of the book are committed to inspiring reading in lower income communities. For every hardcover of the book purchased from the official website, LeagueandLantern.com, an identical hardcover copy will be donated to a child who couldn’t otherwise afford to buy a copy of their own.
Brian continues, “We want THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN to not only be a heart-pounding, exciting journey for kids, we want it to also inspire them to help others fall in love with reading by giving them their very own copy.”
Early praise for the series:
‘The LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN is a roller coaster read full of twists, turns and adventure. This is one fun ride that kids are sure to enjoy.”
– Jody Dreyer, Former Sr. Vice-President, Walt Disney Studios.
“As engrossing as it is clever, as funny as it is downright fun, the LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN grabs readers from the opening chapters and doesn’t let go.”
– Bryan Daniel, Eighth Grade Language Arts Teacher.
THE LEAGUE AND THE LANTERN available for pre-order now at LeagueandLantern.com for $16.99 (plus shipping) and $7.99 for the e-book. A free Sneak Peek of the first six chapters of the book is also available at www.LeagueandLantern.com.