About the Book

Book: Just a Piece of Stone

Author: Mary Ann Hake

Genre: Middle Grade Historical Adventure Novel

Release Date: April 29, 2025

A Special Stone—A Family Legacy

Suspense and a Hint of the Supernatural

Travel backward in time as the Goldberg family experiences moments of history—including the Holocaust, meeting Leonardo Da Vinci, castles, knights, battles, and thefts. They also face kidnapping, explore caves, flee as refugees, and live under various conquerors. Just a Piece of Stone begins in the United States and moves to Europe and Asia, with each chapter sharing a story about a different boy in a different time period. From grandfather to grandson for thousands of years, Just a Piece of Stone travels the world. Join the adventure!

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Author Interview

Do you consider yourself a plotter or a pantser (or a hybrid)?
I am more of a pantser or discovery writer. I have the beginning and the ending in mind when I
write a story and some things that will be included. But I am not a detailed outliner before I
begin. I find inspiration as I write. The thrill of words flowing on the page to express what my
mind has conceived amazes me. The creative process takes on a life of its own, it seems.

What is your favorite part about writing?
I love the imagining and creative process. It’s like partnering with God to bring something new
into existence. This thrills the soul and lifts the spirit. In addition, although not my favorite, I like
to see the polishing of a manuscript pay off and turn rough writing into something that flows
well and expresses the message of the heart. This is also a beautiful thing.
Do you have a way to keep track of your story ideas?
I wish I were more organized. I have things written on scraps of paper and in notebooks, and
ideas for future projects stashed in folders and also some saved on the computer. I need to go
through them all and decide what I may still pursue.

When did you become a writer?
I longed to write as soon as I learned to put words into sentences on paper. My mother read to us
often when I was little, and I think this contributed to my love of storytelling. In grade school, I
enjoyed writing assignments, and sometimes I got to read a story to the class. In high school,
English teachers encouraged my writing. But I was too shy and not confident to send my work in
for publication. The few things I did submit were rejected, further undermining my confidence. I
got married young and became a mom and focused on raising my girls. When we homeschooled,
I thought I would have more time for my own writing, which I had mostly set aside. I gradually
began to have pieces published in periodicals and then in compilation books, then work for hire
writing curricula and other things. Now I have award-winning picture books about a blind girl,
and my first published novel, Just a Piece of Stone, released April 29 as a #1 new release in
multiple categories.

Where do you get your ideas for your books?
Ideas come from anywhere, really. Sometimes something just pops into my mind, maybe a fun
concept or a question, such as, What would happen if . . . ? Some ideas come from dreams, like
one award-winning short story I wrote. Others come from life, whether personal experiences,
observations, or things we notice others say and do. If you’re open to receiving them, ideas are
endless.

Do bits of yourself/friends show up in your characters?
Yes, I don’t think we can help but put some of ourselves and those familiar to us into our
characters. Much is universal, but some quirks or expressions or incidents might be used in a
book. A Young Adult novel I’m working on has a teen’s faith journey loosely patterned after my
own experience of coming to the Lord and later becoming a Conservative Mennonite. I think we
are gifted in life with material to incorporate in our stories but should do so in a positive way, not
to the detriment of anyone who might see themselves in what we write.

About the Author

Mary Ann Hake has published hundreds of stories, articles, poems, puzzles, devotions, curricula, and more (for both children and adults) in periodicals and books plus hundreds of book reviews online. Just a Piece of Stone is her first published novel. The first two picture books in her series about a blind girl, The Smells of the Seasons, received the prestigious Mom’s Choice Award and were featured on the Arkansas PBS summer literacy program, Rise and Shine. She has worked in a bookstore and as a librarian and enjoyed reading to children at story times and conducting summer reading programs. She has also taught writing to children and at writers’ conferences. She continues to work as a freelance editor along with her writing. She and her husband live in beautiful Oregon.

More from Mary

About eight years ago I had an idea: What would happen if a boy found a stone during the time of Moses during the Israelites wandering in the desert and the stone was handed down from generation to generation? I’m not going to say exactly where the rock came from because that’s part of the suspense in the book as readers try to figure out its origin, which is revealed in the final chapter.

So I looked up the approximate date of the Israelites in the Wilderness after leaving Egypt and then figured out how many generations there might be to the present day and the ages of the boys and the grandfathers in each chapter. I decided the stone would be handed down from grandfather to grandson and they would be blessed with long lives so there wouldn’t be too many chapters in the book. It was like putting a puzzle together. I originally planned fifty chapters then realized in the midst of writing that this would be too long for the age group, so I changed to thirty-five, with Old Testament ancestors summarized in the chapter prior to the finale.

I also chose to start the story in the present day with a boy getting a mysterious stone in the mail then go backward in time all the way to the days of Moses. I came up with a list of character names, gleaned from the Bible and historical info, and looked at timelines to choose dates of interesting historical events and places for the chapters’ settings.

This took years researching time periods and culture, and I learned so much. I read, watched videos, and listened to an oral history by a Holocaust survivor, whose facts I used in the chapter set in Nazi Germany. I saved dozens of pages of notes and pictures. Since the original character who found the stone was a Hebrew, I kept the family Jewish throughout the novel. So, in addition to intriguing historical tidbits and accurate locations for Jewish settlements and refugee situations, I incorporated Jewish culture and customs. I also gave the characters appropriate occupations for the settings. A glossary at the back provides pronunciations and definitions of unfamiliar words.

From chapter 2 on each chapter features the boyhood of the grandfather from the previous chapter as we move continue to move backward through time. In the Kindle version, you can click to go to any chapter you wish. Each chapter offers a separate short story within the entire family saga about the prized stone. Throughout the historical tale, we witness God’s protection and care for His followers. I also tried to model people of diverse backgrounds getting along, except, of course, for the authentic historical incidents and battles included.

Last summer when we visited Oregon’s Painted Hills, I met three generations of a Jewish family on vacation. The son is a rabbi and a mohel from New York. I told them about my story and enjoyed visiting with them. He told me the stone should be sapphire, so I changed its color to blue.

A publisher expressed interest early on, but never followed through. An agent said my writing was beautiful but declined representation. The unpublished manuscript was a finalist in the Cascade Writers Contest in 2020. Children who read the chapters one by one begged for more and for the book to be published. Eventually, Elk Lake Publishing offered me a contract then came rewriting and polishing amid many family crises. It takes much time to write, rewrite, and prepare a book for publication. I love the cover Elk Lake created for Just a Piece of Stone.

The tale is great for homeschoolers and as a teachers’ resource, which could be a launch for students’ history projects. I am working on puzzles and activities to accompany the novel and will make these available on my website and to newsletter subscribers. I am also available for online visits with classes or to teach writing to children.