A boy appears who seems able to give the world what humanity has always prayed for: an end to conflict, poverty, disease. Is he an illusion conjured up by mass hysteria, or is he the long-awaited messiah? Different narrators in various parts of the world, from a Protestant minister in New York to a young Hindu in Sri Lanka to a doctor in central Africa, tell their stories of the boy, but don't always agree on whether their dreams have come true or whether they have lost something important. How much would we be willing to sacrifice? ""Reminiscent of Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End, Buchan carries off a provocative thought-experiment on humanity's genetic and spiritual transformation: challenging readers to consider what we would be willing to give up in order to move our species from disease and conflict, to health and contentment. In clear prose he delivers first-person testimonials from around the world, capturing the sense of different places and depicting the human condition in this poignant atlas of the soul."" --Jeff Stickney, co-author of Wittgenstein's Education: A Picture Held Us Captive ""Bryan Buchan's El Nino does exactly what a thought-provoking novel is supposed to do: it asks life's big questions and encourages readers to contemplate what a different, better world might look like. It's a novel that is both global in scope, yet intimate and personal in its details. A remarkable novel written by a gifted writer."" --Alfred Falkenberg, Department Head of English, Bayview Secondary School Bryan Buchan is a former teacher and author of three earlier novels. He lives in Richmond Hill, Ontario.