The Old Testament prophet Daniel controversial? The humble vegetarian who gained favor in Babylon by interpreting the king's haunting dream? "Wings of a Dreamer" fleshes out the sketchy stories from the Book of Daniel, following Daniel from his youth in Jerusalem to his final days in Babylonia. The book breathes new life into the stories of the lions' den and the writing on the wall, as well as the apocryphal Susanna and the Elders. In 604 BC the new Babylonian king, Nebuchadrezzar, in Judah to consolidate the empire he and his father wrested from the Assyrians, selects Daniel, now 14, and orphaned triplets for training in Babylon. The triplets, who will be lifelong friends of Daniel, are given the names Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and will later face the trial of the fiery furnace. In the House of Tablets, the scribal school, the four endure harsh training from Enlil-Marduk, son of the Great Priest, the most powerful religious figure in Babylon. Wings presents a Daniel devoted to spirituality but dubious of Yahweh, and a very different King Nebuchadrezzar. Vilified in the Bible as the destroyer of Jerusalem who led the Judahites into captivity, this same king led Babylon to become the splendor of its age, and built the "Hanging Gardens" for his homesick Median wife. Daniel loses his father at an early age, but finds a father in the King of Babylon. Daniel is taken from his birthplace, but discovers that Babylon is his true home. At first separated by his differences, Daniel finds camaraderie with the court scribes and ultimately becomes a part of the king's family---and marries the King's daughter, Marshani. The ziggurats of Babylonia hid secrets about the gods who ruled the land, especially the Tower of Babel, the seven-level pyramid honoring their greatest god, Marduk. Daniel's destiny intersected the lives of two looming figures of Old Testament prophecy, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. What was it about them that resulted in their deaths at the hands of their own countrymen? Two subtle but unavoidable themes weave through the story: true spirituality is an individual path best explored without the intrusion of a priesthood; and war is an unforgiving monster that turns on its masters.