Once upon a time (actually nearly 30 years ago), in a land very close to here, there was a father whose seven-year-old son refused to have a story read to him at bedtime. He wanted his father to spin a tale from his own imagination.

So the father started with those four words which open the portal to many a seething world of the imagination - 'once upon a time'. To which he added "there were twins".

It was a matter of ensuring he had enough yarn to spin his tale, said Martin Mordecai, the father who was called upon to deliver original work, to the small audience at Bookland, Knutsford Boulevard, New Kingston, last Wednesday afternoon. "I said to myself, if I made it twins, I had more options," he said.

imagination

"Then I said there is a goat. A magic goat. A goat can do about four things. A magic goat can do anything."

When his son fell asleep, Mordecai, now into the story himself, kept talking, letting his imagination flow. However, "the next night I said was I would continue the story. He said no, you can read".

There was laughter on the upper floor of Bookland.

The story would not shrivel on the creative vine and die, though, as Wednesday's gathering was to hear the story which got its first listening ear and also its first rejection from a seven-year-old when Bob Marley was alive read.

Before starting his brief reading, Mordecai clarified that although the title is Blue Mountain Trouble, in the book Blue Mountain is mentioned once and Jamaica not at all.

He started the reading at the book's beginning, with twins Pollyread (the nickname a fusing of her first name Penelope and her constant reading) and Jackson heading down the hill in their rural environment towards Steadman Corner and Marcus Garvey Primary. On a foggy day ("as thick as Mama's soup") a goat appeared from nowhere, suspended on the path in front of them. It had huge "horns they had never seen before on a goat or any creature".

"The twins stopped dead. There was no way around it," Mordecai read. Which was good, because as soon as it had disappeared there was a huge landslide and "a metre ahead of their feet there was nothing. What was left of the hillside looked torn and bleeding.

"It hadn't rained for weeks. The earth was hard as cement. There was no reason for the landslide," Mordecai read.

saving graces

The second segment involved the 'baddie' (as Mordecai called him before reading the excerpt), Jammy. "Every book has to have a baddie. If you read the book you will see there are a few saving graces and a reason why he is bad."

And he clarified that "Jammy is not a real Rastaman. I had a bug quarrel with the publisher".

In the excerpt Pollyread and Jackson were again walking to school when Jammy intercepts them and grabs Polly (who had told him she could never be his missus because she was too young and he was too ugly). Jackson lined up Jammy's crotch and kicked like he was shooting for goal at Marcus Garvey Primary, the two taking off and Jammy lumbering behind them.

"Sheer terror held them upright, their feet barely touching the ground," Mordecai read.

He eventually caught up with them and dragged Jackson down in Steadman Corner square, the excerpt ending with the boy engulfed in strong limbs, a fetid stench and terror, Jammy saying "you an yu sister think yu better than everybody. Well I gwine show yu!"

For those who may have been wondering about the twins' fate, Mordecai said that Jammy does not do anything very bad to them and a lady who sells boiled corn on the corner takes care of him.

At the beginning of the reading Mordecai had smiled as he said, "I am a new author, apparently, meaning this is my first novel. But when people say new author I blink, of course. All the grey hairs and all of it."