Rhyming, cumulative text adapted from a classic nursery song introduces six musical instruments, while glimpses through die-cut windows hint at who is playing each one.

Dan Barker, ex-preacher and co-founder of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, travels widely, arguing in debates and speaking on his beliefs that Christianity is false, God does not exist, and the Bible is filled with errors and mythology. He has been touted as one of America’s leading atheists. Yet close examination of his arguments shows that Barker’s reasons for disbelief are poorly reasoned and miss the mark as they are aimed at a mistaken caricature of Christian theism. Answering the Music Man exposes Barker’s misunderstandings of Christianity and provides compelling answers to Barker’s arguments.

The Music Man stands as one of the greatest achievements in American musical theatre, but few know about its rocky beginnings and the against-all-odds success story of its creator Meredith Willson. Mark Cabaniss steps back into the Golden Age of Broadway and brings to life the origins of this classic show, the music behind it, and the unlikely story of its creator. Interweaving behind-the-scenes accounts of people who worked with Willson, Cabaniss looks at his long and unusual career as a composer, conductor, radio personality, and flutist, which reached its pinnacle in The Music Man. No one initially believed in Willson’s “Valentine to Iowa,” seeing it as nothing but a corny flop or, worse, a recipe for disaster. But when the curtain fell on opening night, a star called The Music Man was born. Over 65 years later, that star is still marching right to this day, endeared by millions around the world. To understand Willson, his career, and his music is to understand how The Music Man came to be: he was truly the only person who could have ever written this show due to his unique background, talent, incredible persistence, and belief. The show’s ultimate success and longevity was anything but inevitable—rather, it was truly a miracle.

A 14 year old girl with extreme musical talent is dying of cancer. Her father (a special government agent), a strange visitor from another planet simply calling himself the Music Man and four powerful beings who accompany him converge on Earth to thwart a pending attack in our future. But can they do it in time? Who can be trusted? Will the young girl realize her destiny in time before she dies? What will happen to Earth if she fails? Why is all this related to only music? What did a fifth airplane on 9/11 have to do with the young girl? The Music Man has been sent to Earth by four special beings. But why was he sent here and what does he know about Earth? How can a 14-year-old girl save our planet? A genius inventor, a radical doctor and a NASA video surveillance specialist all become part of the now complex countdown. And we just have a little over 677 years to become prepared for the inevitable.

A memoir by Mead Metcalf