Mike Hamel

Mike Hamel (born 1952) is an American children's author, nationally published journalist, philosopher, and former theologian.[1] He is best known for his two YA novel series (Matterhorn the Brave and The Lighthouse Company), the seminal Entrepreneur's Creed, published by Broadman & Holman,[2] which spotlights notable executives, including Jerry Colangelo (former owner of the Phoenix Suns, Arizona Diamondbacks), and Presidential candidate (and former CEO of Godfather's Pizza), Herman Cain.[3] Hamel's sundry articles on cancer research, litigation, and financial matters, such as real estate loans, mortgages and credit consolidation, have been published in magazines and newspapers.[4]

Biography

Career

Over the past thirty years, Hamel has penned hundreds of articles on secular and religious themes. His articles have appeared in national magazines, including James Dobson's Focus on the Family.[5]

Hamel has also researched and written scientific articles, ranging in topics from Big Pharma[6] to surviving cancer[7] for such notable organizations as the Institute for Justice, which litigates liberty issues in the nation’s highest courts.[8] Hamel was himself an IJ plaintiff in a case that was won in Federal Court.[9]

Hamel has contributed to Religion at the Margins[10] and the internationally distributed Solutions Journal[11] and has reviewed books,[12] spanning subjects from religion[13] to neuroscience.[14]

Hamel is a multi-time cancer survivor,[15] having gone through two bone marrow transplants and multiple other treatments to fight lymphoma. He wrote about his experience in a seminal book that explores his journey from diagnosis to treatment to surviving, called Stumbling Toward Heaven.[16] Hamel also produced a video series about his cancer journey in order to demystify the experience of cancer treatment.[17]

In recommending Hamel's book, We Will Be Landing Shortly: Now What?,[18] nationally-renowned author and speaker, Brian D. McLaren,[19] who was recognized by Time Magazine as one of the most influential evangelical leaders in the U.S.[20] said, "I trust Mike Hamel's questions more than I trust most people’s answers. I also trust his wisdom… a treasure which nobody gains without pain and struggle. It is a rare gift to enter into the thoughts of a good and wise man who faces something daily we all must face someday."[21]

In We Will Be Landing Shortly: Now What? Hamel also explained how he turned the bedtime stories he had told his four children into Young Adult (YA) novels.[22] He completed the decade-long effort, resulting in a YA novel series called Matterhorn the Brave, which was published in 2006 by Living Ink Books, an imprint of AMG Publishers. Each book in the series is set in a different location and time period and features a supporting cast of diverse characters, modeled after his own children. Matterhorn the Brave features four adolescents (ages 12–14) who are recruited by the Praetorians of First Realm — a mirror world of Earth — to keep an eye on the development of civilization. To do this, they time-travel through portals and physically mature to adulthood in the process. When heretics murder the king of First Realm, his daughter, Queen Bea, enlists the kids’ help to recover some of the Ten Talis hidden on Earth. The Talis were fashioned by The Maker as tangible symbols of his power. The heretics need these sacred objects for their scheme of taking over the Earth by rewriting its history.[23]

The Pulitzer Prize winning daily newspaper, The Gazette, called Hamel’s Matterhorn the Brave series "a blend of adventure, fantasy and science fiction. There are sword fights, a cast of characters that includes leprechauns, Sasquatch and merpeople, and time travel to various lands and centuries, accompanied by heady physics discussions of how it all works. He [Hamel] eschews interior monologue for action and dialogue and engaging the senses."[22]

The book titles[24] in the Matterhorn series are:

  • Book 1 — The Sword and the Flute: Ireland, AD 700
  • Book 2 — Talis Hunters: Pacific Northwest, 10,000 BC
  • Book 3 — Pyramid Scheme: Egypt, 1325 BC
  • Book 4 – Jewel Heist: Bermuda Triangle, AD 1292
  • Book 5 – Dragon’s Tale: China, 246 BC
  • Book 6 – Rylan the Renegade: Greenland, AD 985
  • Book 7 – Tunguska Event: Siberia, AD 1908 and Asia, 160 BC
  • Book 8 – The Book of Stories: Chicago, AD 1983

Hamel went on to write The Lighthouse Company(TLC) book series, which chronicles a group of kids in the fictional Washington town of Cape Myra, near the Northwest tip of the continental U.S. They meet in the basement of the lighthouse run by Mr. Tyler, aka The Captain. His grandson, JJ, comes to live with him every summer and leads TLC in solving mysteries, finding treasures and helping Cape Myra’s two-man police force.[25] The book titles in the series are:

  • UFO on the Rez
  • Bezer’s Billions
  • Zack’s Cavern
  • The Long Walk Home
  • The Green Bees

The Matterhorn books fell out-of-print in 2015 and were picked-up by pop culture development and publishing company, Pangea Corporation under their imprint Pangea Press. Both series, Matterhorn the Brave and TLC were released in the Fall of 2016.[26] Because of Hamel's religious background and non-religious writing style, and his multi-volume alternate reality novels for children, he has been likened to "a 21st century C.S. Lewis."[27]

Other books

  • The Entrepreneur's Creed (Co-writer, Merrill J. Oster, 2001)[28]
  • Women's Ministry Handbook (Co-writer, Carol Porter, 1992)[29]
  • Giving Back: Using Your Influence to Create Social Change (Co-writer, Merrill J. Oster, 2003)[30]
  • Executive Influence: Impacting Your Workplace for Christ (Co-writer, Christopher Crane, 2003)[31]
  • Lizzy the Leatherback (Illustrated by Julie Bergeron, 2012)[32]

References

  1. ↑ "Hamel, Mike". Worldcat.org. Retrieved 2017-05-02.
  2. ↑ "B&H Publishing Group - Every WORD Matters". B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  3. ↑ "Mike Hamel - Biblio.com". Biblio.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  4. ↑ Mike Hamel (2006). "Home Equity Loans Make Financial Sense". ArticleGeek.
  5. ↑ Family, Focus on the (19 August 2004). The Focus on the Family Women's Ministry Guide. Bethany House Publishers. ASIN 0764216775.
  6. ↑ Mike Hamel (March 2016). "Pharmaceutical Social Enterprise 2.0 Brings a Small Miracle to Big Pharma". Solutions.
  7. ↑ "Bone Marrow - NOTA Challenge - Institute for Justice". Ij.org. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "About Us - Institute for Justice". Ij.org. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  9. ↑ "You searched for Mike Hamel - Institute for Justice". Institute for Justice. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  10. ↑ "Religion at the Margins - Postcards and Postscripts from the Periphery of Faith". religionatthemargins.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  11. ↑ "Pharmaceutical Social Enterprise 2.0 Brings a Small Miracle to Big Pharma - The Solutions Journal". Thesolutionsjournal.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  12. ↑ "The Problem of Pleasure - Religion at the Margins". religionatthemargins.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  13. ↑ "Stumbling Others - Religion at the Margins". religionatthemargins.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  14. ↑ "Spirit and Brain - Religion at the Margins". religionatthemargins.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  15. ↑ "Springs man joins fight to allow compensation for bone-marrow donors". Gazette.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  16. ↑ Hamel, Mike (24 March 2011). Stumbling Toward Heaven: Mike Hamel on Cancer, Crashes and Questions. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ASIN 1461005000.
  17. ↑ Mike Hamel (11 January 2010). "Mike Hamel Cancer Survivor, Part 1". YouTube. Retrieved 2 May 2017 – via YouTube.
  18. ↑ Hamel, MIke. "We Will Be Landing Shortly". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017 – via Amazon.
  19. ↑ "About Brian McLaren". Brianmclaren.net. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  20. ↑ "The 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America". Content.time.com. 7 February 2005. Retrieved 2 May 2017 – via content.time.com.
  21. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2016-12-04.
  22. 1 2 "When kids' tales grow up". Gazette.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  23. ↑ Janna (21 July 2009). "CORNHUSKER ACADEMY: "Matterhorn the Brave" Book Review and Giveaways!". Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  24. ↑ "Juvenile Series and Sequels: Author: Mike Hamel - mymcpl.org - Mid-Continent Public Library". Mymcpl.org. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  25. ↑
  26. ↑ Hamel, Mike (6 December 2016). UFO on the Rez: The Lighthouse Company. Pangea Press. ASIN 0989406571.
  27. ↑ "Product Reviews: Matterhorn the Brave Series #1: The Sword and the Flute 0899578330". Christianbook.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  28. ↑ Oster, Merrill J.; Hamel, Mike; Bright, Bill (1 February 2001). The Entrepreneur's Creed: The Principles and Passions of 20 Successful Entrepreneurs. Broadman & Holman Publishers. ASIN 0805423575.
  29. ↑ Porter, Carol; Hamel, Mike (1 March 1992). Women's Ministry Handbook. Victor. ASIN 0896938859.
  30. ↑ Oster, Merrill J.; Hamel, Mike (1 April 2003). Giving Back: Using Your Influence to Create Social Change. Navpress Publishing Group. ASIN 1576833860.
  31. ↑ Crane, Christopher A.; Hamel, Mike; Blanchard, Kenneth H. (1 January 2003). Executive Influence: Impacting Your Workplace for Christ. Navpress Publishing Group. ASIN 1576833739.
  32. ↑ Hamel, Mike (18 November 2012). Lizzy The Leatherback. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ASIN 1481033042.
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