Additional information
by J. R. Ortiz (Author)
In Libertas Americana, Book Two of the American Amaranth Anthology, brothers are brought together by CIA Director Joseph Mitrano in a mission to Europe to stop a terror plot destined for the American homeland. Assisted by other CIA and US Naval Intelligence officers - and agents from France, Switzerland, Poland, and the Ukraine - the Stansfields take the reader on a high-risk odyssey along the Danube, Main, and Rhine rivers in a classic tale of "Good versus Evil". As in Homer's idealized epic heroes - the mortal fears, strengths, and weaknesses of a diverse cast of champions are studied philosophically. The villain antagonists are also morally investigated in detail. The virtues espoused in American Amaranth are seen in the actions of the various individual proponents of liberty throughout the novel. Each chapter in Libertas Americana is introduced by the "Ghost of Wisdom". The thoughts expressed are both delicate and provoking. They are made to cause the reader to sense both calm spirituality and brutal fear, distrust, and apprehension. The "Ghost" takes the reader to the extremes of human emotion. It is in these extremes of contemplation where you, like the characters in the novel, are torn between what should be and what often is. The thoughts reflect life's realities, whether we accept them or not. Perhaps, the "Ghost" is someone you knew and loved. We all have a "Ghost of Wisdom" inside of us. The journey, on which you are about to embark, follows a cast of freedom fighters as they risk their lives to stop a human calamity. Their thoughts and emotions are dissected to better understand the concepts of honor, courage, hope, love, justice, and the spiritual need for liberty. It explores the human mind and all its complexities in the eternal struggle for freedom.
Author Biography
Julio Rafael Ortiz was born in Havana, Cuba on October 24, 1959. He emigrated to the United States with his parents in 1961 as a political exile. He was raised in Chicago, Illinois and Miami, Florida. Dr. Ortiz graduated from the University of Miami School of Medicine in 1985 with highest honors. He received his ophthalmic surgical training at Emory University Eye Center where he was Chief Resident and at Duke University Eye Center where he was Hornaday Fellow. He was certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology in 1991. Dr. Ortiz has been in private medical practice in Miami for the past twenty-one years. He specializes in cataract, glaucoma, and corneal transplantation surgery. Privately, J.R. Ortiz lives with his lovely wife and four children in Coral Gables, Florida. He is an avid reader of history, economics, sociology, and political science. His interest in freedom was born from his own experiences in the Cuban diaspora and his love for America. Ortiz believes that America and what it has represented to the world since its inception, is now being eroded at home and abroad. Examples abound. The costs of freedom must be understood by all Americans. Dr. Ortiz has spent his entire professional life working to prevent physical blindness. He is now trying to prevent blindness in America, sociologically. The American Amaranth anthology shows that honor, courage, hope, and love are the foundation for freedom in America.
