Olivia's Magic Conch

Everything was right in Olivia's world; her eleventh birthday was in a few days and her dad, a marine biologist promised this would be their lucky year. They would find the elusive magic conch; the shell he spoke of so often and for which they had searched so many years. She believed him..because he never broke a promise. When he got word his federal grant was approved to work on his environmental project in the Caribbean she was as happy as he, until he told her he would not be home for her birthday. While very disappointed and sad she did deal with it and off he went. What she couldn't deal with was the phone call they received the morning of her birthday saying her dad was missing at sea. It was the worst day of her life and she refused to ever celebrate it again. One year to the day with the wonderful memories of the fun experiences she shared with her dad, she decided to resume the search on her own. The quest to find the shell never far from her mind and her belief that her dad was still alive Olivia sits at the water's edge burrowing her feet deeper and deeper into the wet sand brought on by each new wave. Lost in thought with a tear welling up in her eye, her big toe comes to rest on something hard. Intrigued, she begins to dig vigorously with her bare hands. Little does she know she is about to unearth the power that will lead her on a magical journey...and what she will find.