Linda Ballard 
Carl’s Quest 

Carl’s Quest is a fairy tale adventure for children of all ages, five to one hundred five. Carl is a charismatic commoner who lives in the woods. With the assistance of his woodland friends, he ventures into a fantastic kingdom. There he sees the beautiful vision of his dreams, Princess Charlotte. She is kidnapped by an evil baron. Carl and three knights set off on a crusade to rescue her. Along the way, they encounter and overcome many almost impossible obstacles in innovative ways. These brave men cross paths with a dreaded wizard in a black forest where they are attacked by many things set up by the wizard to prevent their saving the princess. They managed to get through the black forest only to be faced with an impenetrable castle. Once they manage to gain entry into the castle, Carl and his fellow champions must first locate the princess. Before they can release her from her captives, they are challenged with an additional impossible quest by the wizard. Time is of the essence as they must fulfill the wizard’s demand before the evil baron forces the princess to become his bride, and the wizard makes good on his promise to kill them all. They face unusual animals such as a fire-breathing dragon, a flying horse, and a unicorn. Through these ordeals, they are assisted by a young lad, his crippled brother, and many newfound friends. As this is a fairy tale, it has a very happy ending.