• Why this book?

    Is it possible to help children to stay open and maintain their youthful spontaneity and creativity? Could holding up an inspiring mirror to them by means of Steffen's exciting adventures work in their favour?

    As a therapist I saw many adult clients who were limited in their lives and self-development by events from their childhood. Often they did not feel good enough or did not dare to be themselves. That observation aroused some questions to me. Could the lives of these people have been different if they had learned earlier to look at those events in a different way? Would it be possible to help young children to stay more in their own original power? Would presenting an adventure in which they can recognize themselves help them retain their openness and spontaneity and result in lesser loss of happiness and human talent? That’s how the idea occurred to contribute to this goal by writing this specific children's book.

    The Stefan Book indeed turns out to work this way, especially for highly sensitive kids and victims of bullying. The 'Quest to the land of Apatia' is full of wisdom and life lessons. By the way, not only for children.

  • About the story

    Stefan is a child of the new age. Sensitive, a big open heart and love for everything and everyone. Especially for nature and in particular animals. He is even able to talk to them, because he sees and feels more than most others do. Despite or perhaps because of that big heart, life is not easy for him. He is bullied at school, is afraid that his parents will divorce and is weighed down by the negative world news on television. After again being bullied once more, it has been too much. "I have a too sensitive heart. I can't take it anymore," he sighs.

    What Stefan wants is to lock his heart to make his life bearable again. By chance he heard that you can have that done in the land of the closed hearts. So he sets out on an expedition in the hope of finding that mysterious land. A fairy in the forest had already predicted this adventurous journey. He even got three wishes from the fairy. To use when the going gets tough on the road. You bet he really needs those wishes.

    The first part of the travel he is acompanied by an elderly companion, Super, who is very wise and knowledgeable. Stefan experiences and learns a lot along the way, but he does not agree with his travel companion on everything. Silently Super hopes that Stefan will refrain from going to that country Apatia. Sometimes it looks like that too. But then, such drastic things happen that Stefan perseveres. It turns out to be very difficult to reach Apatia, but finally he finds that land. Then he is all alone. Not even in his wildest dreams could he have imagined the adventures that awaited him. He needs all his courage and perseverance to stay upright. What do you think? Will he succeed in achieving his goal?