Guest: Judy Oats - Judy, Torrey and Cody Oates are the co-authors of the trilogy, 'The Lyra Legacy Chronicles'. They write under the pseudonym of 'Manda' which is an Aramaic word meaning 'knowledge'. The books are introductory books, appropriate for ages 12 to adult. They offer diversified and integrated information regarding what could happen before, on and after the end of the Mayan Calendar on December 21, 2012. Their website is manda2012.com.

The inspiration for the books was when Judy was tutoring a home-schooled ten year old who was allowed to choose his own curriculum. He guided her towards comparative mythology, astronomy, and astrology. His family was preparing for a tour of the Grand Canyon and he became interested in Indian lore.  He desired to know about the prophecies of the various indigenous people.  Ironically, many of the prophecies coincided with those of Gordon-Michael Scallion, Aron Abrahamsen and Edgar Cayce. When the tutorial ended within a few months, Judy did not want the research to end. She wondered if there were other children or adults who were interested in a simplified, comparative explanation of what might occur before, on and after the end of the Mayan calendar.  Her daughter, Torrey, contributed character descriptions and names.   Her son, Cody, was responsible for story content.  The novels offer a myriad of quasi-dysfunctional children and adult characters who interpret their exposure to scientific and metaphysical information in diverse ways.