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SOUTH JORDAN — Boredom on a drive to California two years ago led to a 23-chapter novel a South Jordan teen hopes will ultimately make a difference in the lives of his sister and others who suffer from sickle cell anemia.
The finished book, titled "Caged," tells the story of J.J., who wakes up one day to find the U.S. government has been taken over, and Americans are being captured and taken to a secret location.
J.J. and his family run into Mike, an FBI agent who is fighting the takeover. Mike asks J.J. to get captured on purpose to spy on the antagonists.
"Right after that, it gets really intense," said the book's author, Jamisen Teuscher.
He said the book takes a "Hunger Games" turn from there, although he had that idea for the novel before he had read the series by Suzanne Collins. "I made it very different," he said.
Teuscher, a junior at Riverton High School, said he has worked on the book consistently for two years, sometimes slowing down when school got demanding. Working in spurts of high activity, there were times he would write incessantly for days before taking a few days' break.
On Friday, he posted a video to YouTube explaining the premise of the action-adventure novel and looking for a publisher. He said he has contacted two publishing houses so far, but has not heard back. He said if it doesn't get published, the experience will have been worth it, but he's hoping for the best — both for him and for his sister, Kenydi.
Kenydi, 10, has sickle cell anemia, and Teuscher said he has watched how the disease has impacted her life since she came into their family a decade ago.
"She has to monitor herself and recognize when she needs to take a break or drink some water," he said. "She's spent a lot of time in the hospital getting transfusions."
Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder in which red blood cells, normally shaped like disks, form a sickle shape. The disorder leads to painful episodes during which oxygen is prevented from being carried to different parts of the body. Over time, the spleen of those affected ceases to function, potentially leading to a variety of infections.
Sickle cell can lead to early death due to organ failure or infection. Although exact rates of incidence in the U.S. are unknown, it is thought that between 90,000 and 100,000 Americans suffer from the disease, which is something Teuscher hopes to see changed.
"If I get published, I'm going to donate part of my proceeds to the Sickle Cell Foundation in honor of Kenydi," he said. "We love her, and we wouldn't trade her for the world."
