Literary Fiction
Date Published: March 6, 2025
Publisher: Seacoast Press
In The Smallest of Miracles, Douglas Carpenter crafts a masterful literary debut that merges gripping storytelling with profound life lessons. The novel follows Ted Carrington, a wealthy, brilliant, and emotionally distant man on the autism spectrum, who returns to the private elementary school that shaped him—for better and worse. He intends to make a large donation, but what begins as a business transaction slowly becomes a reckoning with his past.
As the story transitions between Ted’s present and his childhood, readers meet the deeply flawed, often cruel boy he once was—especially to a vulnerable new classmate named Anna. But life, in its quiet way, begins to turn his world upside down.
What emerges is not only Ted’s transformation, but an invitation to the reader: to reflect, to slow down, and to reconsider how the smallest decisions—the ones we barely notice—can lead to the greatest changes.
This is not just a novel. It’s a call to awareness. A self-improvement guide disguised as a coming-of-age story.
Read it once for the story. Read it again for the insight.
Introduce yourself and tell me about what
you do.
My name is Douglas Carpenter, I am 59 years old, reside in NY, my background is in accounting and finance and I currently own 2 accounting firms and an asset management company. This differs greatly from what the book is about. In business, I am a Certified Public Accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst. At the age of 17 I became the youngest stockbroker in the country. I have been investing since I was 10 and you might think this book has all to do about investing. It does touch on it, but that is all.
Tell me more about your journey as an
author, including the writing process.
It took me ten years to write this novel. I poured over an analyzed every word. It will never reach perfection but I have tried as hard as I could to get it there. I have tried to make each character come alive. All are very consistent and true to life.
The book is written in finer detail than one might think. Particular words are chosen very deliberately. One chapter in particular consists of just 5 words, but they succinctly convey an important life lesson that you may consider long after comprehending it.
Details also are interwoven even into the way
it appears. Chapters that are in all CAPITAL LETTERS are the main character as
an adult. When only the first letter is
Capitalized it is him as a child.
Tell me about your Book
This book is a self improvement book hidden within a novel. The story itself is the guide to becoming a better person. Some chapters are written purely to entertain, others move the story forward, but the great majority contain extremely valuable life lessons. I have had people read it and tell me it was enjoyable. Then something within it made them think, and they reread it a second time with a more careful eye, and find it mind blowing.
The innumerable forgettable micro decisions
that you make all day long determine your fate, not the large memorable events.
Making those very small choices are what direct and or change your life. That
is one of the many focuses of this book.
Any message for our readers
Read the book carefully. It is not meant to be read in a rush but rather slowly, contemplatively, even though the writing style is somewhat fast moving.
Also, it takes about the first 75 pages to
introduce the characters and set the story line. It is worth the investment.
After that the story really starts to move but you have to get though those
first 75 pages. They aren't bad, they just aren't as interesting as what the
novel becomes.
Story
The main character, Ted Carrington is a middle aged man, wealthy and powerful, and on the spectrum. His hobby is messing in the lives of people, since the pursuit of money lost its meaning to him long prior. He is there to make a donation that will save the now bankrupt private elementary school he attended as a child. He has selected 3 people (victims) from the school's administration to meet with that day for that purpose.
The book moves to him as a child attending the school. He is both bullied and a bully himself. We meet him as a rather talentless self centered individual just trying to hang onto the few friends who will have him. As he enterers 5th grade a new student, a morbidly obese girl named Anna joins the class. Ted immediately zeroes in on this easy target and he proceeds to lead the charge of the many who make her life miserable.
His life begins to take some turns that
reshape his entire perspective and his world, causing him to realize he cannot
continue to be the person he is but does not want to be. The journey he takes
is not just for him, but for the reader, who through his eyes may find some
thing about themselves to change that will reshape their lives as well.
His debut novel, The Smallest of Miracles, took ten years to write—a deeply personal and intricately crafted journey of self-discovery and transformation. Drawing on his keen eye for detail and analysis, Douglas poured over every word, shaping a literary fiction novel that functions as both an engaging story and a guide to personal growth.
The book explores how tiny, seemingly insignificant choices shape our lives far more than major events. Readers are invited to slow down, reflect, and discover truths hidden in the smallest details—just as Douglas has done through his writing.
Douglas hopes his novel will find a place in high school curricula and on the bookshelves of thoughtful readers young and old. His message is clear: "The truth is always hidden behind things that are out of place."
Connect with Douglas Carpenter to discover a new perspective on life, character, and the miraculous power of small decisions.
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