Oasis

Thirteen-year-old Toby Williams lives with his parents on US Space Station Oasis, orbiting the Moon in support of Moon Colony #1, an infinitely sustainable biosphere. Destined to be a refuge from the effects of overpopulation, environmental pollution, and climate change on Earth, Oasis has become the symbol of mankind's survival as a species, and an invaluable prize worth taking by an international criminal conspiracy. As the only human ever conceived and born in space, Toby yearns to visit Earth before it's too late and experience the wonder of running barefoot in the grass, or learning to skip stones across the placid surface of a pond, or building a tree house with his dad. He also dreams of becoming a Space Command pilot like his hero, Captain Brett Larsen. But his plans for the future collapse around him when he finds out that he can't learn to fly in space, and because all parent volunteers for Oasis duty signed contracts committing them to an indefinite period of service, he can't visit Earth. Unwilling to accept the unfairness of being trapped in space due to no fault of his own, Toby begins scheming to change his destiny. Events soon spiral out of control with arrival of the point man for the conspiracy, whose mission adds an insurmountable obstacle to Toby's dream. The intruder takes a hostage; plants a bomb in the reactor room; demands a shuttle, loaded with a space fighter, and a pilot for his return to Earth. When Toby learns that Brett has volunteered to be the pilot and agreed to sacrifice his own life to prevent the takeover of Oasis, he comes up with a desperate plan to stowaway on the shuttle, do whatever it takes to save Brett's life, and prevent the loss of his family's Oasis in the sky. From the cockpits of a space fighter and a shuttle, to deep within the core of a space station, to night aerial combat as seen through the eyes of a fighter pilot, the novel Oasis tells a story about the power of dreams and the indomitable spirit of a teenager who refuses to accept the destiny imposed upon him by others.