Alexander's focus presently seems to be on exploring cultures ancient and modern in different parts of the world. Gypsy Rizka focuses on Eastern European folkloric traditions, whereas The Iron Ring focuses on ancient India, The Arkadians focuses on the roots of Ancient Greek culture, and The Remarkable Journey of Prince Jen focuses on ancient China. Gypsy Rizka is significantly different from the other three novels in that it stays in one place, emphatically in contrast to the wandering rom, while The Iron Ring, The Arkadians, and 77K Remarkable Journey of Prince Jen all involve long journeys for their main characters. In all four novels, Alexander takes significant cultural values and works them into plots that reflect the formats of the traditional literary narratives for the cultures they depict. For example, in The Iron Ring, the Indian concept of dharma is carefully woven into a plot that...