The Zen Time Traveler was issued by Discovery Publisher on June 21st, 2026.
★ PUBLISHERS WEEKLY EDITOR’S PICK ★ ⚡️
Here’s the Press Kit for The Zen Time Traveler
We are delighted by the advance praise the book has received:
******************
A wild joyride through the temples of ancient China… a romp that honors the great Zen masters while exploring the age-old universal ache of clinging. A whirlwind tour filled with classical koans, spiritual comedy, and fun.
—Chōbun Nenzen, Abiding Teacher, Jikoji Zen Center
******************
The Zen Time Traveler is a delightfully charming and quirky journey through the terrain of Chinese zen koans, the book itself handsomely designed and further enlightened with engaging illustrations and red enzos. Of course koans do not readily explain themselves, so a fuller awakening will require the reader to dive into their inner depths with the koan in hand.
Edward Espe Brown, Zen priest, teacher, and author, The Tassajara Bread Book
******************
In The Zen Time Traveler , Stephen Billias offers a rare and imaginative doorway into the living heart of Zen. Through visionary journeys into the Song dynasty, he brings the great koans to life as direct, embodied experiences, creating a compelling bridge between timeless Zen wisdom and the day-to-day challenges of modern life.
Roshi Fleet Maull, PhD, author of Radical Responsibility
******************
Stephen Billias has combined the hard-won wisdom of a student of Zen with the imagination of the free-wheeling storyteller. In a wise and witty tale that visits many of the touchstones of the Zen tradition, Billias hustles his narrator through space and time, imparting numerous delicious insights along with way. Western Zen has found a lively contemporary voice in THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER.
Pierce Butler, author of A Child of the Sun and student of Zen
******************
Interweaving literary traditions that explore time slips, alter egos, and spiritual quests, Stephen Billias has created a fantastical, intimate mystery that not only challenges our conventional understanding of time, space, and self, but also makes a page-turner of the oft-confounding journey toward awakening through the obstacles of craving, attachment, and delusion.
–Derk Richardson, Music and travel journalist and student of Shintaido
******************
Definitely worth reading and rereading! THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER tells an engrossing story that explores multiple dimensions of time, space, and personal identity, while at the same time providing a unique opportunity for beginners, and experienced practitioners as well, to contemplate Zen koans and their implications.
THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER avoids the sometimes smug point of view of an “enlightened” protagonist for that of a likeable beginner willing to admit when he’s without a clue. Better yet, he does so in a way that allows readers to understand his ignorance in a way that can illuminate their own.
Barbara McHugh, Teacher of Buddhism and meditation and author of the award-winning novel Bride of the Buddha
******************
THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER is a fantasy yet populated by real people having ordinary and life-changing experiences. Author Stephen Billias cleverly weaves ancient stories into the narrative to make encounters with old Zen masters seem natural. I was drawn eagerly into an adventure story and along the way offered a glimpse of something much larger and profound.
Craig Dreeszen, Ph.D., Assistant Teacher in Boundless Way Zen, Fellow traveler, writer
******************
It’s an oft-repeated cliché that the journey is more important than the destination. But in Stephen Billias’s THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER, the journey is the destination. For those familiar with Zen koans, it will be an uncommon and moving quest to find meaning in their purposeful ambiguity. For the rest of us, it’s an encouragement to continue seeking. Because even if we never get where we thought we were going, we’ll learn a lot about ourselves on the way.
John Harrison
Writer, Director; Tales From The Darkside, Frank Herbert’s Dune, The Miniseries
Author of the novels Passing Through Veils and Residue
******************
Through the eyes of a questioning novice, Stephen Billias’s work dissolves the boundaries between ancient wisdom and contemporary seeking, taking off from traditional Zen koans into a personal journey of awakening. The author’s innovative narrative approach—blending historical teachings with imaginative storytelling—creates a form that works like the koans themselves, sometimes confounding, always intriguing.
Richard Sanford, Buddhist practitioner and author of New American Café
******************
THE ZEN TIME TRAVELER deftly brings to life the timeless wisdom of the Zen koans for contemporary readers. The absorbing, contemporary narrative will inspire readers to deepen their spiritual practice.
Edward Hoffman, Ph.D., author
PATHS TO HAPPINESS: 50 WAYS TO ADD JOY TO YOUR LIFE EVERY DAY and THE HEBREW ALPHABET: A MYSTICAL JOURNEY
The Story:
For Zen student Stephen Maine, a single haiku is not just poetry—it is a portal. In a breath, the walls of his modern life dissolve, hurling him across the centuries into the heart of 13th-century China. Here, the legendary Chan masters are not myths, and the ancient koans are not riddles—they are lived reality. But Stephen is not alone in this timeline. He shares his physical form and mind with Wùkōng, a wandering Japanese monk destined to shape the history of Zen.
When both men fall for Yabaku, a beautiful and fiercely independent maker of mystical swords, the fabric of time begins to fray. Torn between his present-day marriage and a growing, profound connection in the past, Stephen must navigate a maze of spiritual awakening and earthly desires. If he finds enlightenment, he may never find his way home…