By Jillian Risberg 

Living off the grid, rebelling against the norm — you may be labeled a misfit or outcast when you make a real case for forging your own beautiful path. 

This is the theme of Jason Shapiro’s third book, “The Magnificent Mind of Ostaf,” a story about a misfit, outcast uncle, named Ostaf and his relationship with his nephew, Jacob Roth… the only one who sees the good in the ‘wacky’ gadget inventor.

“Everybody has an Ostaf in their family. They have a rough exterior and maybe live an unconventional lifestyle.  It’s really about pausing and withholding judgment, of the way they look or the way they act because you never know what that person’s been through and how they’ve dealt with turmoil they’ve unfortunately inherited,” says the Livingston author. “This book wraps its arms around unconditional love.”

Shapiro’s own quirky uncle, whose ideas were often dubbed silly and would never work — was the real inspiration behind this book and its main plotline, the ‘COOL-IT’ Sports Drink Bottle that his father (Larry Shapiro) actually invented and successfully marketed in 1991. 

The book, published in February 2021 is a work of realistic fiction… Jacob suspects that his dad is claiming marketing royalties and credit for this new product when he believes Ostaf is the actual inventor. 

In fact, Shapiro wants all his titles, including “The Magic of Mayfair,” (coming of age memoir) that hit shelves November 2019 and “Brian, My Pet Lion,” (children’s book) in October 2020 to serve as vehicles to normalize conversation around life challenges and mental health.

“My hope is that one day we can all be as open about our mental health as we are about our physical health. When we can do that, we can change millions of people’s lives in a positive way,” the author says, as he is donating 100 percent of the proceeds from all three books to #SameHere: The Global Mental Health Movement on behalf of his younger brother Eric (battling schizophrenia) and his childhood best friend (lost to suicide).

He says the lesson in all this is realizing that sometimes there are more similarities with others than one might think initially meeting them, and despite being a misfit, “He (Ostaf) has emotions, he has pain, he has suffering and life challenges that a lawyer would have or a doctor — he’s dealing with the same things.”

We were never more challenged than when COVID hit and with Shapiro temporarily furloughed from his day gig as a retail operations manager, in March 2020 he says he’ll never forget thinking, “Now is the best time to take on a ‘passion project’” and encourages others to do the same.

“To all the people that always said: ‘I really wish I would’ve written a book or a song or I want to get back into painting or learn how to play the piano or whatever it is — then do it,’” he says. “You’ve got more time than you’ve ever had.”

He consistently learned this lesson growing up by example, as his father was all about excelling in his day job and still going after his passion projects, including the COOL-IT, writing a novel and investing in a muffin store. 

According to the author, Howard (the father character) is pretty much the biggest culprit of constantly putting down his own brother throughout the ‘Ostaf’ story.

“So Jacob goes on this mission to vindicate his uncle and then the reader learns the truth behind that product,” says Shapiro, adding that the college-bound young man is concerned too because he looks up to his dad and wonders if he’s being truthful with everyone. “You find out that he (Ostaf) did end up changing the world and never lost faith in his imagination.”

And that’s what the author wants to underscore to readers, to never give up on an idea because you just don’t know what it could become. 

“The Magnificent Mind of Ostaf” celebrates the misfits and dreamers whose passions and ideas make the world a better place — and getting to share that with the public Shapiro calls both a gift and a privilege.

“You hope it relates and connects with people,” he says, of the power of his books, words and stories. “If it resonates with one person, then you’ve done your job as a writer.”

The book is available for purchase through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Walmart.