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Celestial matters
Garfinkle, Richard.
Adult Fiction GARFINKLE
From Publishers' Weekly:
The Ptolemaic universe, which posits Earth at its center, lives on in Garfinkle's imaginative first novel. Here, the Sun is only a few hundred thousand miles from Earth and the entire universe has breathable air. Other ancient Greek beliefs are also true: spontaneous generation, for example, is used to raise crops and livestock, and all terrestrial matter is composed of the Four Elements. As the novel opens, the Greeks fear they are losing a centuries-old war with China. Narrator Aias, a distinguished scientist, has conceived a daring plan to build a ship that can reach the Sun; he plans to steal its fire to use as a weapon against the Chinese. Aias's adventure is fraught with dangers, including assassination attempts by Taoist scientists, assaults by commandos who fly interplanetary kites and, of course, the potentially deadly properties of the Ptolemaic universe itself. Garfinkle's command of ancient Greek and Chinese science is firm, but his discussions of it can be too detailed. His dialogue can be ponderous, too, and his characterizations thin. With its rigorous and thorough extrapolation of Greek, particularly Spartan, culture into a believable universe, however, his debut should heartily engage fans of alternative-world SF. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
From Library Journal:
Garfinkle deftly captures the Ptolemaic universe in his first novel, an alternative history built on the assumption that ancient Greek science is accurate. Aias, scientist of the Delian League, commands the first expedition to the sun on Chandra's Tear, a ship sculpted from the moon. He sets out to harness a piece of the sun, return it to Earth, and destroy the enemy Middle Kingdom's capital, `AngXou. But aboard the ship, assassins and traitors try to thwart the expedition. This well-written story combines some Greek philosophy and beliefs with adventure. Highly recommended for sf collections. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Garfinkle, Richard.
Adult Fiction GARFINKLE
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From Publishers' Weekly:
The Ptolemaic universe, which posits Earth at its center, lives on in Garfinkle's imaginative first novel. Here, the Sun is only a few hundred thousand miles from Earth and the entire universe has breathable air. Other ancient Greek beliefs are also true: spontaneous generation, for example, is used to raise crops and livestock, and all terrestrial matter is composed of the Four Elements. As the novel opens, the Greeks fear they are losing a centuries-old war with China. Narrator Aias, a distinguished scientist, has conceived a daring plan to build a ship that can reach the Sun; he plans to steal its fire to use as a weapon against the Chinese. Aias's adventure is fraught with dangers, including assassination attempts by Taoist scientists, assaults by commandos who fly interplanetary kites and, of course, the potentially deadly properties of the Ptolemaic universe itself. Garfinkle's command of ancient Greek and Chinese science is firm, but his discussions of it can be too detailed. His dialogue can be ponderous, too, and his characterizations thin. With its rigorous and thorough extrapolation of Greek, particularly Spartan, culture into a believable universe, however, his debut should heartily engage fans of alternative-world SF. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
From Library Journal:
Garfinkle deftly captures the Ptolemaic universe in his first novel, an alternative history built on the assumption that ancient Greek science is accurate. Aias, scientist of the Delian League, commands the first expedition to the sun on Chandra's Tear, a ship sculpted from the moon. He sets out to harness a piece of the sun, return it to Earth, and destroy the enemy Middle Kingdom's capital, `AngXou. But aboard the ship, assassins and traitors try to thwart the expedition. This well-written story combines some Greek philosophy and beliefs with adventure. Highly recommended for sf collections. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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