This book caught my attention for several reasons (other than my daughter left it for me to read) primarily the components of the title and the back cover.
- Fractalia, a place presumably based upon fractals.
- Episode 1. This is the first of a planned series. How long the series will be is not yet revealed.
- Reversing the Tipping Point. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell is one of my top 10 books. How does Fractalia relate to Gladwell's work? I needed to know.
- The back cover stated in part:
With degrees in philosophy and computer science, A.J. is currently working on his doctorate in cognitive psychology at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He is investigating the brainwaves of the 'aha' moment and how meaning is created out of apparent nonsense. A.J. lives with his wife Stephanie in Massachusetts. But really he lives on the border between sense and nonsense. Just ask his wife.
With a comment like that, I said to myself that this guy has to be writing some good stuff. After reading Episode 1, I can confirm that he is.
When reading fantasy or science fiction works, one problem is to bring the reader (us) into the new world within the book. The author needs to be careful to develop the place and develop the story without letting the new world (place) hinder the story. Authors of books with a well known setting, New York city in the early 1900's, or Shakespearean/Elizabethan England, for example, do not have to worry about this. They can get on with the story as we already know something of the place. In Fractalia, A.J. creates a new world and carefully brings us along.
With the exception of their ears, Talians looked very human. The word 'Talian' rhymes with 'alien', but do not let that mislead you. A Talian would want to convince you that if two words rhymed then there must be some deep connection between them. Do not always believe them. Talians loved playing with the sounds of words so much that they relied on their unique ears a great deal. It was said that the sound of a word became sweeter when it wound its way around those fractal ear lobes and spiraled down to the eardrum. No one knows if this is really true. The Talians said many things: all of them interesting, some of them true.
Episode 1 covers the introduction to Fractalia, the Talian "people", introduces some "typical' modern day teenagers, and then brings them together. The cooperation between the Talians and the teenagers in meeting a challenge together results in success. Well yes, it is Episode 1, how could it be otherwise? Once you open the pages and begin to read a work of fiction, you put aside some things (at least for a while) and let the author take you on the way. If the author is successful, your willingness and his/her success will result in a good book experience. If the author is not successful, if the telling gets in the way of the story, you can become lost and the author looses you.
A.J. has succeeded in sparking my desire for Episode 2.The real unknown is between the known, they liked to say. Or, they would say, between two things there is always another.
- Where is it?
- How long will I (we) have to wait?
The wise know the difference between a puzzle and a mystery. A puzzle is for solving with the mind. A mystery is for enjoying with the heart.
You can pass the time waiting patiently for Episode 2 by practicing to solve some outties. You can find these outties on the blog: Fractalia. The blog accompanies this book; Fractalia - Episode 1; Reversing the Tipping Point by A. J. McCaffrey.
Technorati Tags : Fractalia, outties, tipping+point, fractals, puzzles, mystery, brainlock
Hitchhiker's Guide
Interview with Author
No comments:
Post a Comment