Tag: Brian Greene

*SFN* | A Book Showcase [focused on] Time Travel!

Posted Tuesday, 5 November, 2013 by jorielov , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 12 Comments

SFN_TimeTravel

Time travel is such a curious prospect to wrap one’s mind around because it bends and yields to our understandings of everything that we hold rather dear! To be able to tip the veils back and peer into our past, whether lived or unlived (as time is temporal) is such a proposition to make anyone curious, I would think the possibilities and the repercussions of time travel being used for the good or succombing to evil, make time travel a bit of a dicey proposition! I, myself, have always been keenly in tune with time travel plots in other media outlets such as tv serials as outlayed in my post just the other night! However, as far as reading about time travel in the purest sense of the word, that is something I have only begun to do in recent years! Mind you, I would have started far sooner if I could have sorted out how to get copies of the next books in a certain young adult series I will be highlighting ever so shortly! The main appeal for me, is seeing a glimpse into different cultures, traditions, and lifestyles of not only the historical (and known) past but of people we may not have ever expected to cross paths with who live in other galaxies and worlds completely! There are unlimited number of transportal routes one could take as a time traveler, and part of the adventure for me is making the journey into the complete unknown!

My earliest memory of reading a book that involved the displacement or disbursement of time would be “The Purple Door” by Janifer C. De Vos. This served as a gateway into an exciting series entitled: Guardians. I was in elementary school at the time when I read it, and this book served as an electrifying catapult into a whole new dimension of experiencing a story! You see, the main character travels into a different time and space whilst only expecting to be having a summer job at an antiques store! My memory of the particulars surrounding this series has vacated my memory banks, but I do look forward to re-reading it at some point (once I locate which box I have put it in!), as I was able to find the next two books in the series (via Powells which has a lovely out-of-print service!): The Silver Glass and The Dark Watch.

What disappointed me at the time I read The Purple Door, is that I could not carry-on with the series closer to when I had discovered the first book! (this would become a trait for certain series unfortunately!) I would always aspire to find other series which would push the envelope and limits on time and our sensory perceptions of time. It would take quite a long while for me to unearth A Wrinkle in Time, as a segue into reading my introduction to Quantum Physics library which I had purchased out of a mail-order book club (I believe it was called: The Library of Science originally) towards the start of the 2000’s. I was attempting to get into The Elegant Universe: Super-Strings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory by Brian Greene as well as Lucifer’s Legacy: The Meaning of Asymmetry by Frank Close. What I appreciated about the first book in “The Time Quartet” series is that it illuminates the aspects of the quantum realms within the scope of what can be imagined. The hardest part I think of quantum physics isn’t the mathematical language needed to take the theories to a higher level of understanding, but rather, the ability to directly imagine and purport into imagery what the theories are attempting to show us! In this way, I have always highly recommended that anyone keen on this side of science to start with A Wrinkle in Time! From there, I moved forward into Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin Abbott Abbott, which helped fuse the two together for me! I shifted easily back into where I had left off in my readings for the books of Greene & Close, as well as attempting to seek out other scientists who were producing books on these subjects that fascinated me so very much! The short list of people who intrigued me were: Clifford A. Pickover, Michio Kaku, Professor Stephen Hawking, and Carl Sagan.

I took a bit of a hiatus from my pursuit of reading non-fiction pieces on time and the quantum realms, opting instead when a new branch of my local library opened to seek out fictional stories that were cast into the same vein as The Purple Door of my youth! I wanted to seek out other writers’ to pick up where I had left off before exchanging the fictional side of this subject for the non-fiction! This is how I came to become immersed into the awe-inspiring worlds of The Golden Hour by Maiya Williams, The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone, and The Dragon in the Driveway by Kate Klimo! What I hadn’t realised at the time is that each of these was the gateway book into a brand-new series! I am still working my way towards reading the next installments as my local library only has the original beginnings rather than the sequels!

In keeping with this earnest approach of mine, I decided that it would be best to dip into both of my conjoined interests, and find a steady balance between fiction and non-fiction even during Sci-Fi November! My viewings of “Doctor Who” have brought back to life my excitement and pure giddiness in celebrating a time traveler on the small screen! However, I do not want to only rely on my ability to seek out media forms of story-telling, and would rather garnish a bit of a nice foothold in literature as this is one particular subject that has been written on for quite a long time! As with Steampunk, I am finding that there are many facets that determine the outcome of a time travel adventure! Sometimes the time travel elements are subtle, barely noticeable, and other times, they have such resounding effects that it puts everyone in the story in direct peril! I have found time travel to be used in cross-genres, such as: juvenile and young adult fiction, romance, historical fiction, science fiction, and even high fantasy! I am sure there are a heap of others, but what I wanted to say, is that due to the diverse selection, I could very well be reading stories of time travel for many an eon yet to come! And, what a thrilling revelation that is for someone as giddy as I am about the written word!?

I can honestly say, that when it comes to my journey into books whose central theme is ‘Time Travel’, I am as much as a beginner with this genre as I was with Steampunk! I only have a few books under me to where I have been able to seek out authors & stories that catch my fancy to read!  Which is why I would love to open up a discussion thread right now, and encourage anyone who has had history with Time Travel in Literature to post a link back to a post on your own blog that delves into how you came to start reading Time Travel &/or of whom your favourite authors, stand-alone novels, and Time Travel serial books would be!? Be sure to come back to this post to attach the link of your post in the comments! ONLY link directly to the post you created on this topic, DO NOT link to the main page of your blog! I will be checking! Thank you! I cannot wait to see what everyone’s post!! :)

In the intrim, these are the books I pulled from my local library to explore this month:

The Skin Map (Book One: Bright Empires series) by Steve Lawhead
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
WorldSoul (Book One: WorldSoul series) by Liz Williams
(non-fiction) Breaking the Time Barrier: The Race to Build the First Time Machine by Jenny Randles
(non-fiction) Time Travel in Einstein’s Universe: The Physical Possibilities of Travel Through Time by Richard J. Gott
(non-fiction) Time: A Traveler’s Guide by Clifford A. Pickover
The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells by Andrew Sean Greer
The Little Book by Selden Edwards
The Little Prince by Selden Edwards
The Map of Time by Felix J. Palma
The Kingdom of Ohio by Matthew Fleming
Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski
City at the End of Time by Greg Bear

I wanted to select a broad selection of novels that would not only change my preconceptions of what you can experience in time travel literature but I wanted to be a bit bold and daring in my choices! I decided to shift away from the quite obvious choice of reading “The Time Machine” as much as the fact, I already knew I would not want to read “The Time Traveler’s Wife” having had seen the film of the same name! (truly one of the most gutting motion pictures to experience!) I decided to dip into non-fiction as well for a bit, as I do have a keen interest in the science behind science fiction, and I knew that this would be a great branch to cross-relate into science! I am not sure if I will finish the non-fiction titles during the month, but whatever I am able to read in those selections I shall relay to you! Normally a non-fiction book takes me a bit longer to read in full due to the length and depth!

I am curious once more if anyone participating in SFN or a reader who is visiting our blogs during the event has a familiarity with the choices I have made!? And, if you perhaps have others to suggest to me in return!?

This feature is brought to you by:

Sci-Fi November | Hosted by Rinn Reads

{SOURCES: Sci-Fi November Badge provided by Rinn Reads for participants to advert the month long event and to encourage people to follow along with those of us who are contributing! Post lovely provided by Shabby Blogs with edits by Jorie in Fotoflexer.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2013.

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Posted Tuesday, 5 November, 2013 by jorielov in Astronomy, Bookish Discussions, Brothers and Sisters, Cosmology, Library Find, Library Love, Quantum Physics, Revolutionary France, Sci-Fi November, Science Fiction, SFN Bingo, Time Travel, Time Travel Adventure