Kierkegaard and Me - and Faith

I took one of those silly Facebook quizzes {OK, I've taken more than one.} where you answer a few questions and get pigeonholed by your answer. It was "Which Great Philosopher Are You?" My result?

Søren Aabye Kierkegaard

Of course, this made me want to go read something about Kierkegaard, and naturally, the first place to look was his entry on Wikipedia. {Yes, yes; it's unreliable for true research. But for most initial inch-deep information, it's just fine.}

Anyway, I read most of the entry, and I can't say that I'm particularly impressed with him as a person. I believe I'm more decisive than he seemed to be, and it seems being a "philosopher" in the 19th century was a good excuse for moping and writing obtuse prose. The description in the Wikipedia article says:

Kierkegaard left the task of discovering the meaning of his works to the reader, because "the task must be made difficult, for only the difficult inspires the noble-hearted".^[4]

I want my opinions to be understood without difficulty. And if I have something to say, I don't want to make you read (or make me write) pages upon pages to get the point.

Still, I found part of his writings to fit me well enough, for he is credited with the concept of the "leap of faith." Initially, I added my thoughts about that to this entry, but I've decided to break the two apart, so tomorrow I will cover the topic of "A Leap of Faith" and what that means to me.

Facebook - a useful social networking site, a diversion, and in this case, an inspiration for another {somewhat long-winded} Small Sermon. Tomorrow.

Review: Dreams from My Father

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama was a fascinating personal account, and one I think I could have enjoyed even if the author hadn't been my President. Still, without his candidacy, I don't know that I'd have read it. I just don't do non-fiction. I'm sure glad I did, this time.

Written when he was still in law school, long before his meteoric rise in politics, the story is a well-formed history of his attitudes towards himself and others from his earliest days to his eventual "homecoming" in Kenya, with a family he had never known, in a place with which he longed to connect.

The book is shockingly honest. In his "Preface to the 2004 Edition," Obama admits that some "passages have proven to be inconvenient politically" -- and one can see that. Though many a man has had a wild youth, it's a rare man that would admit to some of the carousing, rule-breaking, drinking and drug use which are part of Obama's past, especially if politics were a potential path.

It's that honesty, though, that really caught me as I started this book. Barack Obama may not quite be Everyman, given his background, but he is Everyman in his desire to know himself. And the inclusion of stories that color his past as less-than-pure indicate to me that his political desires either formed later in life, or were clearly subservient to his desire to tell the truth of his journey.

Dreams from My Father taught me several things. One of them is that it's hard for a person with a clear father figure to appreciate how much of an anchor it provides in his life. Yet Obama clearly describes how the lack of one affected him. And though it continues to affect people throughout the world, it's Barack's story that Barack tells. He encounters many real people with many disparate views of, and approaches to, life; Barack does not judge. He examines, he describes, he reflects. His purpose is not to tell the stories of those people, but to show their attitudes and contemplate how exposure to them affected his own life.

We follow Barack Obama from Hawaii to California to Chicago and finally to Kenya. I will say that the stories in Chicago were the slowest part of the book, but they ultimately were crucial to understanding Obama's journey, and I don't think the entrancing final section on Kenya would have been nearly as powerful if we hadn't first seen the comparable situation of his American "brothers and sisters."

One very notable point about the book, and then you'll just have to read it for yourself. This is not a book about politics. It certainly has some political activities, but the primary and driving purpose is to tell the story of how Barack Obama went about forming a complete picture of himself as a person, given his relatively unique circumstance as the son of a Black African, and a White American. The things we learn about being black in America, about struggling to fill the void left by an absent father, about trying to help others while growing ourselves, are remarkably accessible in this personal story.

It's rare, I think, to have access to the personal history of one of our leaders written with such grace and clarity, and even rarer to have it penned before his rise to leadership. I look forward to understanding our President better from this view into his personal story of exploration and fulfillment.

Netflix

Hollywood Video pushed me into this.

I've been a Hollywood Video MVP member for a long time. $15/month and I could take out as many movies as I wanted (limit 3 at a time.) It worked perfectly for the kind of binge-watching we do: weeks at a time without renting anything, then 5 in one weekend.

But they're changing their plans. And we had already decided we'd try Netflix once Leah went off to college. So we're trying it now. Two of our first set of three movies arrived Thursday. Lucas and Eric swear by Netflix, loving the speed of delivery and the wide selection. And, if I can get a cable to hook my computer up to my big TV, I can even watch many movies directly served over the network.

Oh, it's a "Free Trial" of course. We might decide against it.

But I doubt it.

Australia first. The Changeling and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 sometime this weekend.

{Yes, all the women are home this weekend. Could you tell? Not to worry, I have some "Steve" movies picked out for next weekend.}

Actress Available for Tough Sci-Fi Guest Role

Because we're science fiction fans, we tried Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles when it started last year, and we've kept up this year.

One of the guest stars, playing a continuing character, has been Stephanie Jacobsen, a very striking, very petite, young woman with an Australian accent. She played a conflicted character; very tough; making questionable moral choices for what she believed was the greater good.

Well, this very same actress played a very similar character in Battlestar Galactica: Razor, a special movie in the BSG universe.

I would have sworn she was in an episode or two of Lost, playing a very similar character, but I can't find evidence of that. We're almost to that point in our re-viewing of Lost, so I imagine I'll find out that the character who was put in charge of the mission to the island was someone who looked like her.

In any case, it appears she won't be returning to Terminator for some time, so I figured she could look for work on some other sci-fi show.

But Wikipedia says she's about to join a re-cast revival of Melrose Place. Now, from my point of view, that's a real downgrade. But I guess an actress has to eat. And if there are no cool sci-fi shows hiring, she has to take work where she can get it.

Still, couldn't Fringe use a character like hers. For a while?

I Say "Writer" - You Say [blank]

Word association time!

When I say "writer" who is the first person who pops into your head?

What if I said "artist?"

What if I said "author?"

I don't think I can do it -- I've thought about it for too long.

I was going to make a post that I could re-use whenever I got "writer's block." I figured I'd make it a bit clever by having no words, just a picture of writers and then a picture of a block.



But when I tried to think of a picture (or two) that would represent "writers" I got stuck. What writers could I select that would immediately be recognized?

I thought these three might be iconic enough to be recognized:



But that got me thinking about the question that started today's entry: When you think "writer" who do you think of? And when you think of that person, do you think of their image? Because when I think about most of the books I read, I doubt I could tell you what the author looks like.

Anyway if you see a post from me that looks like this:




now you'll know what it means.

DVD Library

Though few people believe me enough to take me up on it, I enjoy loaning DVDs to others.

I own lots and lots of DVDs. The primary reason to own them, to be sure, is so that I can see them again. But it's perfectly fine to have multiple reasons to own stuff, and in this case, I get a great deal of enjoyment out of providing my friends and family with a DVD library. In fact, as you can see if you look at the list of DVDs, I created my list with a space to note who had borrowed each title.

One family of good friends has seen all of the "Star Trek: the Next Generation" seasons because I own them, and have loaned them out, a season at a time, over the years. Adam and Marisa have seen all of the "Stargate: SG1" seasons, and are in the middle of "ST:tNG."

If any of you local friends and family notice anything on the page you'd like to see, just let me know. My rates are unbeatable, and I rarely have a due date. Keep them as long as you want!

(Exceptions: I need to see "V for Vendetta" near 11/5 each year, "Hoosiers" by the time March Madness hits, "Jesus Christ Superstar" during Lent ... that sort of thing. But once I have, even those movies are fair game.)

Let's take notice!

It is typical that people think the opposite always happens, so let's take note of this:

The weekend was beautiful in Rochester. Both days. But particularly Saturday, when we had lots of company, including young children.

Today, Monday, it is rainy (and we need rain.)

In other words, the weather was exactly as you'd plan it, if you could plan it.

Bye, Bye Battlestar

Tonight we reach the end of an excellent series: "Battlestar Galactica." I've blogged about it on several occasions, and it's going to leave a hole in my entertainment quilt that will not easily be filled.

Ronald D Moore, the executive producer, put together a first-rate team of TV people, and essentially produced motion pictures for four seasons. The special effects surpassed anything ever done for a TV audience, and allowed the audience to immerse themselves in the world. The stories were always imaginative and character-centered, encouraging us to empathize with many viewpoints, and keeping us guessing. The acting was, well, simply outstanding. Any one of the principles deserve praise and admiration. Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell were already established actors with fine bodies of work, but they outdid themselves with these roles. I'd have never seen Michael Hogan if not for his portayal of Saul Tigh, a character I initially condemned, but who I came to appreciate and enjoy. I think Katee Sackoff has made a name for herself, as has Tricia Helfer, so I expect to see more of them, but if we never see relative newcomers such as Aaron Douglas, Grace Park and Alessandro Juliani again, it will be an injustice.

I have no doubt that the two-hour finale will leave me with some questions, but I am equally convinced that it won't make a difference, because enough answers will be revealed, and they will all make sense within the universe and the characters that I will want to start watching the series again, from the beginning. Immediately.

That silly Napoleon

Napoleon keeps picking fights with me.

He's attacked me twice in my most recent Civ 4 game. Each time he did, I defended well, then took a city of his, then got him to agree to peace, with him in a much worse position. But then he grows back, and gets more aggressive again. I expect an attack again soon.

I suspect this is an improved feature of Civ 4 -- AI that are more diverse, and perhaps more in character with the leaders they represent.

It's frustrating when war gets declared when I'm in the middle of exploring or advancing non-military sciences. But it's "realistic" and unpredictable and great!

I love this game.

Movie Micro-Reviews: Edition 29

Slumdog Millionaire	81	We should be thankful this movie was made. American studios seem to think we only want to see pretty white actors. The actors, young and younger, in this shocking but touching story made the film special. Certain scenes will stick with me. Maybe for the rest of my life.
Dark City	73	In many ways, as imaginative as the Matrix, or any of the best pure sci-fi. How does Man react to being the subject of an experiment? What is reality? What is “self?” The atmosphere is excellent, but the execution is just a tad jarring. Still, worth a viewing for most people, and certainly for sci-fi fans.
Field of Dreams	83	“Is this heaven?” “No. It’s Iowa.” Is this perfect? No, but it’s engaging, full of flavor, and a fantasy that fills empty spaces we didn’t know we had.
Watchmen	79	I am impressed. Dark, graphic, but not as tied to the comic images as I expected from the director of “300.” I got into it. But not for the faint of heart, or those wanting a typical hero story. It’s not Dark Knight, but it’s not Fantastic Four either.
Jesus Christ Superstar	91	Reviewed back in Edition 11. And it’s Lent, so it was time to see it again. Though, truth be told, I listen more than watch. Carl Anderson and Ted Neely were made for these parts.

I feel a need to write a bit more than the micro-review, especially about "Watchmen."

Over the ensuing days, "Watchmen" has grown on me even more. I think some of the reason for that is that I've been listening to my "Great Books" audio course and some of the themes in "Watchmen" are also in the first several "Great Books" and they really come through more upon reflection. I'm still not sure I will own it, though I think I will see it again sometime.

The ideas of ultimate Good and Evil are worth examining, and countless works of art do just that. "Comic books" and "Superhero" treatments tend to take a clear viewpoint. "Watchmen" does not. "Superheroes" also tend to be quite typical in their heroism. Even flawed superheroes are typically basically good. Many of the people we meet in "Watchmen" are not. They all are true to their own moral codes, but the codes they follow are not typical, and they are not mine. I don't fault the film for that, but it does leave a different taste in my mouth than a traditional "hero" story (super or not.)

One person who saw it immediately reacted by saying it was "too graphic" in some parts. This is true, I'm sure, but I am inured to it by now. The violence is no more graphic than I've seen in other "R"-rated movies, and the sex can't be missed, but it's not as graphic as I thought it was going to be. Dr. Manhattan's nudity was a shock, at first, but it makes perfect sense.

I actually came to the rating of "79" primarily because of my current rules. I can't recommend it to everyone, so it needs to rate below 80. But it was too good to go lower. And, as I've thought about the film since then, I am sorely tempted to raise it, and allow some of my 80+ movies to have "warnings."

More people will like "Field of Dreams" (83) than "Watchmen" (79) but the impact and the innovation of "Watchmen" were more impressive.

The Cost of Personal Criticism

I was in the bookstore the other day and saw the book cover for Carrie Fisher's "Wishful Drinking."

Star Wars fan that I am, I simply had to pick it up and take a look. I turned it over, to find the following quote on the back cover:

"Carrie Fisher is bovine and unappealing, having inherited the worst qualities of both her parents." John Simon

Wow. How mean! And mean-spirited. John Simon is a well-known critic, and despite the fact that Carrie Fisher is a celebrity and {they say} fair game for criticism, can you imagine being any woman, reading that about yourself, and being unaffected?

Immediately, an idea popped into my head. Perhaps a critic, before being allowed to publish such an opinion, should be required to give something substantial of himself first. Cut off a finger, for example. I mean, the words he's about to write will likely scar his victim for life. If he feels so committed to a negative opinion about a person that he must share it with the world, might we not ask that he similarly damage himself? Notice, he's not describing Fisher's work. He's describing her, personally.

From the bit I've read about the book, it seems Carrie Fisher has had an interesting life, which has given her many occasions to become injured in one way or another (or both, or more) so I doubt this particular criticism was single-handedly responsible for a significant portion of her troubles. {I am intrigued enough by the reviews I've read, though, to read the book and find out.}

Nevertheless, I wonder if the world might be slightly more civilized if such a rule were in place. Criticize the work all you want, but if you say something about the person, you should have to commit yourself to the effort.

I'm just sayin'.

Ides of March

March 15th arrives every year and reminds me of 6th grade.

Why?

This is one of those silly things that no one knows about me. I could use it when I'm forced into one of those ice-breaker exercises at a party or a day long meeting. You know the kind. "Tell us something that no one here knows about you."

In sixth grade, so that was in 1972 or so, I was in my first year attending school in Decorah. So I was a "new kid." My class was studying ancient Rome, or something, so my teacher had us stage a few scenes from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In that play, if you didn't know, Julius is warned to "Beware the ides of March." The "ides of March" is the 15th day, and it was a prophecy that Caesar would be killed on that day.

I was chosen {or maybe I volunteered -- I can't remember -- it's hard to imagine that I would have felt comfortable, being new, in offering myself up for this, but I can be pretty overconfident at times, and I did like impressing teachers now and then} to play Marc Antony. I remember getting to learn the famous speech:

"Friends, Romans, countrymen -- lend me your ears."

If I remember correctly, Julius Caesar was not one of the plays we read in my college Shakespeare class. Someday I should go back and read it, in full.

Oh, it would be fun to end this little reminiscence by saying that something really dramatic happened as a result of my part in this classroom play. Perhaps I earned the respect of my peers? Perhaps I was beaten up by the bullies who hated new kids and hated smart kids?

I don't think either of those happened though.

I just remember the famous line. And wearing a bed sheet as a toga. [far off grin]

Collage

Just goofing. This post just keeps getting pushed out farther and farther. It's always scheduled to be posted, and then when I think of a topic and create a post, I put this post even farther into the future.

{Should it be "further"? I should know this....}

Anyway, if you're seeing this post, I finally didn't have something to post. Or I finally decided I liked the collage enough to post it.

Anachronisms happen fast

Last week, during "Lost" there was a line of dialog which is anachronistic.

Sawyer says something like this: "Going forward, we need to communicate better."

The characters on Lost were stranded on their amazing island in the Fall of 2004. The primary group of them have been on that island for about 100 days. It is, therefore, still 2004, though perhaps the calendar has flipped into 2006. In any case, they've been isolated since fall 2004. {If I were a real "Lost" geek, I'd probably know the date Oceanic 815 crashed.}

So, what's the problem?

"Going forward" is a very recent phrase. I actually had a blog post about it before I moved to blogspot, but I put the post over on my "Echoes of Snippets" blog to keep track of it. My post was written in July 2006. In my search of articles about this (useless) phrase, I've found articles from whatis, from msdn, and from the BBC. The oldest of them is from January of 2006. {BBC's is the best, because it's funny!} But 2006 is much, much after the critical events that put our castaways on The Island.

Of course, if I didn't hate the phrase so much, I doubt I'd have noticed it. It would be hard, as a writer, to avoid picking up new phrases and using them in the scripts. Still, I hope the "Lost" writers, usually so meticulous about details, will be more careful.

Going forward.

[shudder]

Facebook blogging

Monday, I decided to try the Facebook option that allows me to import a blog to my Facebook "Notes." It immediately imported my 25 most recent blog entries, and now I think it's set to pull in each entry as it gets published (within a couple of hours, anyway.)

So, when this gets published (I'm writing it in advance, but it should get published by Blogger just before noon on Tuesday, March 11) I'll see how long it takes to get imported.

I'm not sure whether it makes sense to push each entry into Facebook, but hey, I'll try it out.

Facebook seems like a good way to keep in touch with a set of people with whom I'd normally have very infrequent contact. I don't know that my blogging will be that interesting for them, but one very nice thing about Facebook -- you can ignore what you want to ignore!

So, anyway, for people who haven't seen my blog before, and are seeing it for the first time because of Facebook, here's the description of the blog, so you get the idea what you'll be reading:

Snippets & Wisps

The Ideas, Opinions and Musings of Steven T Will. My most frequent topics are family, TV, movies, games and writing. But since I post every weekday when I'm not on vacation, I delve into other things too: religion, words, news items, quotes. And then, on occasion, I post snippets and wisps. Welcome, and enjoy!

Included in my "most frequent topics" are my Movie Micro-Reviews, which are very short reactions to the movies I've seen. And, one more thing: I don't blog about work.

Well, that explains a lot

I am listening to the final lecture in Einstein's Relativity and the Quantum Revolution: Modern Physics for Non-Scientists, {not at this very moment, but you get the point} and I'm impressed. Most of the lectures were quite possible to follow -- some easier than others, but all of them possible -- with my level of education. In fact, there were several points where Dr. Wolfson pointedly stayed away from the math that supports the physics (because the course is designed for non-scientists and hence non-mathematicians) and I wanted to stop him and say "No, please, show me the equations." But, fortunately, the accompanying booklet had some of them, along with his most important visual aids, so any questions I had were answered, at least one level deep, by looking at them.

So now I have a basic understanding of many of the topics in physics which have long intrigued me. I can't explain it all^[1], but I can explain some of it, and I can understand most of it.

The experience has confirmed a few things for me:
1) I really want to learn more about Dark Matter (there's a Great Courses course on that, too.)
2) I want to review this material until I can explain some of the concepts upon request because...
3) People who argue for a "young" Earth (or young universe") simply do not understand the weight of science they are denying.

One of the other two courses I own {so far} will soon be in my car's CD player. I think I will listen to "Books that Have Made History..." next, to give my scientific brain a chance to absorb this course while my artistic brain concentrates on the next. This has been a great use of my time.



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^[1]Honestly, is there anyone who doesn't like Melissa Joan Hart.

"Take the Win" - or Don't

One of the lessons that I learned quite effectively from the strategy of playing Magic: the Gathering is this:

Take the Win

Before I make the "... or Don't" point, let me explain what "Take the Win" means.

If your object is to win the game you're playing (and for most competitive games, that's true) then it's important to consider if each decision could result in an immediate win. Then, if it will, take it. Take the win.

It may sound obvious, but it can be a difficult rule to remember when you're in a heated game, or when your deck is almost working, or your opponent is distracting you. I'm finding that it's even harder to remember in some games than in others.

What's hard about it? Well, in some games, there are multiple ways to win, and you might be focusing on one, oblivious to the fact that another victory condition is about to be met -- if only you recognize it and seize the moment. Similarly, in some games (and Magic is a very good example) you have planned to win with one tactic, and you're so certain you can win that way, that you leave other victory conditions alone. And then, boom, your opponent's strategy takes hold and you lose.

So clearly, you should "Take the Win" if you can get it.

So, why would I say "... or Don't?"


I'm playing Civilization IV now, and there are several victory conditions. I reached the point in my second game where I could have won by Diplomatic Victory (being elected to head the United Nations) but I let that victory condition go by. Why?

Because I wasn't done learning what I needed to know!

The game was clearly in my control. No one else would win. But I wanted to see how much longer it would take to gain control of the requisite 64% of the world's land for a Domination Victory. I wanted to see if my opponents would do something to prevent it, and if so, what they would do.

When one is first learning a game, I think it's instructive to focus on examining how a game works. If taking a win ends the game before you've learned what you need to know, then you've won a battle, but your war may suffer.

This is meta-strategy. My second game of Civ IV is not simply about winning the game. It's also about learning the game. Winning can sometimes get in the way of that; at least, winning too early can. So, sometimes, taking the win is the right thing to do, but sometimes, it's not. It depends on the overall objective of the particular game.

Happy Birthday, Leah

Though it's a Sunday, and thus not a normal blog day, I will make the exception so I can extend this wish:




Happy 18th birthday, Leah!

Everything's Amazing

Tracy had this on her Facebook page, so I just had to go find it on Youtube and share it here. (The guest is Louis CK. You can visit his website, if you want.)




I laugh and laugh -- because it's so true.

Vanity Fair did an article as a result of the spread of this Louis CK bit with Conan O'Brien. [It has the video, in case Youtube is forced to remove it again.]

As a culture, we're so impatient, and so unappreciative.

We saw "Slumdog Millionaire" last night. OK, so our country is in an economic downturn. Our 401K is smaller than we want? Get over ourselves! There are people living in cardboard boxes and eating from dumpsters! Appreciate life!

Toasty

For several months, I've had the general idea what I want to say in my toast for Sarah & Troy's wedding. Last night, settling down to sleep, my mind drifted to it, and I started putting the actual words together.

It choked me up.

[Sometimes I think I'm just too darn emotional for my own good. {Almost anyone who knows me socially would find that hard to believe. (I'm well known for not smiling much. I don't frown, either, but if everyone around you is smiling, a non-smile looks too serious, I guess.)}]

Anyway... [Sorry, I got into one of my parenthetical holes, there.]

The point is, despite outward appearances, I am feeling quite affected by the transitions in our life. While I'm very excited to have Sarah move on to the new stage her life, I will also miss being her day-to-day Dad, and my toast will remind me of that.

I'd better practice it several times. That way, even if I do get a bit teary-eyed, I won't forget what I'm saying.

Four months, six days, and counting.

Movie Micro-Reviews: Edition 28

A Walk to Remember	62	A nice story. It starts as if it will be a typical teen romantic comedy. It takes a nice dramatic turn.
Amistad	83	Excellent historical drama. All adults should know the parts of our history represented here, and the characters make it real.
Chocolat	84	A sweet fantasy. A creamy fable. A luscious tale. Judi Dench can be so many different characters, and all well. I want to see more of Juliette Binoche. Alfred Molina’s role clearly led to his role in “The Da Vinci Code.” The chocolate creations made my mouth water. I will own this. If only to look at the tantalizing candy.
Negotiator (The)	70	Definitely worth seeing, with a mystery that’s intriguing, and once of Spacey’s typical excellent performances. Just get past the action of the main character that seems so out of character – that starts the main action.
Pirates of the Caribbean 3	80	Originally reviewed long ago. Still more complicated and less humorous than its predecessors, but exciting and full of worthy effects.
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King	100	What can I say? Probably the best film (series) ever. The achievement is as magnificent as the story. I’m so glad technology exists to do this right, and that Peter Jackson and his team were so dedicated to the vision. And it’s a great Sunday evening movie. Dive in, get immersed in the world. Enjoy.

Civilization 4 - We Begin

Last week, we made a point to go to Best Buy over lunch (typically, a very frequent activity -- quite infrequent when I'm not eating out.) For months, I've been waiting for Civilization 4 (Gold Edition) to reach the $29.99 price point.

Lo and behold, Shawn picked up the box and there it was -- the price I'd been waiting for.

Shawn handed it to me. There was only the one copy in the store. Shawn doesn't own it either. But, true to the Dude Code^[1], he handed it to me.

I had to buy it.

Over the weekend, I installed it and started a game. Yep, I'm hooked again. This is a very pretty Civilization. It's much more intricate in its design. It adds several facets to governments, it adds real world religions, it has a more complex set of advancements. It will take me a very long time to explore the options and establish a pattern (a base strategy I use to approach most instances of the game.) Once a pattern emerges, there appear to be plenty of options for varying the games -- new map options, plenty of difficulty settings, etc.

It took a long time for me to finally buy it, but I've done it, and I'm hooked now.

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^[1]The Dude Code is not as selfless as one might infer from the context. The Dude Code requires that Dudes tempt other Dudes to spend money.

Book Review: Cauldron

Cauldron is the sixth book in the "Academy" series by Jack McDevitt. I think of it as the "Hutch" series because the central character in the collection of novels is Priscilla Hutchins, nicknamed "Hutch." She took a supporting role in books 4 & 5 (Omega & Odyssey) but in this (final?) book of the series, she is once again part of the action, and ultimately back in her role as a starship pilot.

As the novel begins, we see that space exploration has almost died out. A small handful of corporate ventures are still doing some space travel, but the only institution trying to do exploration and science is supported entirely by donations, and those are drying up.

A good portion of the first act is spent showing us how few the supporters of space travel are, and how the world has become a less interesting, more myopic place as a result.

Enter a scientist, Jon Silvestri, who believes he has the design for a new starship engine which will make travel anywhere in the galaxy feasible. If it works, some of the major mysteries of the age will be within reach -- in particular, it might be possible to visit the source of the catastrophic Omega clouds.

The book takes quite a long time to get to the functioning engines, and it's interesting getting to know the characters and watching them overcome the struggles to get it working. While this first part of the story dragged a bit for me, in the final half of the book Hutch and her team investigate three unique and wondrous places, facing mystery and danger.

In some sense, I think McDevitt took too many ideas and pushed them into the second half of one book, but it's pretty clear this is meant to be an "end" and, all in all, it hung together well and had intriguing ideas about the possibilities in the universe.

I'll miss Hutch, but I'm certainly going to heartily recommend the series. And very soon, I will start reading McDevitt's "Alex Benedict" series. Jack McDevitt has earned my continued attention.