An optimistic view of short-lived humans.
A wide-ranging debut exploration of how civilization deals with the reality of the finite life.
A science educator and a former official with The Planetary Society, Bracken begins by echoing the same question as the ancient Mesopotamian king Gilgamesh: “Must I die?” His answer is basically yes, with caveats. In this work, Bracken sets out to examine what death means to the human race, beyond its traumatic aspect. His views on the subject of mortality are definitively atheistic, and he sees death as the end of one’s existence. However, having been raised and educated in a Christian setting, he has experience with religious views. He seems to see such a mindset as naïve, however, and argues that the human race must rely upon its own best qualities, rather than the possibility of supernatural intervention and guidance: “The reality is that unless there are gods, the only hope for humanity is humanity itself.” Bracken admits that there’s a sad proclivity toward barbarism throughout human history, but he points toward human progress as a point of optimism: “Far from being backward and barbaric, humans are the very definition of civilization,” he writes. Bracken leans on science-fiction ideas to visualize a world that endorses the best human qualities, and where science lengthens life and makes it better. In fact, he envisions a time when life can be replicated through technological advances, creating a sort of immortality. Bracken provides readers with meaningful food for thought, not to mention a positive starting point for discussion concerning the fate of humanity. He doesn’t fall prey to naysayers or doomsday theorists, believing that humans have the ability, and the attributes, to survive and evolve. His prose is certainly readable and erudite, but his reliance upon popular culture and science fiction can be almost jarring at times in an otherwise serious work.
An optimistic view of short-lived humans.Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-615-96860-5
Page Count: 290
Publisher: Paul Bracken
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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