Review by Tsheola Asavela -- Heaven and Earth
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Tsheola Asavela
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Review by Tsheola Asavela -- Heaven and Earth
[Following is a volunteer review of "Heaven and Earth" by Arturo Riojas.]
3 out of 4 stars
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Heaven and Earth is a work of science-fiction but, with a smart approach in that it is primarily aimed towards educating the reader and in my opinion, the entertainment side of things comes secondary. I guess this is expected from the Texas author who possesses four engineering degrees, putting in his extensive knowledge for this piece of work.
The plot is manifold in its theme, and it is about an uphill battle against time for both the unsuspecting human society and a race of extra-terrestrials called the Treretumians who come, from a “multiracial” planet called Treretum, located in the Sirius star system. These beings have visited Earth before, many millennia ago and have done a lot in aiding our advancements as part of their exploration mission. But, the twist is in this mission’s true intent, as to why they came here in the first place which, is revealed in a scene where the story reaches the climax whereby we also learn the diabolical truth behind Operation Houston Control that is spearheaded by the Department of Homeland Security. We find that these highly intelligent and advanced aliens have to collectively overcome some of the obstacles similar to those faced here on Earth namely; corporate greed and/or the elite being above the rest; environmental and sustainability issues; and not forgetting the political side of things. Otherwise, we are looking at a backbone of comparisons between our world (and bodies), and theirs. For example; they are fighting this body-possessing enemy, an entity they call the Muimdac which, accumulates unseen until it is too late, just as we have to battle with the silent cadmium epidemic that does the same thing and thus, resulting in illnesses such as cancer; diabetes; Alzheimer’s, to name a few. Therefore, the E.T side of the plot is just an alternative description of the global dilemmas, past and present.
The various focal points involving the characters that pilot the story is in the first few chapters wherein, they are properly introduced to us in their respective settings. The protagonists are two, way overdue lovers, who are pioneering scientists in their respective fields i.e. the beautiful and intelligent Olga Ramos, principal researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab; and her companion, Cuauhtémoc Gavilán who is an engineer working for the Department of Earth Sciences. Together, seemingly by fate, they go on a quest to find answers and along the way, they make acquaintances with firstly; two gentlemen who are employees at the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) of whom they met at a summit in Houston. Along the way, a direct encounter occurs where they end up befriending three of the alien crew members that were inconspicuously surveying Earth all along. Both parties help, learn, and hugely impact each other’s’ lives as much as being the unsung heroes. One of these Treretumians, Nivla is on a personal mission, and that mission is directly related to the Roswell Crash of 1947. Such are a number of other controversial organisations, places, as well as incidents that took place in American history being included to go with the story. With that said, the US and the microscopic Muimdac are the antagonists here. As a note of exposition, the names and the language spoken in Treretum explain a lot in themselves in relation to what the author is portraying when reading backwards which, is not difficult to discover the hidden yet, clear meanings conveyed.
The purpose of the book is instilled in mainly tackling a serious environmental issue that is kept hidden and not spoken of, only to discover when reading that this issue is supposed to be of utmost concern globally. The culprit here is the carcinogenic element, cadmium (Cd) that is present in anything that contains phosphate. A prime example that is emphasised therein is the phosphate-containing fertilisers used in commercial farming; which in turn poisons our soil; food; water supplies; not to mention being used as an additive in most of the junk that we consume. This factual information is supplied via a section titled ‘Cadmium Poisoning’ that comes right at the end of every chapter. Also, after reading the actual novel, there are a couple of appendices that go into detail, supplemented with insightful commentary about the subject.
What I liked about this book, is how Riojas seamlessly managed to strikes a few birds with one stone in order to raise awareness. But, I disliked the numerous spelling mistakes that I encountered however, it is a wonderful read, and at the same time acts as a reference book that taught me in depth about cadmium poisoning of which, I have never heard of prior to this.
Verdict: I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars – if it was not for the overlooked spelling errors, I was going to give it a perfect score indeed. However, I fully recommend it.
******
Heaven and Earth
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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3 out of 4 stars
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Heaven and Earth is a work of science-fiction but, with a smart approach in that it is primarily aimed towards educating the reader and in my opinion, the entertainment side of things comes secondary. I guess this is expected from the Texas author who possesses four engineering degrees, putting in his extensive knowledge for this piece of work.
The plot is manifold in its theme, and it is about an uphill battle against time for both the unsuspecting human society and a race of extra-terrestrials called the Treretumians who come, from a “multiracial” planet called Treretum, located in the Sirius star system. These beings have visited Earth before, many millennia ago and have done a lot in aiding our advancements as part of their exploration mission. But, the twist is in this mission’s true intent, as to why they came here in the first place which, is revealed in a scene where the story reaches the climax whereby we also learn the diabolical truth behind Operation Houston Control that is spearheaded by the Department of Homeland Security. We find that these highly intelligent and advanced aliens have to collectively overcome some of the obstacles similar to those faced here on Earth namely; corporate greed and/or the elite being above the rest; environmental and sustainability issues; and not forgetting the political side of things. Otherwise, we are looking at a backbone of comparisons between our world (and bodies), and theirs. For example; they are fighting this body-possessing enemy, an entity they call the Muimdac which, accumulates unseen until it is too late, just as we have to battle with the silent cadmium epidemic that does the same thing and thus, resulting in illnesses such as cancer; diabetes; Alzheimer’s, to name a few. Therefore, the E.T side of the plot is just an alternative description of the global dilemmas, past and present.
The various focal points involving the characters that pilot the story is in the first few chapters wherein, they are properly introduced to us in their respective settings. The protagonists are two, way overdue lovers, who are pioneering scientists in their respective fields i.e. the beautiful and intelligent Olga Ramos, principal researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab; and her companion, Cuauhtémoc Gavilán who is an engineer working for the Department of Earth Sciences. Together, seemingly by fate, they go on a quest to find answers and along the way, they make acquaintances with firstly; two gentlemen who are employees at the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) of whom they met at a summit in Houston. Along the way, a direct encounter occurs where they end up befriending three of the alien crew members that were inconspicuously surveying Earth all along. Both parties help, learn, and hugely impact each other’s’ lives as much as being the unsung heroes. One of these Treretumians, Nivla is on a personal mission, and that mission is directly related to the Roswell Crash of 1947. Such are a number of other controversial organisations, places, as well as incidents that took place in American history being included to go with the story. With that said, the US and the microscopic Muimdac are the antagonists here. As a note of exposition, the names and the language spoken in Treretum explain a lot in themselves in relation to what the author is portraying when reading backwards which, is not difficult to discover the hidden yet, clear meanings conveyed.
The purpose of the book is instilled in mainly tackling a serious environmental issue that is kept hidden and not spoken of, only to discover when reading that this issue is supposed to be of utmost concern globally. The culprit here is the carcinogenic element, cadmium (Cd) that is present in anything that contains phosphate. A prime example that is emphasised therein is the phosphate-containing fertilisers used in commercial farming; which in turn poisons our soil; food; water supplies; not to mention being used as an additive in most of the junk that we consume. This factual information is supplied via a section titled ‘Cadmium Poisoning’ that comes right at the end of every chapter. Also, after reading the actual novel, there are a couple of appendices that go into detail, supplemented with insightful commentary about the subject.
What I liked about this book, is how Riojas seamlessly managed to strikes a few birds with one stone in order to raise awareness. But, I disliked the numerous spelling mistakes that I encountered however, it is a wonderful read, and at the same time acts as a reference book that taught me in depth about cadmium poisoning of which, I have never heard of prior to this.
Verdict: I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars – if it was not for the overlooked spelling errors, I was going to give it a perfect score indeed. However, I fully recommend it.
******
Heaven and Earth
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Latest Review: "Guardian of Deceit" by William H. Coles
