Blasphemy: an elegant madness

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Douglas Preston’s latest book, Blasphemy [hyperlink] explores science and religion, provocatively suggesting that science is the next stage of religion. It’s about a group of scientists who are part of a project to explore new sources of energy as well as the Big Bang. They’ve built Isabella, a superconducting supercollider particle accelerator. However, the project runs into snags as the scientists encounter something they do not expect from the machine—something that refers to itself as “God”. Here appears Wyman Ford, a former CIA operative the government hires to explore the delay. At the same time, a smarmy televangelist and a preacher use Isabella for their own ends with explosive consequences.

The characters are a little weak, but the plot was thought-provoking. It’s easy to see how a very simple chain of events could begin a religious war in this country. Terrifyingly easy.

The book left just enough ambiguity so that the reader thought he or she knew what was going on, but the door was left open for other possibilities.  Sometimes other books handle questions for which there are no answers by ending with a weak, “Oh no, we’ll never know who the real Shakespeare is”. Yes, Interred with Their Bones [hyperlink]. Humphh.

I am not looking for a book to rewrite history, but when you explore a fascinating premise, don’t be afraid to go to the edge. There’s nothing worse than a book about a great mystery like aliens or something, that, after letting my mind soar with possibilities, dumps me with an explanation of fakery. I want to suspend my disbelief. It’s okay, I’m a big girl. I know what’s real and what is not. But I also read these books because I like to think that maybe, just maybe there are some mysteries that haven’t been solved or debunked.

Bibliophylia