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Light Years from Paradise: Einstein's Double-take
Isolated for their entire three-century history, residents of the planet Al’aama have been shaken by the arrival of visitors from space. Yet some of the natives have been anticipating this event, citing a centuries-old prophecy. Captain Erik Houston and his crew are a First Contact group checking up on colonies at the frontier of civilization. Never certain what to expect, each star traveler is part development specialist, part diplomat, part soldier. Planetary leader Zama Elle and her administration are wary of the strangers. Intrigue on both sides creates further distrust. But a series of unsolved murders causes the locals to turn to the star people for help. Meanwhile, growing political unrest threatens the mercurial Zama’s safety. An element of romance adds to the story. Woven into the tale is a paradox based on the time-dilating effect of the star men traveling at close to the speed of light. This allows one crew member to affect the planet and its history in some unexpected ways.
303 pages, Paperback
First published February 19, 2007
3 people want to read
About the author
Frank Lewandowski
3 books9 followersI've always wanted to be a story teller. Maybe it's genetic. Several of my relatives were natural comedians. When I was eight or nine years old, I'd make up funny tales called “Bubblegum Stories” to amuse my younger cousins. These improvs featured characters with barely pronounceable, multi-syllable names. I loved making my cousins laugh.
My hometown of Bethel Park, PA, a suburb of Pittsburgh, opened its first library when I seven. It was exciting to take home an armful of new books and read them. I eventually gravitated to science fiction section and, within a few years, had read virtually all the books in that section. About age 10, I determined to write sci-fi novels. A fifth grade teacher assigned us each the task of writing a short book, complete with illustrations done in colored pencils. My story was about two friends from Earth and their pals from Venus. (Yes, I know Venus is uninhabitable but hey, I was only in fifth grade.)
In junior high school I continued dabbling in sci-fi writing. I also drew a comic strip called Alpha DeGlobb, about a group of space aliens shaped like jellyfish. I'd pass the comics around at school.
I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Journalism. People hear the name of the school and assume it's in the state of Indiana. It's actually located in the town of Indiana, which is in Pennsylvania. The town got its name from the number of American Indians in that area in the nineteenth century or earlier. There's also a California University of Pennsylvania located in California, PA. I'm not assuming that town got its name because a number of people moved there from California. Occasionally, the sports teams from these two schools play one another, which further amuses and confuses people.
In more recent years, my wife and I have been living in Mesquite, TX, near the southeastern edge of the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex. My wife, Sandy and I were married 30 years on Cinco de Mayo. We celebrated by flying to Seattle and taking a cruise to Alaska.
We have two adult children and a grandson.
Over the past decade, I've written about three dozen plays and skits that have been performed at our local church. And I've finally had a chance to write the first of those sci-i novels. I really like my characters and have ideas for an entire series of books. I've got a number of other tales in my head, too and over time I hope to share them you.
My hometown of Bethel Park, PA, a suburb of Pittsburgh, opened its first library when I seven. It was exciting to take home an armful of new books and read them. I eventually gravitated to science fiction section and, within a few years, had read virtually all the books in that section. About age 10, I determined to write sci-fi novels. A fifth grade teacher assigned us each the task of writing a short book, complete with illustrations done in colored pencils. My story was about two friends from Earth and their pals from Venus. (Yes, I know Venus is uninhabitable but hey, I was only in fifth grade.)
In junior high school I continued dabbling in sci-fi writing. I also drew a comic strip called Alpha DeGlobb, about a group of space aliens shaped like jellyfish. I'd pass the comics around at school.
I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Journalism. People hear the name of the school and assume it's in the state of Indiana. It's actually located in the town of Indiana, which is in Pennsylvania. The town got its name from the number of American Indians in that area in the nineteenth century or earlier. There's also a California University of Pennsylvania located in California, PA. I'm not assuming that town got its name because a number of people moved there from California. Occasionally, the sports teams from these two schools play one another, which further amuses and confuses people.
In more recent years, my wife and I have been living in Mesquite, TX, near the southeastern edge of the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex. My wife, Sandy and I were married 30 years on Cinco de Mayo. We celebrated by flying to Seattle and taking a cruise to Alaska.
We have two adult children and a grandson.
Over the past decade, I've written about three dozen plays and skits that have been performed at our local church. And I've finally had a chance to write the first of those sci-i novels. I really like my characters and have ideas for an entire series of books. I've got a number of other tales in my head, too and over time I hope to share them you.
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November 23, 2011Light Years From Paradise
A novel by Frank Lewandowski
Isolated for their entire three-century history, residents of the planet Al’aama have been surprised by the arrival of visitors from space. Yet some of the natives have been anticipating this event, citing a centuries-old prophecy. Captain Erik Houston and his crew are a First Contact group checking up on colonies at the frontier of civilization. Never certain what to expect, each star traveler is part development specialist, part diplomat, part soldier. Planetary leader Zama Elle and her administration are wary of the strangers. Intrigue on both sides creates further distrust. But a series of unsolved murders causes the locals to turn to the star people for help. Meanwhile, growing political unrest threatens the mercurial Zama's safety. An element of romance adds to the story. Woven into the tale is a paradox based on the time-dilating effect of the star men traveling at close to the speed of light. This allows one crew member to effect the planet and its history in some unexpected ways.
A novel by Frank Lewandowski
Isolated for their entire three-century history, residents of the planet Al’aama have been surprised by the arrival of visitors from space. Yet some of the natives have been anticipating this event, citing a centuries-old prophecy. Captain Erik Houston and his crew are a First Contact group checking up on colonies at the frontier of civilization. Never certain what to expect, each star traveler is part development specialist, part diplomat, part soldier. Planetary leader Zama Elle and her administration are wary of the strangers. Intrigue on both sides creates further distrust. But a series of unsolved murders causes the locals to turn to the star people for help. Meanwhile, growing political unrest threatens the mercurial Zama's safety. An element of romance adds to the story. Woven into the tale is a paradox based on the time-dilating effect of the star men traveling at close to the speed of light. This allows one crew member to effect the planet and its history in some unexpected ways.
Displaying 1 of 1 review