 |
| (c) Mustang Press and Marcin Dolecki |
The
Philosopher's Crystal is a philosophical fantasy that will pull you in, leaving you with the knowledge of several philosopher's basic ideals. Originally written in Polish, I read the translated English version and did not notice any discrepancies that would take away from the story.
Our story begins with a bit of background from the all mighty Tassatarius, emperor of a land that despises his rule. He likes to play games with those who work for him, and is quick to sentence those who displease him to death. With curfews, forced political beliefs, and little rights for his citizens, people have been trying to break free from his power, but no one has yet been successful.
The story flashes to our main character, Philip, whose parents have been arrested for owning books and believing in other political beliefs than those demonstrated by Emperor Tassatarius. Philip just turned twenty, the legal adult age for those who live in his land, and is worried that the emperor will come after him next. He unexpectedly meets a girl named Julia, who was oddly around his home just before curfew hit. Taking a chance and being kind, Philip allows Julia to stay the night, even though the two are strangers. From here, the plot picks up quickly, and the pair are thrown into a time-traveling plot that (oddly enough) transports them to different famous philosophers from throughout time! Traveling to Roman Africa, Amsterdam, and even an Indian jungle, Philip and Julia meet Augustine of Hippo, Descartes, and Shankara--philosophers who willingly share their wisdom and views. This book has an ending that is more reality-based than fantasy, so take the plot as is and have fun with it!
The author, Marcin Dolecki, is an admirer of brevity, or the "concise and exact use of words in writing or speech," as stated in his foreward to the
Philosopher's Crystal. This is important to know, as it helps sets the tone and pacing of the story.
Mr. Dolecki's writing is very to-the-point, which benefits the reader when it comes to our main characters encountering famous philosophers. The explanations of each philosopher's ideals is short and elaborated with questions and counter-points from both Philip and Julia. The writing demonstrates knowledge without the jargon you may hear from a lecture or read in textbooks. It felt a bit like going back to school, which I mean in the fondest way possible. If I were in a philosophy course, I would want to read the
Philosopher's Crystal as either part of my coursework or as a supplement to understanding basic ideals. I hope to read more philosophy fantasy books from Mr. Dolecki in the future!
If you enjoy debating the ideas of life and philosophy in general, and enjoy a thrilling, fast-paced story, then this is the book for you!
 |
| Photo by Beata Wysokińska (2014) |
About the Author (from his website):
Marcin Dolecki is a philosopher (MA), chemist (MSc), and historian of chemistry (PhD).
He works as an educator at the Antonina Leśniewska Museum of Pharmacy (a division of the Museum of Warsaw). He gave lectures on the history of chemistry and philosophy at the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Warsaw.
He is an enthusiast of cycling, and has visited Italy, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Ukraine on his bike. He is also a big fan of ancient cultures, history of Ethiopia, and of vintage buses.
The Arcana Chronicles is about a Louisiana girl named Evie who finds out
she has the power to control plants. The end of the world occurs, but
the end is only the beginning of a deadly game in which she will have to
go against others with powers like her, all with titles and powers to
match those on tarot cards. But, Evie doesn't want to be part of the
game or understand why everyone hates her, especially Death, who she
cannot seem to keep away from.
About the Author (from Amazon):
About the Author (from her website)
As you can tell, it is not a full list of classic books, but it is a good starting point and goal. There are a few other websites and blogs out there that can help you find a goal list of your own. For example, the book recommendation website This Is Writing boasts a website
to share stories for all to read and pass on. It caters not only to big
name authors and novels, but also to those who are starting out and need
a voice. If you favor lists and categorization when choosing a
book/genre, you should check this website out - it may help you during a
book slump! Most recently, they have compiled a list of fiction books that
you should read at least once, termed "The Ultimate List of Fiction Books You Should Read At Least Once In Your Life" (of which you can find out which books make the list by clicking the link). 
Seven-Sided Spy by: Hannah Carmack
Hannah Carmack enjoys volunteer work and spends most of her time working for the organization STEM Read, connecting reluctant readers and bookworms alike to the world of literature and science. Her debut novel Seven-Sided Spy will be hitting shelves this January with NineStar Press.
That said, a new year calls for new resolutions. Last year, my goal was to read 100 books. I tried to not count any manga or short stories, but it was tricky since Goodreads counts these towards your overall book count! From my own summarization, I read a total of 50 books, but according to Goodreads, the count came to a total of....*drumroll please* 79 books!
