Luke F. D. Marsden

At only twenty-something pages in length, if you have half an hour to spare, you really should spend it reading The Celestines.

It’s no easy task to imagine a world beyond human comprehension. Writing about it is even more difficult, and yet this author certainly succeeds.

The story is told in an almost essay-like format, but one which is very simple and accessible. This style works well because it gives The Celestines’ existence a firm rooting in believability. An encyclopedia type approach makes them that much more real.

Anyway, there’s no point in me trying to describe The Celestines, when the author does such a splendid job himself. You might as well just dive in and find out for yourself all about these alien beings, their wispy forms, their nature, and their writing. They might even teach you a thing or two about being human.… (más)

The Celestines is a short story that relays the nature and origins of a form of unknown beings, part ethereal, part scientific enigma. As the tale unfolds, clues are revealed that help shed light on these strange lifeforms, illuminating their unique culture. The writing creates real intrigue as the curious methodologies of the beings comes to light and their generational legacies are explained. An understated gem with a quietly observational style, there is much to be gained from this story and its attempts to unlock the mystery of the Celestines.… (más)

Being cut off, severed from something, is a difficult starting point. Throughout this novel the looming presence of a world behind and away, a world that has shaped the characters we will follow, is felt as a real entity. It stalks them as they pass over and through unfamiliar lands, searching for respite from the world at their backs. The friendship that binds them causes them to draw together and endeavour to reach a place where this world of political upheaval, civil unrest and authoritarianism won’t catch up with them, or they can at least hope to keep at bay for a while.

Set in a future so near it is one slow motion step away into the morning of that day, the novel takes us to the conclusion that may be inevitable, may be self-fulfilling or may be in the realm of delaying. As the planet rushes forward into the unsustainable plundering for resources the market and the man has devised, and token gestures are meted out by government in a blindingly apparent lack of will for change in this area, increasingly banal platitudes prop up the machine as it grinds away at another way, a way that needs to be found if the kind of strife this book recounts is to be reduced.

This is a journeying book, recounting South America’s landscapes, peoples and practices. This is where the narrative takes flight and I was hungry for more of it. Indeed, there were two aspects of this novel where my attention zoomed, the second being the reflections on the scientific and philosophical implications of the themes and dilemmas that were thrown up. To me these were the heart of the book, which I had delicious glimpses of and they were snatched away too soon to return to the central narrative which, though engaging enough, didn’t hold my attention with as much satisfaction. A strange type of self editing became apparent in the interactions between the friends, one that perhaps reflects certain friendships and the difficulties in juggling so many personalities, and though there were attempts to break though this into the soul of the characters I experienced repeated retreat from this which was at times frustrating. I wanted to know them better and felt the natural boundaries that friendships demand perhaps seeped over into the representation of the inner voice. For whatever reason I was left craving a more direct connection, instinctively appraising that this writer of clarity and simplicity of expression has so much more to say.

My main takeaway from this book is that I want to read more by this author. I am left curious and I’m still reflecting on it so I feel compelled to give it the solid 3.5 rating, so I will.… (más)