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The World of Juno: A Secondary World History and Anthology by William C. Tracy, Heather Tracy
blissof_jvanderhoof's review
3.0
**For Sci-Fi Lovers**
The World of Juno by ….. begins as I'd like to think a scientific Bible would, an intelligently written history on how life began on a planet called Juno, from the universe around it and onto life on the planet. The amount of learning, knowledge and research it must have taken to be able to create a book such as this seems insurmountable, at least to me, and makes it well worth the time, cost and energy you want to devote to any book you read. Also, a great heap of creativity needs to be present in an author, as it is here, in….., to create writing of this magnitude, developing the history of an entire new place.
The book is told as a researcher or explorer would speak about a new place and, as time moves along, notes new developments and what is learned about the past during this time of study as observers come to the planet on a ship to study it. Pictures are included and some of the book presents like data readings (with short lists of information) and while this might seem dry (and, at first, I thought it might) all the knowledge as it came together, as the story went on, was very exciting, interesting and left me wanting more (as I kept wanting to still turn the page).
As the creatures on the planet are explained by the writer, as a reader, I became more curious as to what was going to happen next because, the way in which (authors name) presents the information, even though written as a researcher doing a cultural/history study, there is a build up for something…as to what, with the introduction of a day and night species, as they are described, their needs, how they interact with the environment, the way their body has evolved because of the environment, etc, you know something on Juno is going to happen, that the creatures of day and night are going to have conflict, things will come to a head, whatever it is, it's exciting.
All the elements of Juno created- the "kuh", a membrane present on many of the creatures to help mask their bodies from the very hot sun, to the fact that some lack this protection, larger, predators that appear in the night, the species called Kuhifadi and all their qualities and characteristics, an immense undertaking by the inventive author, making me an immediate fan of his, for life. While many sci-fi/fantasy writers have a hard time painting a complete picture for me, always having felt (me) that they never paint the complete picture (with words) in their stories, none of that is felt here with The World of Juno.
All that is needed to get a complete understanding of the planet and its inhabitants in a very cognitively pleasing manner (and doesn't use a whole bunch of jumbled information that is hard to put together). The author affords such a complete picture as to speak about the Kuhifadi's mating and reproduction, the lack of gender roles, even the reason for the lack of these roles is presented in this planet study storybook.
However, on this planet, as the sun is so hot, it plays a very important role in every aspect as the writer explains it. Oddly, I find security in the face that even though this is a fictional world, that this author has created a planet with viable, evolved (and evolving) life, the fact that it was able to sustain anything at all, with such an extremely hot sun, reassures me that life can and will find a way. Even facing insurmountable odds (a sun which would fry life and life still finding a way) life was able to survive, thrive, grow and even change. However, the observers who are researching Juno begin to refer to the sun and its properties (the rays,heat) as magical, what it does to the planet, its species, all those on it. It makes the reader ask, what will be the effects to the observers, if any? Did they even think of this? Maybe, worry? As of yet, the observers do not seem to think of the impact that can be made to them.
The Uchafumlaji, however, are the creatures who own the night as they cannot face the hot sun having instead chosen to hunt, live and own the dark time. Bigger than the Kuhifadi they are large, nocturnal predators, something I, in now way, would like to come across if I visit the planet. Just as the author has described the other aspects in the book, here too, he is through, the writing engaging readers even deeper in the study of the planet. The fact that there are four genders in this species, a very imaginative inclusion in the story, expands minds that there can and will be more out there in the world than what we readers live with and know.
As a human, I often forget the fact that, when it comes to species, most creatures have many, even on our planet. The sad fact is that only humans really stand alone on this planet now, a singular species that has no close relation to it alive among us, to learn from, know, befriend, gain from (hopefully, all the good, rather than war, competition, etc). For a long time it was never even known that, at one time, there had been five species of humans (possibly more as this is all we have found record to prove, to know) alive on our planet, sadly, now, all extinct, only bones remain. Reading a world in which other species share a planet, all with very different aspects, reminds readers of what was once and what can be (could be) elsewhere. But, how do these species intermingle? Will they be a support to one another, or the other's demise?
When the observers who recording and studying the history of the planet Juno meet and bring Kimmaski, similar to a third species, the Ngisikaa, to the ship, oddities are noticed, a mystery starts to unfold, beginning with the statement that conversations with the creature feel, to the speaker, that they have already happened, taken place, rather than have a active, present, conversation. And, when Kimmaski uses a tentacle to pierce an external communication port, much information is lost (downloaded) and the project starts to devolve.
The World of Junk was a thorough read,a compilation of everything you'd want to know about the place, from start to finish. Here an author has combined all the knowledge for readers of a world he has created. And, if you are a sci-fi reader who would like to delve into an unknown world, all of it, from beginning to end, you'll want to seek and find The World of Juno. The book is really an expansion of the mind and a work of art. I would really love to see a series come, from the writer, out of this world. Where he takes a time period, from within the study he has done here, and focus on that period in time. If you are a sci-fi lover this is a must read and one that you're going to enjoy, if not only for the depth and detailed presentation, the imagination and creativity of the writer creating this strange, new, and very intriguing world for viewers who come.
The World of Juno by ….. begins as I'd like to think a scientific Bible would, an intelligently written history on how life began on a planet called Juno, from the universe around it and onto life on the planet. The amount of learning, knowledge and research it must have taken to be able to create a book such as this seems insurmountable, at least to me, and makes it well worth the time, cost and energy you want to devote to any book you read. Also, a great heap of creativity needs to be present in an author, as it is here, in….., to create writing of this magnitude, developing the history of an entire new place.
The book is told as a researcher or explorer would speak about a new place and, as time moves along, notes new developments and what is learned about the past during this time of study as observers come to the planet on a ship to study it. Pictures are included and some of the book presents like data readings (with short lists of information) and while this might seem dry (and, at first, I thought it might) all the knowledge as it came together, as the story went on, was very exciting, interesting and left me wanting more (as I kept wanting to still turn the page).
As the creatures on the planet are explained by the writer, as a reader, I became more curious as to what was going to happen next because, the way in which (authors name) presents the information, even though written as a researcher doing a cultural/history study, there is a build up for something…as to what, with the introduction of a day and night species, as they are described, their needs, how they interact with the environment, the way their body has evolved because of the environment, etc, you know something on Juno is going to happen, that the creatures of day and night are going to have conflict, things will come to a head, whatever it is, it's exciting.
All the elements of Juno created- the "kuh", a membrane present on many of the creatures to help mask their bodies from the very hot sun, to the fact that some lack this protection, larger, predators that appear in the night, the species called Kuhifadi and all their qualities and characteristics, an immense undertaking by the inventive author, making me an immediate fan of his, for life. While many sci-fi/fantasy writers have a hard time painting a complete picture for me, always having felt (me) that they never paint the complete picture (with words) in their stories, none of that is felt here with The World of Juno.
All that is needed to get a complete understanding of the planet and its inhabitants in a very cognitively pleasing manner (and doesn't use a whole bunch of jumbled information that is hard to put together). The author affords such a complete picture as to speak about the Kuhifadi's mating and reproduction, the lack of gender roles, even the reason for the lack of these roles is presented in this planet study storybook.
However, on this planet, as the sun is so hot, it plays a very important role in every aspect as the writer explains it. Oddly, I find security in the face that even though this is a fictional world, that this author has created a planet with viable, evolved (and evolving) life, the fact that it was able to sustain anything at all, with such an extremely hot sun, reassures me that life can and will find a way. Even facing insurmountable odds (a sun which would fry life and life still finding a way) life was able to survive, thrive, grow and even change. However, the observers who are researching Juno begin to refer to the sun and its properties (the rays,heat) as magical, what it does to the planet, its species, all those on it. It makes the reader ask, what will be the effects to the observers, if any? Did they even think of this? Maybe, worry? As of yet, the observers do not seem to think of the impact that can be made to them.
The Uchafumlaji, however, are the creatures who own the night as they cannot face the hot sun having instead chosen to hunt, live and own the dark time. Bigger than the Kuhifadi they are large, nocturnal predators, something I, in now way, would like to come across if I visit the planet. Just as the author has described the other aspects in the book, here too, he is through, the writing engaging readers even deeper in the study of the planet. The fact that there are four genders in this species, a very imaginative inclusion in the story, expands minds that there can and will be more out there in the world than what we readers live with and know.
As a human, I often forget the fact that, when it comes to species, most creatures have many, even on our planet. The sad fact is that only humans really stand alone on this planet now, a singular species that has no close relation to it alive among us, to learn from, know, befriend, gain from (hopefully, all the good, rather than war, competition, etc). For a long time it was never even known that, at one time, there had been five species of humans (possibly more as this is all we have found record to prove, to know) alive on our planet, sadly, now, all extinct, only bones remain. Reading a world in which other species share a planet, all with very different aspects, reminds readers of what was once and what can be (could be) elsewhere. But, how do these species intermingle? Will they be a support to one another, or the other's demise?
When the observers who recording and studying the history of the planet Juno meet and bring Kimmaski, similar to a third species, the Ngisikaa, to the ship, oddities are noticed, a mystery starts to unfold, beginning with the statement that conversations with the creature feel, to the speaker, that they have already happened, taken place, rather than have a active, present, conversation. And, when Kimmaski uses a tentacle to pierce an external communication port, much information is lost (downloaded) and the project starts to devolve.
The World of Junk was a thorough read,a compilation of everything you'd want to know about the place, from start to finish. Here an author has combined all the knowledge for readers of a world he has created. And, if you are a sci-fi reader who would like to delve into an unknown world, all of it, from beginning to end, you'll want to seek and find The World of Juno. The book is really an expansion of the mind and a work of art. I would really love to see a series come, from the writer, out of this world. Where he takes a time period, from within the study he has done here, and focus on that period in time. If you are a sci-fi lover this is a must read and one that you're going to enjoy, if not only for the depth and detailed presentation, the imagination and creativity of the writer creating this strange, new, and very intriguing world for viewers who come.
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