Book Review #67: The Crossing Hour By Quoleena Sbrocca

Title: The Crossing Hour

Author: Quoleena Sbrocca

Publishers: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 430 (PDF edition)

Source: Review copy by author

“Time travel used to be thought of just science fiction, but Einstein’s general theory of relativity allows for the possibility that we could warp space-time so much that you could go off in a rocket and return before you set out”    

       - Stephen Hawking

  

    “The Crossing Hour”, a novel that has kept me hooked for whole 2 days. Author Quoleena Sbrocca, a first time writer that wrote this excellent novel. It is really hard to believe a first timer can write something like this. This novel is an excellent work of imagination. Bundling fiction with few historical characters to create a magical time traveler’s story is something really a commendable job.

Stanley Graf, a retired NASA employee has believed in something extraordinary. He has created a device, called “Gramameter”, through which one can find any signs of the possible time travelers. Stanley worked relentlessly along with his son Thomas to witness this magic happen. This event happens once in every 4 years. A time traveler will appear once in every 4 years and according to Stanley’s theory, these time travelers will have 4 years of timeline to go back to their original time. He longed to prove his theory as a practical phenomenon, which was backed by Thomas Graf. After studying and documenting all these things for his entire life, Stanley passed the baton to his Granddaughter Leigh, a psychology graduate, to carry out the research and possibly receive any time traveler. Entire Stanley Graf’s family members are well educated of this time traveler’s event.

So, as the story progresses further, Leigh, now all set to receive the time traveler. She prepared well enough to witness this magical event happen right before her eyes. She sets all the black hole coordinates and waited. One fine day, a woman, probably in her late twenties, appeared out of blue. Leigh, who was witnessing this event made sure she was recording everything. Leigh was not sure of, whom this woman was or from which century she belonged to. She followed this mysterious woman and with help from her brother Stan, she collected enough information about this mysterious woman called “Harriet Tubman”.

The interesting part of the novel was the differences in the ways that 21^st century people talked and the people from Harriet Tubman’s time used to talk. Author had clearly mastered in choosing the right kind of grammar and vocabulary, and the salutations that people used to refer back in the days, so that it adds more weight to the time traveler’s character.

There is an important character in the novel called John Brown, a time traveler, staying in Stanley’s house for over 3 years. This part of the story in the novel where there are twists and turns, that sets the stage of the novel for its climax.

What worked in the entire novel is, the way the story is built. Readers can actually read effortlessly. There are some light moments when the earlier century people discover the modern technologies such as cars or mobile phones. The way it amuses them is exceptionally written. Hope one day, we all can witness such phenomenon in theory, proved in reality.

The writing style of the novel is lucid and engaging. There are no boring chapters as such. Each and every chapter makes sense. Breaking the entire novel into short chapters has really worked here. The dialogues differentiation between the earlier century people and the current generation people is just splendid. The scientific details and technological explanation just makes it more real than fiction. I recommend this book to every other reader who is interested in time traveler’s story.

Note: I received this book by the author in exchange of an honest review.

My Rating:

5/5

Book Review #35: The Book of Secrets - Unlocking the Hidden Dimensions of Your Life By Deepak Chopra

This is a nice book on self-realization. I did not say it is a self help book, solely because, it doesn't helps you to attain or achieve something, it actually helps you realize more of yourself. This is the first book of Deepak Chopra I have read. Without a doubt, I liked this book. He has written with much eloquence and I believe Chopra has achieved in what he was trying to say.

If you think this is a self help book, certainly it is not. I didn't consider it as one. This is beyond self help book. Though it has some exercise sections on what to do, how to do and stuffs like that. It actually helps you to understand more of you in every aspect of your life ranging from Mind, Body, Spirit, Spiritual, Relationships, Time, Death, Birth, etc...

I somehow sensed a feeling that, Mr. Chopra is teaching the Nondualism concept in every chapter. In Hinduism, this is greatly considered as the teachings of Advaita Vedanta a cult started by the famous 8th century sage or a monk or whatever you wish to call him, Adi Shankaracharya who helped the masses of those days to move towards non-dualism, which means, God resides in every being, there is no separate god and human in this world, there is only one thing, that is, the realization of god within one's own mind.

I sensed Mr. Chopra has written exactly the same thing leaving no stone unturned. With a touch of western oriented philosophical or spiritual mindset, he has given his readers, an exceptional piece of work in the name of Book of Secrets.

I really liked how he has organized this book. Every chapter reveals a secret of its own, leading a reader to attain a complete realization after each and every chapter. This particular book is not one of those books where you read in one sitting and forget and move on. Rather, it should be read slowly and be savoured with the flavor of Non-Dualism.

There is nothing to dissect in this review. I just give you the chapter names that explains all by itself.

The Mystery of Life is Real
The World is in You
Four Paths Leads to Unity
What You Seek, You Already Are
The Cause of Suffering is Unreality
Freedom Tames the Mind
Every Life is Spiritual
Evil is Not Your Enemy
You Live In Multidimensions
Death Makes Life Possible
The Universe Thinks Through You
There is No Time But Now
You Are Truly Free When You Are Not A Person
The Meaning of Life is Everything
Everything is Pure Essence

I guess you all had a glimpse of what Chopra is trying to say in this book. Though equipped with a fair knowledge of Non-Dualism, I had a feeling of revisioning everything again. Thanks to the author. This book certainly helps anyone, provided they must be ready to open up themselves to receive an unusual way of advice.

Some of the quotes that I liked from the book:

"If you obsess over whether you are making the right decision, you are basically assuming that the universe will reward you for one thing and punish you for another."

"Evolution is win-win…life is self-correcting."

"Pain is not the same as suffering. Left to itself, the body discharges pain spontaneously, letting go of it the moment that the underlying cause is healed. Suffering is pain that we hold on to. It comes from the mind’s mysterious instinct to believe that pain is good, or that it cannot be escaped, or that the person deserves it."

"Don't let a day go by without asking who you are…each time you let a new ingredient to enter your awareness."

"Meeting a stranger can be totally fleeting and meaningless, for example, unless you enter the individual’s world by finding out at least one thing that is meaningful to his or her life and exchange at least one genuine feeling. Tuning in to others is a circular flow: you send yourself out toward people; you receive them as they respond to you."

"Be content not with your lot in life but with being here in the flow of life. The glories of creation are in your very cells; you are made of the same mindstuff as the angels, the stars, and god himself."

"Don't follow someone else’s map. You should glean teachings from all directions, keeping true to those that bring progress yet remaining open to changes in yourself."

"The willingness to reach inside every part of yourself opens the door to total understanding. You place your entire identity on the line, not just an isolated part. This may sound daunting, but actually it’s the most natural way to approach any situation. When you hold some part of yourself in reserve you deny it exposure to life; you repress its energy and keep it form understanding what it needs to know."

Overall a good book with a new perspective. I recommend for everyone to read at least once in their lifetime.

My Rating:
5/5