Jenseits dieser Zeit - Eine utopische Begegnung mit Gott

by Max Meyer

Bei der Aufklaerung eines Verbrechens stoesst Daniel von Arx auf Szenen, die sich in verschiedenen Jahrhunderten abgespielt haben. Er beginnt, Zusammenhaenge zwischen all diesen Episoden zu vermuten und erfaehrt von Vorgaengen in der Vergangenheit, die an seinem Geschichtsbild ruetteln. Gleichzeitig erhaelt er einen Ueberblick ueber die Entwicklung der Erde vom Urknall bis heute und er wird mit dem Fortschritt der Physik vertraut gemacht, wobei er sogar auf einfache Weise die Relativitaetstheorie und die Quantentheorie zu begreifen lernt. Er erfaehrt, wie Zeitspruenge in die Zukunft oder in die Vergangenheit physikalisch funktionieren koennten. In Verbindung mit einer Skizze ueber das Wesen der Religionen und einer Darstellung des Begriffes Gott wird die Kontroverse zwischen der darwinischen Evolutionstheorie und der biblischen Schoepfungsgeschichte erlaeutert und die provokative Frage Koennten wir Menschen es selbst gewesen sein, die aus der Zukunft den Fortschritt gesteuert haben? - Ist die Erzaehlung nur ein Jux, eine nicht ernst zu nehmende Utopie? Oder hat es sich wirklich so abgespielt?

310 pages, Paperback

First published July 11, 2016

About the author

Max Meyer lives in Bern, Switzerland and is the author of several works of nonfiction dealing mostly with economics and politics. He is an avid reader with a passion for history and science. “The Other Side of Now” is his first work of fiction. When asked about controversial themes in the book, he says, “I am not at all amazed that the concepts in my novel may seem provocative. My fascination is with the realization that humans may have guided the course of our development themselves.”

Reviews

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Challenging scientific content, interesting mystery woven in, then abruptly jumps to an actual time travel experience for the narrator. A strange thread/ directional change with what felt like an aftermath of something not quite finished. I was left feeling the ending was anemic, however can’t figure out how the ending could have been improved. I learned quite a bit about how relativity and quantum physics work, because the descriptive style was easy for me to understand, however, as a theologian, I was troubled by the minimalistic representation of religious belief in the realm of scientific discovery. I came away troubled because I expected more than a dismissal and a humanistic replacement of “creator God”.
Yet, as a whole I give the book a 4 rating because the author is articulate and presents an idea of worldview through a narrative that includes a murder mystery with multiple characters entrenched in a scientific/religious/philosophical battlefield, so to speak.
Although the book left me dissatisfied at the end, I did enjoy the read and the food for thought it provided. Thank you for the complimentary ebook. I’d love to read the reviews of others...
I would read another book by this author.

[Lillian Wakulchyk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this from Voracious Readers Only in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed this book but it felt a little slow at first, at first I was confused with the different viewpoints, but figured it out in the end. The ending felt a little rushed as I had hoped they would have done more world building . But all in all an okay read.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was sent an online copy of this book through the Voracious Readers group. Thank you to the group and author. I give 4/5 stars and enjoyed the book and topic although I will admit to getting bogged down a bit in trying to understand some of the background topics .

[Roger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a re-read after the lapse of a bit longer than a year. The novel holds up.