Are Angels OK? The Parallel Universes of New Zealand Writers and Scientists

‘Are Angels OK?’ asked Bill the poet.
‘Angels are just fine,’ said Paul the physicist.

And thus began an extraordinary blind date between New Zealand writers and physicists.

In this remarkable book, ten leading New Zealand writers (with some help from leading New Zealand scientists) wing their way through:

the sandpile phenomenon . the curvature of space time . wave particle duality . the untimely death of Schrodinger’s cat . Elsewhen . Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle . dark energy . entropy . the arrow of time . quarks . anti-matter . The Death of the Sun and The End of the Universe . . .

With contributions by Catherine Chidgey * Glenn Colquhoun * Dylan Horrocks * Witi Ihimaera * Lloyd Jones * Elizabeth Knox * Margaret Mahy * Vincent O'’Sullivan * Chris Price * Jo Randerson

This is a provocative and fascinating reader for science and non-science buffs alike. Since Einstein'’s time, the world of physics has become a strange, fantastic and sometimes disturbing place –– potentially a rich domain for philosophers and artists. The results of these science/literary and artistic collaboration prove this point.

'There are some real gems in this beautifully constructed book.' —Kate Orgias LUMIERE READER

'A fine collection of creative writing that delves into the mysteries of the universe through very human avenues.' —Mary de Ruyter CITYMIX

'Manhire has done an outstanding job of bringing in a range of first-rate writers, from Catherine Chidgey and Margaret Mahy to Lloyd Jones and Witi Ihimaera. There's really nothing here I'm not extremely glad to have read, and Callaghan's closing essay on science, scientific thinking and the experience of working with Vincent O'Sullivan and Jo Randerson rounds the book out perfectly.' —David Larsen THE LISTENER