In the tradition of Poul Anderson's Operation Chaos, Jerry Oltion, a rising star of science fiction and a Nebula Award-winning author, returns with a novel of intergalactic travel, a mad scientist, and otherworldly allies. Allen Meisner is a member of INSANE, the International Network of Scientists Against Nuclear Extermination. A card-carrying mad scientist, he develops a hyperdrive engine capable of taking anyone to the stars for just a few dollars. But after a demonstration aboard a space ship goes awry, Allen learns that there's no such thing as a free ride. Allen's ideas do not have quite the effect he desires. While the ability to travel great distances excites some, it terrifies others. Earth is in chaos as governments prepare for war to control this unleashed power. With everyone waiting for the bomb-now propelled by hyperdrive-to fall, Allen and his shuttle pilot, Judy Gallagher, look for a way to save humanity. With electronic parts from Radio Shack and a plastic septic tank from a lumberyard, they build their own spacecraft and go in search of habitable planets. Armed with new allies, an intelligent butterfly, and a temperamental tree, they return to Earth for a final showdown between fear and freedom. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

This follow-up to Oltion's Abandon in Place (2000) borrows the character of self-proclaimed mad scientist Allen Meisner to initiate an enjoyable tale of interstellar exploration. What makes Allen "mad" is humanity's failure to avoid the threat of nuclear extermination by spreading throughout the universe, so when he invents a cheap, easy-to-build hyperdrive for spaceships, he makes sure everyone has access to the plans. Within a few days, people are heading for the stars in anything that will hold air; Allen and his lover, Judy, an adventurous ex-space shuttle pilot, take off in a plastic septic tank. The story could become merely zany at this point, but Oltion has a more serious purpose. Alan and Judy keep having to improvise solutions to serious problems. They succeed not just because they're smart but because they're confident that solutions can be found. If humanity seems trapped in a rut at the novel's beginning, the real problem is that too many people would rather avoid responsibility and let others do the thinking. While Alan and Judy don't discover a simple or safe universe, the challenges stimulate them, make them more fully human. So the author is returning to SF's roots. The novel's headlong pace calls to mind Doc Smith's breezy 1928 space opera, The Skylark of Space, and it's startling that after all this time people still are timidly waiting for personal, unrestricted space travel. Oltion makes an entertaining but forceful argument for seeking personal fulfillment through escape. (Dec. 20)award.Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Allen Meisner, a card-carrying "mad" scientist, unexpectedly demonstrates his working hyperdrive engine aboard a space shuttle voyage and unleashes a panicked response from the governments of Earth. When he and shuttle pilot Judy Gallagher realize that their home world considers them dangerous, Meisner decides to take his discovery on a "test run" through the universe. Oltion (Abandon in Place) fashions a rambunctious romp across space that pokes fun at bureaucracies and the politics of paranoia. An sf adventure for most collections.Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Adult/High School-Allen Meisner's business card identifies him as a member of INSANE (the International Network of Scientists Against Nuclear Extermination). He is worried; reasoning that the only hope for survival is to get out of here, he's been theorizing about a cheap, almost instantaneous mode of faster-than-light travel. In an experiment that he carried aboard the shuttle Discovery in two small "getaway special" canisters, his "hyperdrive" proves wildly successful (if a bit dicey to control, at first). He broadcasts the formula, and the whole world now knows how to go off-planet in any vehicle that can be made airtight for a few hours. Judy Gallagher, a pilot on the fateful shuttle flight, is soon in cahoots with Meisner, escaping from Earthly powers desperate to control the new technology. They build a ship (a customized septic tank) and head for Alpha Centauri, but in just one of many delicious twists, they find they aren't the first to get there. This is as much fun as science fiction can be-rich in the classic sense of wonder and in the most contemporary questions, and carried aloft by a wild and irresistible humor.-Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VACopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information