Mark Carascal’s Journey to the Lunar Seas is a recent release from Publish on Demand and Central Books. The book features beautiful illustrations by Maville Carascal. I enjoyed this book because it presents poetry written by a scientist. It is not everyday that I encounter scientific poetry. It is a fresh concept which is new to the Philippine literary landscape. It is also a brave attempt to marry science and art, which are not conventional partners. It is a celebration of feelings, which cannot be quantified through formulae and equations.
The author writes about friendship, love, loss, and regret. In science, these concepts are not discussed. It is through his poems that the author tackles matters of the heart in relation to the seas of the moon. The poems humanize him, because the author typically writes technical papers. Given his professional background, he incorporates scientific terms into his poems. While I am aware that these terms could be easily searched on the internet, it would have been nice if the author included a glossary of terms at the end of his book. It is also a must these days to have a disclaimer at the beginning of books that tackle alcohol and drugs. Not everyone is comfortable reading about substances after all.
Having said those remarks, I look forward to the author’s upcoming work and creative journey. I hope that he writes more poems, especially those that are infused with scientific concepts.
Scientists in the creative scene is an emerging trend, and the author shines a light on both his professional background and his poetic skill. The Philippines needs more creative scientists. Science and art should not be at odds with each other. Poetry, like what the author writes, might just be the avenue for creative scientific expression.
Journey to the Lunar Seas is now available!