Novel gets at the truth

By ROBERT WALCH For The Salinas Californian "The Nadjik Pheromone," by Michael Kenneth Hemp (The History Co.; $26.95). · Local connection: Hemp, a Carmel Valley resident, created the Cannery Row Foundation in 1983. His previous book, published in 1986, is titled, "Cannery Row: The History of John Steinbeck's Old Ocean View Avenue." Portions of "The Nadjik Pheromone," a novel, are set in Carmel and Pebble Beach. · Content: Originally a screenplay, the premise of this novel is built upon a new spectrometry technology which would be able to determine if a person were telling the truth or not. · The code name for the project - the novel's title - refers to a notorious military general in Bosnia responsible for acts of genocide. The action moves from the Central Coast and the San Francisco Bay Area to Bosnia, Pakistan and finally Washington, D.C. · From the development of the technology to the struggle to protect it from those who would rather it never see the light of day to its history-making application, the fast-paced narrative locks the reader into this tale of intrigue and doesn't release him until the final page. · Is such a device a possibility? The author emphatically says, "Yes!" · Would there be people who would not want to see a "truth" device like this become a reality? What do you think? Besides being a riveting read, "The Nadjik Pheromone" provides plenty of food for thought about how someday technology could make it simple to separate falsehoods from the truth. · Author quote: "This book has no Superman, no MacGyver. Or a Jason Bourne. It is a view of human courage and heroism on a realistic scale in the pursuit of what may be the biggest idea of all time: an end to the power of the lie; an end to corruption at all levels in the human experience; an end to torture and crimes against humanity; progress toward global human conduct based on scientifically verifiable truth. The question is, of course, 'Is the world really ready for it?'" · Audience: Those who enjoy a good novel that is grounded in technological innovation that could someday be a reality will enjoy this story. ROBERT WALCH of Monterey writes about Central Coast Authors for the Arts & Books page Saturday in The Salinas Californian. Contact him in care of Central Coast Authors, The Salinas Californian, P.O. Box 81091, Salinas 93912; fax to 754-4293; or e-mail to newsroom@thecalifornian.com. Copyright (c) The Californian. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of Gannett Co., Inc. by NewsBank, inc.

 

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