{"product_id":"9780986092299","title":"Island of Clouds: The Great 1972 Venus Flyby","description":"\u003cp\u003eApril, 1972. Three legendary astronauts embark on man’s boldest space voyage yet—a yearlong mission to fly past our nearest planetary neighbor, Venus.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eIsland of Clouds\u003c\/em\u003e, the first full-length novel in the \u003cem\u003eAltered Space\u003c\/em\u003e series, is a gripping space epic based on NASA mission proposals from the late 1960s. Touching on literary and cultural influences ranging from Borges and Bukowski to \u003cem\u003eSolaris \u003c\/em\u003eand \u003cem\u003eStar Trek\u003c\/em\u003e, this story of exploration also offers a literary probing of the dark reaches of human nature: alcoholism, capitalism, authority, fatherhood, and the ephemeral nature of desire.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach entry in the \u003cem\u003eAltered Space\u003c\/em\u003e series is a wholly separate narrative, but all deal with the mysteries of space and time, progress and circularity. Every title is an ensō of words in which orbits of spacecraft, moons, planets and people allow us fresh perspectives on the cycles of our own lives.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"GERALD D BRENNAN DBA TORTOISE BOOKS","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47024075964656,"sku":"9780986092299","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780986092299_p0.jpg?v=1763889803","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780986092299","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}