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{| class="wiki-sidebar"
  
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{{Sidebar novel|
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| image = StrangersFromTheSkyOrigCover.jpg
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| colspan="2" align="center" | [[Image:StrangersFromTheSkyOrigCover.jpg|200px|Original Cover image.]]
  
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| imagecap = Original cover
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|-
  
  ⚫
| Author = [[Margaret Wander Bonanno]]
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| colspan="2" align="center" | [[Image:StrangersFromTheSkyRerelease.jpg|200px|Re-release Cover image.]]
  
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| Artist = [[Boris Vallejo]]<br />[[Jerry Vanderstelt]] (re-release)
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|-
  
  ⚫
| Publisher = [[Pocket Books]]
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| class="odd" | Author:
  
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| Series = [[Pocket TOS]]
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| class="even" | [[Margaret Wander Bonanno]]
  
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| Published = {{d|15|September|1987}}<br />{{d|25|July|2006}} (re-release)
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|-
  
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| Pages = 310<br />320 (re-release)
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| class="odd" | Illustrator:
  
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| Year = [[2284]] (Book 1)<ref>The time difference between {{e|Where No Man Has Gone Before}} is originally given as 15 years, because that was the same time used in {{film|2}}. ''[[Voyages of Imagination]]'' therefore sets the first part of the book a year before the events of ''Star Trek II''.</ref><br />[[2265]] (Book 2)
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| class="even" | [[Boris Vallejo]]
  
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| ISBN = 0671640496<br />ISBN 1416524630 (re-release)
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|-
  
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| AB = Yes
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| class="odd" | Publisher:
  
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| ABReadBy = [[George Takei]] with [[Leonard Nimoy]] as the voice of [[Spock]]
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| class="even" | [[Pocket Books]]
  
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| ABRunTime = 90 Minutes<br />(1 Cassette)
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|-
  
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| ABPublisher = [[Simon and Schuster Audioworks]]
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| class="odd" | Series:
  
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| ABPublished = {{d|15|September|1987}}<br />{{d|1|November|1999}} (re-release)
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| class="even" | [[Pocket TOS]]
  
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| ABISBN = 0671647180<br />ISBN 0671037986 (re-release)
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|-
  
  ⚫
}}
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| class="odd" | Published:
  
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''The epic novel of first contact between man and Vulcan!''
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| class="even" | {{d|15|September|1987}}
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Pages:
  
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| class="even" | 310
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Rereleased:
  
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| class="even" | {{d|25|July|2006}}
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Pages:
  
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| class="even" | 320
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Year:
  
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| class="even" | [[2273]](Book 1)/[[2265]] (Book 2)
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Stardate:
  
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| class="even" | ''Unknown''
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Reference #:
  
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| class="even" | Original Release: ISBN 0671640496<br>Re-release: ISBN 1416524630
 
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|-
  
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| colspan="2" align="center" | [[Image:Strangers from the sky.jpg|200px|Inside Cover Art image.]]
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Publisher:
  
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| class="even" | [[Simon and Schuster]] Audioworks
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Format:
  
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| class="even" | Abridged adaptation
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Published:
  
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| class="even" | {{d|15|September|1987}}
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Rereleased:
  
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| class="even" | {{d|1|November|1999}}
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Read by:
  
⚫
| class="even" | [[George Takei]] with [[Leonard Nimoy]] as the voice of [[Spock]]
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Running Time:
  
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| class="even" | 90 Minutes<br>(on 1 Cassette)
  
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|-
  
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| class="odd" | Reference #:
  
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| class="even" | Original Release: ISBN 0671647180<br>Re-release: ISBN 0671037986
  
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|-
  
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| colspan="2" style="text-align: center" | [[Image:StrangersFromTheSkyAudio.jpg|200px|Original Audio Cover image.]]
  
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|-
  
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| colspan="2" style="text-align: center" | [[Image:StrangersFromTheSkyAudioRerelease.jpg|200px|Re-release Audio Cover image.]]
  
⚫
|}
  
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'''''THE EPIC NOVEL OF FIRST CONTACT BETWEEN MAN AND VULCAN!'''''
 
   
 
==Summary==
  
==Summary==
  +
''Strangers from the Sky'' is a 1987 book by author [[Margaret Wander Bonanno]] detailing the first contact between [[Human]]s and [[Vulcan]]s.
  +
 
;From the book jacket:
  
;From the book jacket:
−
:''[[James Kirk]] didn't normally pay much attention to this thing &mdash; a best-selling [[book]], and a controversial one at that. But ''Strangers From the Sky'' had piqued his interest &mdash; and everyone else's, it seemed. For the book disputed a fact well know to every [[United Federation of Planets|Federation]] schoolboy: That [[Earth]]'s first encounter with alien life had occured when the UNSS ''Icarus'' came upon the [[humanoid]] people of [[Alpha Centauri]] in [[2048]].''
 +
:''[[James Kirk]] didn't normally pay much attention to this thing &ndash; a best-selling [[book]], and a controversial one at that. But ''Strangers From the Sky'' had piqued his interest &ndash; and everyone else's, it seemed. For the book disputed a fact well known to every [[Federation]] schoolboy: That [[Earth]]'s first encounter with alien life had occurred when the UNSS ''Icarus'' came upon the [[humanoid]] people of [[Alpha Centauri]] in [[2048]].''
   
−
:'' ''Strangers'' claimed that [[history]] was wrong... that [[humanity]]'s [[first contact]] with another sapient [[species]] had taken place years earlier. And that when the two races met, something happened. Something so climactic, so dangerous, that it had been wiped from the records and kept secret by both worlds for almost two centuries.''
 +
:Strangers'' claimed that [[history]] was wrong... that [[humanity]]'s [[First Contact]] with another sapient [[species]] had taken place years earlier. And that when the two races met, something happened. Something so climactic, so dangerous, that it had been wiped from the records and kept secret by both worlds for almost two centuries.''
   
 
:''But when Kirk read the book, it triggered strange [[dream]]s... nightmares that threatened first his health, then his sanity. It was only when he discovered that [[Spock]] also shared those dreams that the [[Admiral]] began to wonder: Could there be more to this book than he or anyone guessed...?''
  
:''But when Kirk read the book, it triggered strange [[dream]]s... nightmares that threatened first his health, then his sanity. It was only when he discovered that [[Spock]] also shared those dreams that the [[Admiral]] began to wonder: Could there be more to this book than he or anyone guessed...?''
   
 
{{review}}
  
{{review}}
−  
−
FURTHER SUMMARY
  
−  
 
<!--
  
<!--
   
Line 85: Line 37:
   
 
==Background Information==
  
==Background Information==
−
* The premise of this [[novels|novel]] (a Vulcan scoutship crashing and forcing Vulcans and humans to interact before the "official" first contact between the two races known to history) was reused in a very similar manner in {{ENT|Carbon Creek}}.
 +
*The premise of this [[novels|novel]] (a Vulcan scoutship crashing and forcing Vulcans and Humans to interact before the "official" first contact between the two races known to history) was reused in a very similar manner in {{ENT|Carbon Creek}}.
−
* The framing sequences of this story are set prior to the [[TOS]] episode {{e|Where No Man Has Gone Before}} and between {{film|1}} and {{film|2}}.
 +
*The framing sequences of this story are set prior to {{e|Where No Man Has Gone Before}} and between {{film|1}} and {{film|2}}.
−
* The "author's forward" of the book in the story puts the "official" first contact between man and Vulcan as occuring in the year [[2065]] (some 17 years after first encountering beings from [[Alpha Centauri]] in [[2048]]). Obviously, these events were contradicted by those seen in {{film|8}}.
 +
*The "author's foreword" of the novel within the novel puts the "official" first contact between man and Vulcan as occurring in the year [[2065]] (some 17 years after first encountering beings from [[Alpha Centauri]] in [[2048]]). These events were contradicted by those seen in {{film|8}}.
−
* The book was re-released as part of the "Celebrating 40 Years of Star Trek" novel series from [[Pocket Books]], with a new added afterword by author Bonnanno.
 +
*The book was re-released as part of the "Celebrating 40 Years of ''Star Trek''" novel series from [[Pocket Books]], with a new afterword by author Bonanno.
−
* The [[audio]]book adaptation was performed by [[George Takei]] and [[Leonard Nimoy]], and was released on cassette and as part of the ''[[Star Trek 25th Anniversary Audio Collection]]'' CD set.
 +
*The [[audio]]book adaptation was performed by [[George Takei]] and [[Leonard Nimoy]], and was released on cassette and as part of the ''[[Star Trek 25th Anniversary Audio Collection]]'' CD set.
  +
  +
===Cover gallery===
  +
<gallery>
  +
File:Strangers from the sky.jpg|Inside cover art
  +
File:Strangers from the Sky rerelease cover.jpg|2006 rerelease cover
  +
File:StrangersFromTheSkyAudio.jpg|Audiobook cover
  +
File:StrangersFromTheSkyAudioRerelease.jpg|1999 audiobook rerelease cover
  +
</gallery>
   
 
==Characters==
  
==Characters==
−
; [[James T. Kirk]]
 +
;[[James T. Kirk]]
−
; [[Spock]]
 +
;[[Spock]]
−
; [[Leonard McCoy]]
 +
;[[Leonard McCoy]]
  +
;[[Nyota Uhura]] : Kirk met Uhura in [[Earth Spacedock]] who was in company with Cleante al-Faisal.
⚫
; [[Gary Mitchell]]
  
  +
;Dr. Krista Sivertsen : A former student of McCoy's who attended his lectures when he was still married. McCoy visited the psychiatrist to talk about Admiral Kirk with her. Krista was also the roommate of Elizabeth Dehner during their internship and exchanged letters until Dehner's first space mission after Aldebaran.
−
; [[Elizabeth Dehner]]
  
  +
;Purdi : The [[Troyian]] Purdi owns a bookstore on Earth where Kirk bought ''Strangers from the Sky''.
−
; [[Uhura]]
  
  +
;Cleante al-Faisal : Kirk met her in Earth Spacedock. She was the decisive factor why Kirk bought ''Strangers from the Sky'' as she claimed a character from the novel was an ancestor of her.
⚫
; [[Lee Kelso]]
  
  +
::''Cleante is a character from the author's novel ''[[Dwellers in the Crucible]]''.''
−
; Sorahl
  
  +
;T'Shael : Vulcan with a blood disease who needs to consult Dr. M'Benga on a regular basis.
−
; T'Lera
  
  +
::''T'Shael is a character from the author's novel ''Dwellers in the Crucible''.''
⚫
; Yoshi
  
  +
−
; Tatya
  
  +
===Vulcan crew===
  +
;T'Lera : Commander of the mission. She had no contact with her son's father Sotir for a long time. Together with her son, she is one of two survivors of the crash-landing in 2045.
  +
;T'Preth : Helmsman and linguist.
  +
;Savar : Prefect Savar established the rules of interstellar exploration and was the father of Commander T'Lera. He observed the last two major wars on Earth. In 2045, he died at the age of 221.4 years.
  +
;Sorahl : Navigator aboard the Vulcan explorer and son of T'Lera.
  +
;Selik : Astrocartographer of the mission. Selik was a member of the Vulcan High Command and would act as representative if contact was established with Earth.
  +
;T'Syra : T'Syra monitored Earth's radio signals and acted as the [[healer]] and xenobiology expert on the mission. She was Selik's partner and accompanied Commander T'Lera in all but their first mission.
  +
;Stell : Sociologist and musician, who also worked as a technician.
  +
  +
===Argo III inhabitants===
  ⚫
;Yoshi
  +
;Tatya Bilash : A "full-figured" woman of Ukrainian descent.
  +
  +
===USS ''Enterprise'' crew (2284)===
  +
;Tran Van Ky : Communications officer who received three commendations during Spock's training missions.
  +
;Mathee : Lieutenant
  +
  +
===USS ''Enterprise'' crew (2265)===
  ⚫
;[[Gary Mitchell]]
  +
;[[Elizabeth Dehner]] : Psychiatrist aboard the ''Enterprise'' who died after in the first year under Kirk's command. Elizabeth Dehner was a student of McCoy's and was once the roommate of Krista Sivertsen during her internship. Until her posting aboard ''Enterprise,'' she worked at [[Aldebaran]].
  ⚫
;[[Lee Kelso]]
  +
  +
===''Delphinus'' crew===
  +
;Jason Nyere : Captain
  +
;Melody Sawyer : First Officer
  +
;Henry Moy : Ensign
  +
;Reeta Patel : Lieutenant
   
 
==References==
  
==References==
  +
;AeroNav : The military arm of United Earth for a period of time after the Third World War. It is a partially combined military service embracing all aerospace and naval forces (with Ground Forces apparently having a separate command), and is identified as an organization that, eventually, evolved into (or provided an inspiration for) Starfleet. The ''Delphinus'' was one of its combat/patrol ships, which operated out of an AeroNav base at Norfolk Island, an Australian territory in the South Pacific. (Note: Norfolk Island is not to be confused with Norfolk, Virginia, the location of several American air and naval stations, including the headquarters of the US Atlantic Fleet.)
−
;AeroNav: The government of United [[Earth]] sometime after [[2040]]. Its main command center was located at Norfolk and it was in control of space efforts, possibly being the predecessor to the [[United Earth Space Probe Agency]] (UESPA). AeroNav was in direct command of the Ocean-going vessels of United Earth, including the CSS ''Delphinius''.
  
  +
;M-155
  +
;Argo III : Tang farm in the [[Pacific Ocean]].
  +
;Kiev : Capital city of Ukraine. Tatya has an aunt working as a news correspondent in Kiev.
  +
;Starbase 6 : McCoy visited Starbase 6 in 2265, with Dr. [[Mark Piper|Piper]] taking his position as chief medical officer aboard the ''Enterprise'' during this trip.
  +
;[[Carl Sagan Memorial Station|Carl Sagan]] : Melody jokingly speculated Carl Sagan once said aliens look like petunias.
  +
;T'Sri : T'Sri is a healer specializing in psychology. She was the only expert close enough to Earth, but was on a 17-day remote to [[Rigel XII]].
  +
;[[Unnamed Vulcans (23rd century)#Vulcan Kolinahr Master (female)|T'sai]] : The Vulcan master who guided Spock through ''[[kolinahr]]''.
  +
::''The name was taken from the novelization of ''[[Star Trek: The Motion Picture (novel)|Star Trek: The Motion Picture]]''.''
  +
;Commander [[Kyle]] : Former transporter chief of the ''Enterprise'' originating from [[Australia]]. Kirk had not seen him since Kyle's transfer to the ''Reliant''.
  +
  +
==Timeline==
  +
;Note: ''The timeline of this book was originally based on the ''[[Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology]]''.''
  +
;1823 : Savar is born.
  +
;2028 : Melody Sawyer participates in the tennis finals on Goddard Moonbase and finishes second.
  +
;2045 : The Vulcan scoutship crash-lands on Earth.
  +
;2048 : The ''Icarus'' arrives in the [[Alpha Centauri system]].
  +
;2055 : Major breakthrough in warp technology research.
  +
;2065 : The ''Amity'' rescues the crew of a disabled Vulcan ship in the Solar system. This marks the official first contact.
  +
;2265 : Kirk, Spock, Kelso, Mitchell, and Dehner beam down to M-155.
  +
;2284 : The novel ''Strangers from the Sky'' is published.
  +
  +
==Footnotes==
  +
<references />
  +
  +
==External links==
  +
* {{wikipedia-title}}
  +
* {{NCwiki-title}}
  +
  +
{{Novel nav
  +
|series = [[Pocket TOS]]<br />Unnumbered novels
  +
|prev = ''[[Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (novel)|Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]]''
  +
|next = ''[[Final Frontier (novel)|Final Frontier]]''
  ⚫
}}
   
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{| table class="browser"
  
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|-
  
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| class="prev" | Previous TOS novel:<br />Enterprise: The First Adventure
  
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| class="topic" | [[Novels]]<br />[[Pocket TOS]]
  
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| class="next" | Next TOS novel:<br />[[Spock's World]]
 
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|}
  
 
[[Category:Novels]]
  
[[Category:Novels]]
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[[Category:Audio]]
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[[Category:Audiobooks]]
 
[[de:Fremde vom Himmel]]
  
[[de:Fremde vom Himmel]]

Revision as of 20:36, 25 February 2013

Template:Realworld

The epic novel of first contact between man and Vulcan!

Summary

Strangers from the Sky is a 1987 book by author Margaret Wander Bonanno detailing the first contact between Humans and Vulcans.

From the book jacket
James Kirk didn't normally pay much attention to this thing – a best-selling book, and a controversial one at that. But Strangers From the Sky had piqued his interest – and everyone else's, it seemed. For the book disputed a fact well known to every Federation schoolboy: That Earth's first encounter with alien life had occurred when the UNSS Icarus came upon the humanoid people of Alpha Centauri in 2048.
Strangers claimed that history was wrong... that humanity's First Contact with another sapient species had taken place years earlier. And that when the two races met, something happened. Something so climactic, so dangerous, that it had been wiped from the records and kept secret by both worlds for almost two centuries.
But when Kirk read the book, it triggered strange dreams... nightmares that threatened first his health, then his sanity. It was only when he discovered that Spock also shared those dreams that the Admiral began to wonder: Could there be more to this book than he or anyone guessed...?

Excerpts of copyrighted sources are included for review purposes only, without any intention of infringement.

Background Information

Cover gallery

Characters

James T. Kirk
Spock
Leonard McCoy
Nyota Uhura
Kirk met Uhura in Earth Spacedock who was in company with Cleante al-Faisal.
Dr. Krista Sivertsen
A former student of McCoy's who attended his lectures when he was still married. McCoy visited the psychiatrist to talk about Admiral Kirk with her. Krista was also the roommate of Elizabeth Dehner during their internship and exchanged letters until Dehner's first space mission after Aldebaran.
Purdi
The Troyian Purdi owns a bookstore on Earth where Kirk bought Strangers from the Sky.
Cleante al-Faisal
Kirk met her in Earth Spacedock. She was the decisive factor why Kirk bought Strangers from the Sky as she claimed a character from the novel was an ancestor of her.
Cleante is a character from the author's novel Dwellers in the Crucible.
T'Shael
Vulcan with a blood disease who needs to consult Dr. M'Benga on a regular basis.
T'Shael is a character from the author's novel Dwellers in the Crucible.

Vulcan crew

T'Lera
Commander of the mission. She had no contact with her son's father Sotir for a long time. Together with her son, she is one of two survivors of the crash-landing in 2045.
T'Preth
Helmsman and linguist.
Savar
Prefect Savar established the rules of interstellar exploration and was the father of Commander T'Lera. He observed the last two major wars on Earth. In 2045, he died at the age of 221.4 years.
Sorahl
Navigator aboard the Vulcan explorer and son of T'Lera.
Selik
Astrocartographer of the mission. Selik was a member of the Vulcan High Command and would act as representative if contact was established with Earth.
T'Syra
T'Syra monitored Earth's radio signals and acted as the healer and xenobiology expert on the mission. She was Selik's partner and accompanied Commander T'Lera in all but their first mission.
Stell
Sociologist and musician, who also worked as a technician.

Argo III inhabitants

Yoshi
Tatya Bilash
A "full-figured" woman of Ukrainian descent.

USS Enterprise crew (2284)

Tran Van Ky
Communications officer who received three commendations during Spock's training missions.
Mathee
Lieutenant

USS Enterprise crew (2265)

Gary Mitchell
Elizabeth Dehner
Psychiatrist aboard the Enterprise who died after in the first year under Kirk's command. Elizabeth Dehner was a student of McCoy's and was once the roommate of Krista Sivertsen during her internship. Until her posting aboard Enterprise, she worked at Aldebaran.
Lee Kelso

Delphinus crew

Jason Nyere
Captain
Melody Sawyer
First Officer
Henry Moy
Ensign
Reeta Patel
Lieutenant

References

AeroNav
The military arm of United Earth for a period of time after the Third World War. It is a partially combined military service embracing all aerospace and naval forces (with Ground Forces apparently having a separate command), and is identified as an organization that, eventually, evolved into (or provided an inspiration for) Starfleet. The Delphinus was one of its combat/patrol ships, which operated out of an AeroNav base at Norfolk Island, an Australian territory in the South Pacific. (Note: Norfolk Island is not to be confused with Norfolk, Virginia, the location of several American air and naval stations, including the headquarters of the US Atlantic Fleet.)
M-155
Argo III
Tang farm in the Pacific Ocean.
Kiev
Capital city of Ukraine. Tatya has an aunt working as a news correspondent in Kiev.
Starbase 6
McCoy visited Starbase 6 in 2265, with Dr. Piper taking his position as chief medical officer aboard the Enterprise during this trip.
Carl Sagan
Melody jokingly speculated Carl Sagan once said aliens look like petunias.
T'Sri
T'Sri is a healer specializing in psychology. She was the only expert close enough to Earth, but was on a 17-day remote to Rigel XII.
T'sai
The Vulcan master who guided Spock through kolinahr.
The name was taken from the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Commander Kyle
Former transporter chief of the Enterprise originating from Australia. Kirk had not seen him since Kyle's transfer to the Reliant.

Timeline

Note
The timeline of this book was originally based on the Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology.
1823
Savar is born.
2028
Melody Sawyer participates in the tennis finals on Goddard Moonbase and finishes second.
2045
The Vulcan scoutship crash-lands on Earth.
2048
The Icarus arrives in the Alpha Centauri system.
2055
Major breakthrough in warp technology research.
2065
The Amity rescues the crew of a disabled Vulcan ship in the Solar system. This marks the official first contact.
2265
Kirk, Spock, Kelso, Mitchell, and Dehner beam down to M-155.
2284
The novel Strangers from the Sky is published.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ The time difference between "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is originally given as 15 years, because that was the same time used in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Voyages of Imagination therefore sets the first part of the book a year before the events of Star Trek II.

External links


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