Reviews in English

“I have read your book, ‘Philosopher’s Crystal’. I found it very entertaining and liked it a lot, especially the Epilogue.” – Prof. Bibek Debroy, one of the top Indian intellectuals, the Chairman of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM), the translator of The Mahabharata.

“Thanks for the sending of the Philosopher’s Crystal. I have read and enjoyed it, and I have taken the liberty of forwarding it to a couple of Philosopher colleagues both in Leuven and in Groningen.” – prof. Florentino García Martínez, theologian, Foreign Member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW).

“Thanks for sending me the novel which I really enjoyed. You have successfully presented the world philosophy in an interesting way. Your presentation of Shankara is wonderful. For this you deserve admiration.” – Prof. Ananda Mishra, Department of Philosophy and Religion, Banaras Hindu University.

“I liked your book. It was very readable with some unexpected plot twists, and your sketches of the philosophers you discuss show the careful research that went into them. Most readers would agree with your sketch of Descartes but I have a different view of him. He lived in something like the repressive atmosphere in which your book takes place and I think he felt a need to disguise his maverick views, those that didn’t accord with the Aristotelian Catholics who arrested Galileo and who held the intellectual life of France in their grip. Accordingly, I think his writings were more devious than you give him credit (or blame) for. I’m attaching an article explaining my reasons.” “I guess we can agree that you have a higher opinion of Descartes’ piety than I do, and I have a higher opinion of his sense of humor than you do.” – Prof. Kenneth Dorter, College of Arts, University of Guelph, Doctor of Literature (honoris causa), University of Brandon.

“I congratulate the author on his very good grasp of Shankara’s thought. He has presented the central teaching of Shankara simply and clearly.” – Prof. Joseph Kaipayil, Jeevalaya Institute for Philosophy, Bengaluru – affiliated to the Pontifical Urbaniana University, Rome.

A very nice reply of one U.S. professor after receiving Philosopher’s Crystal: “[…] I am in my office here at the university on a Saturday for the past 13 hours. But I glanced at your book reading the first couple of pages, and now at page 32 I am finding it tough to put down– the ultimate praise. To think that it was not written originally in English, yet so well composed, is laudable. […]”.

“Congratulations for a very excellent novel … I thoroughly enjoyed it and very much liked how the time-travel, philosophical questioning, and dreaming all interweave in a unique and unified way.” – Andrew Stevovich, painter.

A review by Christopher Valentino and Jerin Antonysamy, Divyadaan: Journal of Philosophy and Education 29/3 (2018), p. 406-408. Journal published by Divyadaan: Salesian Institute of Philosophy: “A fascinating read in one-sitting, the novel unfolds quite dramatically and at a crisp pace, with never a dull moment. […] Questions about the real, the unreal, the perceptible, the illusory; understanding Brahman, Jiva and Atman; inquiry into the law of cause and effect and comparisons between western Christianity’s Trinity and the Indian concept of Trimurthi is reason enough for serious philosophers to access the Philosopher’s Crystal.”

Łukasz Bartkowicz: „Marcin Dolecki: Philosopher’s Crystal: The Treacherous Terrain of Tassatarius.” Forum Philosophicum. International Journal for Philosophy, 21, no. 1 (2016): 121–123: “Mr. Dolecki, by elaborating Philip’s conversations with the philosophers, is trying to present their principal doctrines in a most astute way. At this stage, the novel could be said to resemble a highly enjoyable textbook in the history of philosophy, focusing on selected ideas, or a lightweight “philosophical novel.” It is worth adding that the author is not afraid to enter into criticism of his characters’ views. After a conversation with St. Augustine, the main character truly appreciates the Bishop’s powers of argument, but even so, not all of his doubts are dispelled.” (p. 122). The full text of this review.

Reviews on Amazon.

Reviews on Goodreads.

“About two years ago an online friend of mine, Marcin Dolecki, asked me to check the English translation of a book he was writing.  In return he just recently sent me the fully published version: this book, Philosopher’s Crystal.   

I was, and am, quite impressed with what he’s done.  I always had difficulty really digesting the essence of the messages from different philosophers while in high school and college.  Anything much beyond Plato and I’d find myself falling asleep.  What Marcin has done is unique in my experiences: He’s woven a fantasy/dystopian/time-travel story that is quite readable and enjoyable around an exposition of the central themes of several different and important schools of philosophical thought.

As his youthful central characters meet and speak informally with personages such as Augustine of Hippo, Descartes, and Shankara, it’s easy to understand and absorb a real feel for what they were trying to say in the essence of their works.

I have always tried in my own writing to take concepts and information that people might think can only really be grasped by “The Experts” and “The Cognizant Authorities” and present the material in a way that anyone with a decent high school education can easily follow.  I believe Marcin has done that in Philosopher’s Crystal.  I’d highly recommend this book for anyone interested in a fresh take on fictional time travel as well as anyone who’d like to pick up a bit of insight and grounding in some of the basic philosophical schools of thought without having to pore over long volumes of convoluted arguments.”

Michael J. McFadden, author of Dissecting Antismokers’ Brains , and TobakkoNacht — The Antismoking Endgame.

A brief description of my book can be found in the U.K. educational database SAPERE: Philosophy for Children, Colleges, Communities.

A review by Alicia.

A review by Anuradha Goyal, a blogger from India.

A review by Disha Sampat, a blogger form India.

A review by Anne C. West, an author and blogger from South Africa.

A review by Jennifer.

An introduction to the book (it’s not a review) on Hindu Blog.