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====== LIKE LEAVES FROM A TREE (FAMILY SAGA) ======

"Like Leaves From A Tree" is a multi-generational family saga written by author Jean Jacque Courtier. This sweeping epic follows three generations of the Turner family aboard the [[last_frontier|Last Frontier]] and cleverly combines the fictional story of the Turner family with the real events surrounding the journey of the human pioneers on the multigenerational spaceship.  The narrative culminates in a dramatic, perilous landing on the planet [[the_planet_voi_700_d|VOI 700 D,]] forever imprinting the phrase "May you see blue skies and green meadows again" into the cultural lexicon of this new world.

The book was first published in 2634. and is one of the most read and borrowed books in the [[federal_library|Federal Library]]. 

===== Characters =====

==== First Generation ====

  * **Max Turner:** A psychologist with a passion for writing, Max feels marginalized and unappreciated in the utilitarian society of Last Frontier. His descent into alcoholism culminates in his suicide.
  * **Mary Turner:** An astrophysicist and a key founding member of the Last Frontier Project. She gains social respect and admiration within the community, which also secures her and her husband's position as passengers on the voyage. She grapples with the emotional repercussions of her husband's death and her role as a single mother.
==== Second Generation ====

  * **Emily Turner:** The only child of Max and Mary, Emily chooses a career in engineering, which is highly respected on Last Frontier. Her complex relationships bring about both personal and societal conflict.
  * **Mark:** Emily's husband, a propulsion expert, sabotages their fertility treatments due to fears of passing on a genetic predisposition to mental illness from Max, Emily's father.
  * **Thomas:** A biotechnologist who becomes involved with Emily during her period of separation from Mark.

==== Third Generation ====

  * **Samuel Turner:** Works on a revolutionary method to eliminate mental illnesses, requiring AI surveillance on the Last Frontier.
  * **Sarah Turner:** Samuel's twin sister, she opposes her brother's work on ethical grounds and starts a secret resistance movement.

===== Plot Summary =====

==== First Generation ====

Mary Turner, an astrophysicist and a pivotal founding member of the Last Frontier Project, and her husband Max are selected as passengers for the journey. While Mary gains social respect and admiration, Max, a psychologist with a passion for writing, finds himself marginalized and alienated. His descent into alcoholism ends with his taking his own life, leaving a lasting impact on his wife and daughter Emily.

==== Second Generation ====

Emily, their only child, chooses engineering as her career. She marries Mark, a propulsion expert. Mark sabotages their fertility treatments because of his fears of passing on Max's genetic predisposition to mental illness. During a separation from Mark, Emily has an affair with Thomas, a biotechnologist, and becomes pregnant. She gives birth to twins, Sarah and Samuel, introducing new layers of conflict including marital issues and societal judgment.

==== Third Generation ====

Samuel and Sarah, Emily's twins, stand on opposite sides of a moral and ethical divide. Samuel works on a project that could eradicate mental illnesses but requires constant AI surveillance, raising ethical concerns. Sarah, vehemently opposing this, forms a secret resistance movement.

==== Conclusion ====

The landing on VOI 700 D proves catastrophic. Samuel and his pregnant wife perish in the flames during the crash landing. Sarah survives and as she steps into the uncertain world of VOI 700 D, she discovers she's pregnant. Her unborn child carries a predisposition for depression, inherited from Max, her grandfather.

===== About the author =====

Jean Jacque Courtier is not a real name, it is a pseudonym. Despite the book's widespread acclaim, very little is known about the author and their identity remains one of the most guarded secrets.

==== Speculations ====
 
Given the depth of psychological and social insight presented in the book, some critics speculate that Jean Jacque Courtier may be a collective of writers or perhaps an individual with a background in psychology, sociology, or space sciences. Others believe the author might be one of the scientists or engineers involved in the Last Frontier-project, using a nom de plume to protect their identity.

===== Related Pages and Further Information =====

  * [[the_human_culture_in_the_gamma_age|The human culture in the Gamma Age]]
  * [[last_frontier|Last Frontier]]
  *[[the_planet_voi_700_d| VOI 700 D]]