Several of his close friends and co-workers, people with a variety of unique skills and talents, have seemingly coincidental connections to Arecibo. After several stints at Jesuit missionaries around the world, he returns to Puerto Rico. Sandoz grew up in La Perla, a poor neighborhood in San Juan. He is described as of mixed Taíno and Conquistador heritage and character. The story is told with parallel plot lines, interspersing the journey of Sandoz and his friends to Rakhat with Sandoz's experiences upon his return to Earth.įather Sandoz is a talented Puerto Rican linguist. In the year 2060, only one of the crew, the Jesuit priest Emilio Sandoz, survives to return to Earth, and he is damaged physically and psychologically. The first expedition to Rakhat, the world that is sending the music, is organized by the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), known for its missionary, linguistic and scientific activities since the time of its founder, Ignatius of Loyola. In the year 2019, the SETI program at Arecibo Observatory discovers radio broadcasts of music from the vicinity of Alpha Centauri. The title refers to Gospel of Matthew 10:29–31, which relates that not even a sparrow falls to the earth without God's knowledge thereof. It was followed by a sequel, Children of God, in 1998. Award, Kurd-Laßwitz-Preis and the British Science Fiction Association Award.

The Sparrow (1996) is the first novel by author Mary Doria Russell.

Maria doria russell the sparrow