Jurassic Park Book Review

As a huge fan of Spielberg's dinosaur-packed movie, I decided to seek out the novel that sparked the Jurassic Park fire. The book is a sci-fi thriller written by Michael Crichton in 1990. Let's dive in and take a look.

The main plot is very intriguing. A billionaire, John Hammond creates a theme park which hosts biologically recreated dinosaurs. The story picks up when Hammond invites a team of experts to investigate the park and make sure it's safe.

On the team is Dr. Grant the paleontologist, his assistant Ellie Satler, Ian Malcolm the chaos theorist, and a lawyer, Donal Gennaro. Also, Hammond invites his obnoxious grandchildren, Lex and Tim Murphy. They quickly discover that the island isn't as safe as it seems -- the dinosaurs break free and the humans are tossed into desperate struggle to survive.

Jurassic Park was written in a very detailed, scientific way. Michael Crichton was clearly dedicated to creating a realistic situation. He offers many scientific explanations that actually sounded plausible at the time like extracting DNA to create the cloned dinosaurs. Still, Crichton's technical jargon feels dated now. It's hard to take the book seriously when its idea of "cutting edge" technology is a main frame computer that runs on a couple gigabytes, the storage space of an iPod Shuffle.

The computers are the dinosaurs that steal the show.

Another aspect of the book that didn't appeal to me was the characters. Unlike in the movie where Jeff Goldblum's charisma shines, the book's cast feels stiff. Dr. Grant, for instance is the definition of a bland character. He has nothing witty to say, no character intrigue, just a paleontologist who seems fairly interested in the park.
     
In honesty, the only character who felt fleshed out in the whole book was John Hammond. This man is technically a villain filled with greed (and a complete disregard for safety) but we also feel sympathy for him -- we can relate to his dream of bringing dinosaurs back to life.

While Jurassic Park is sub-par with its characters, it does succeed in the action department. There are many thrilling adventures in the book didn't make their way to the film like the escape from a T-Rex on a river raft or the Pteradon Hatchery scene. Crichton has a knack for describing dinosaur violence and gore, too. The dilophosaurus' slaughter of Dennis Nedry is written in rich, gruesome detail. We see that the author has a much firmer grasp of action than character development.

Conclusion:

Jurassic Park has a fascinating premise and exciting action scenes but it lacks warmth or heart to its characters. John Hammond may be deep but the other characters are too shallow. Also, the overly-scientific prose seems dated. Still, this is a fairly enjoyable read that I would recommend to fans of the movie or fans of dinosaurs in general.

Score:
2.5/5 Fairly Good

Book Review: 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King

A while back, I reviewed the 1897 classic, Dracula by Bram Stoker. Now, I'm taking on a modern vampire story by the master of written horror, Stephen King. This novel, 'Salem's Lot is a very straight-forward chiller but its main power is its engrossing, realistic setting.

Like the vast majority Stephen King's novels, this story takes place in the writer's home state of Maine. It's set in the fictional town of Jerusalem's Lot ('Salem's Lot for short) where nothing interesting happens…until a vampire slithers into the story and starts hunting human prey. Essentially, it's a grittier retelling of Stoker's novel, except it's set in 1970's rural America.

                 
Like the classic story, the plot centers around a team of average people dedicated to slaying a crafty, scheming vampire. Stephen King's cast is much richer than Stoker's, though. Ben Mears, the protagonist, is a novelist struggling to fight his inner demons. He's a man we can root for.
Some other likable characters are Matt Burke the wise schoolteacher, Susan Norton the lively romantic interest, and Mark Petrie, a twelve year old boy who gets caught in this horrific mess.

King has a real gift for crafting a realistic setting with lifelike characters. This story may contain blood-sucking, undead monsters, but we still feel like 'Salem's Lot could happen. King knows rural Maine like the back of his hand and he and paints a vivid picture of small town life -- just so he can tear it down with a barrage of supernatural terror.

The first half of the novel is just a calm ride through the town of Jerusalem's Lot. This is actually not boring. We get to understand town life and get to know its characters. Little touches like the scene where old men argue endlessly over weather give us a strong impression of what it would be like to live there.

Then, all Hell breaks lose when the vampire, Kurt Barlow begins his devilish work. Barlow is rarely seen in the novel (to build suspense) but we do get to encounter his human sidekick, Straker, quite often. They are both intimidating villains with sharp wits, always one step ahead of the protagonists.

'Salem's Lot may be similar to Dracula but it turns up the horror dial a couple notches. It's more graphic with its descriptions of violence and it features a more modern, streamlined writing approach. There are no long, winding passages, only King's sharp and precise style. He creates some genuinely scary scenes like a school bus full of undead children and a terrifying dissent into the vampire's lair.

          
Are there faults with this story? Well, it was only Stephen King's second novel and he hadn't fully flexed his literary wings yet. The first problem is that, in an effort to make the setting more realistic, he focused too much on minor characters and tiny details. For instance, why did we have to hear about Jerusalem's Lot's petty police force when we could have been reading about Ben Mears' vampire hunt?

Another problem I had was with the ending. The novel builds up to an astounding, gripping climax but then fizzles out. I don't want to reveal anything and spoil the story but the ending feels too vague. We get a pretty rushed, unclear resolution that leaves lots of answers. Still, it doesn't ruin the book. You can't really ruin something as entertaining as 'Salem's Lot.

Conclusion:
'Salem's Lot is a great tribute to Bram Stoker's Dracula and a thrilling modern story. It may not be my favorite Stephen King novel but its realistic setting and characters, excellent prose, and frightening atmosphere make this a great read.

Score:
4/5 Excellent

Album Review: American Capitalist

Five Finger Death Punch burst into the metal scene a few years ago with a sound that can best be described as groove metal meets radio rock. Though not particularly unique, their first two albums were solid efforts with tight musicianship and catchy vocal hooks. Their new CD, American Capitalist continues in that vein. It doesn't take many creative risks but it's a fun listen that will please the knuckleheads.

The first song, ‘American Capitalist’ blazes in with a fast paced riff and a polished groove. The song formula is very familiar: vocalist Ivan Moody growls on the verses then sings clean melodies over a throbbing double-bass beat on the chorus. The only downside is that it sounds just like ‘Under and Over It’, the first single from the CD.

There are many unimpressive songs like this on the album: ‘The Pride’ is the same formula but with cheesy rapped verses, ‘Generation Dead’ is a run of the mill thrasher in mid-tempo, and ‘If I Fall’ is a forgettable filler track.

But there are several shining moments on the album that counter the bland stretches. ‘Coming Down’, for instance, is a jarring change of pace after hearing three lukewarm songs. It sweeps in with flowing power ballad guitars and a strong melodic performance by Moody with haunting, introspective lyrics. This reminded me how good Death Punch is when they aim for sincerity.

The lead singer, Ivan Moody.

                  
‘Menace’ is another intriguing song. The band takes their first shot at a swing time signature with this one. It's a heavy grinder of a song with a tight triplet feel and dextrous solo work by Zoltan Bathory. Other album highlights include ‘Wicked Ways’ and ‘100 Ways to Hate’, gritty modern metal songs with catchy vocal lines that draw in the listener.

Each member in the band serves their role well. The drummer, Jeremy Spencer lays down tight beats, Hook and Bathory provide precise riffs, and bassist Chris Kael -- well, he plays his own very subtle role. The most distinctive member is the singer, Ivan Moody. His growls are fiery and his clean vocals have a great emotive power. Sadly, he sometimes gets tied down by shallow, childish lyrics. Even if you don't care and just want a a fun time, some lines like, "You've got to fight 'til you break, talk a lot of trash and step up the plate," are distractingly corny.


Pros:
-Ivan Moody's growls are aggressive and his clean vocals shine with emotion when he's serious.
-The band's rhythm is tight throughout the whole album
-The production quality is excellent with crystal clear drums.
-We can see a lot of potential on the serious moments like ‘Coming Down’.


Cons:
-The lyrics are mostly poor, even if you're in the mood for simplicity.
-Some tracks like ‘Back For More’ and ‘If I Fall’ are uncreative and bland.
-The guitar riffs, though precise, aren't very memorable.
-The drum work could use more variation.


Key Tracks: ‘Coming Down’, ‘Menace’, ‘Wicked Ways’.

Conclusion:

A good chunk of the tracks are duds but there are still moments of brilliance here. Ivan Moody's soaring baritone shows a lot of power on tracks like ‘Coming Down’ and ‘Wicked Ways’ and the band's rhythm is satisfyingly tight and heavy. Though this is not a turning point in Five Finger Death Punch's career by any means, it's a solid modern metal album.

Score:
3/5 Good