Title: Jurassic Park
Author: Michael Crichton
Series: Jurassic Park #1
Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller
Format: Audio
Pages: 449
Length: 15h 19m
Narrator: Scott Brick
Rating:

My Thoughts

I first read JURASSIC PARK after I saw the movie in 1993. My mom had read the book before she saw the movie and said the book had a lot more detail. Since I loved the movie so much, I decided to read the book. (Back then, it was very rare for me to read especially a book like JURASSIC PARK.) I had a few false starts and didn’t finish the book until about a year later. I will always remember that experience as the first time I ever saw the word “chaos” in written form. It confused me so much but I finally figured it out, lol.

I’m so glad I reread this book. I’ve wanted to reread it for years now and just never got around to it. I had forgotten how much was left out of the movie.

Things I Like in the Book Better

1. I like that the book contains a more in depth explanation of Chaos Theory and why the park could never work.
2. I’ve always thought the movie made it seem that if Nedry hadn’t done what he did, then they wouldn’t have had problems. I like that the book showed a lot more evidence of the animals breeding and their need to migrate and get off the island.
3. I like that the book has more incidents with the dinosaurs.
   • It was way more dangerous for Dr. Grant and the kids as they tried to get back to the lodge.
   • I’ve always thought Ellie’s “run, run” in the movie didn’t make as much sense because she doesn’t do as much running from the raptors as she did in the book.
4. I like how the book illustrates that while scientists can speculate how things were in the past using empirical evidence and data, their speculations may not be completely accurate (i.e., dilophosaurus venom, speed of the larger species, behavior, look).

Things I Like in the Movie Better

1. I missed Dr. Grant’s line, “T. Rex doesn’t want to be fed. He wants to hunt.”
2. I sorely missed Mr. Arnold’s line, “hold on to your butts.”
3. I also missed the part with Mr. DNA. I know it wouldn’t have worked in the context of the book, but I really like that part of the movie.
4. I also like Mr. Hammond better in the movie than the book. And, I think Mr. Hammond in the book makes more sense. Only a rich egomaniac could dream of Jurassic Park and be naïve enough to think it would work. I think Mr. Hammond’s death in the book is one of the most satisfying endings to his type of character.