Sean Gursky reviewed The Lost World by Michael Crichton (Jurassic Park, #2)
Review of 'The Lost World' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
That's the greatest scientific discovery of the twentieth century. You can't study anything without changing it.
Unlike my glowing 5/5 review to Jurassic Park, this review of The Lost World will not be that. Something is off with The Lost World that makes the book more of a struggle.
Every location on the island and character felt like a slog. I didn't feel any particular concern if a character from "the good guys" was gobbled by a dinosaur or if one of the "baddies" was eaten, there were no connections to the characters. Each character, young or old, felt formulaic. Everyone was running from one dire situation to another and there was no opportunity to explore who these people were.
The story took place over such a short timespan there is no opportunity for character growth so you have to explore their pasts. There were references to Malcom and …
That's the greatest scientific discovery of the twentieth century. You can't study anything without changing it.
Unlike my glowing 5/5 review to Jurassic Park, this review of The Lost World will not be that. Something is off with The Lost World that makes the book more of a struggle.
Every location on the island and character felt like a slog. I didn't feel any particular concern if a character from "the good guys" was gobbled by a dinosaur or if one of the "baddies" was eaten, there were no connections to the characters. Each character, young or old, felt formulaic. Everyone was running from one dire situation to another and there was no opportunity to explore who these people were.
The story took place over such a short timespan there is no opportunity for character growth so you have to explore their pasts. There were references to Malcom and Harding's past but that was one of the few times we learned more about our heroes.
In a way the most enjoyable parts were the events that happened off Isla Sorna. The American tourist being bitten on the beach who drew a picture of her attacking lizard and the disappearance of the babies from open aired rooms. These rare, but violent, dinosaur interactions with humans would be fun to explore further (assuming the plot doesn't lean into the movies too much and have every dinosaur living among humans).
"God is in the details," Levine once reminded them.
"Maybe your God," Malcom shot back. "Not mine. Mine is in the process."
I had very little memory of the book but scenes like the High Hide and Trailer (with the accordion attachment) made an impression on me decades ago and was happy to revisit those moments, but the story still felt flat.
I don't have any suggestions for how the story could be improved, and maybe I am cold on it because The Lost World is not Jurassic Park, which are giant sized dino prints to follow.
