Don't Build-A-Dino IRL

With all the buzz about the new Jurassic World movie, I wanted to go back to the beginning. So I decided to read the book that started it all- Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park. And boy, was it a thrill ride! I haven't seen any of the original movies either, so I was coming in with no concept of the plot, except that it was full of dinosaurs. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this read! Crichton's style is boom-boom-boom, with short chapters and constantly changing POVs. It made the book feel like a roller coaster, like you were living the adventure right alongside the characters. There wasn't a "main character" per say, more like a group of characters whose POVs we observed. All of the stories connected and overlapped, and I loved when one character's view would answer questions that had been asked in another. My favorite character, however, was Dr. Grant. He was one of the larger characters, with a large chunk of the plot centered around his part of the adventure. I especially liked him because he was so level-headed and yet curious- he was a paleontologist by trade, so he understood the dinosaurs better than many of the other characters.
It did take me a while to read this book, for a few reasons. The plot was so heart-stopping and exciting that, for a while, I could barely read more than a few chapters at a time without feeling like my head was going to explode. Also, there was a lot of technical jargon, more than I anticipated. Several pages were filled with information on DNA and computers, which I am obviously not an expert in. However, those pages were easy to skim over, and weren't completely essential to the plot.
All in all, I loved Jurassic Park. It was a thrilling adventure and that's it. It didn't try to throw in any romance or feelings. It was cut and dry- dinosaurs are scary. The fast pace and quick-witted writing style were excellent at pulling the reader into the story. A+ all around!
(Now to watch the movie!)

(Picture courtesy of kirkusreviews.com)