Next by Michael Crichton Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Next
Book Review: Next review
Summary: 4 Stars
Overall, the book Next by Michael Crichton was an interesting read. I chose to read this book because I have read and enjoyed other book by the same author, such as Timeline and Swarm. I like how the book brought up and discussed modern issues in science, specifically in genetics. Next Explored differing sides of issues in genetics, which were resolved with Crichton's opinion on the matter. Crichton also had some intriguing ideas for what could be done with genetics, as well as supplying a history of genetics. My favorite part of the book, however, was the debunking of genetics myths that were shown in news articles throughout the book. I also liked Crichton's way of introducing new characters. He summed them up quickly and easily without being blunt. What I didn't like was how the story had so many different plot lines. In the beginning every chapter had new characters and new settings. This made it very confusing and hard to keep track of for my tenth grade mind. I would often confuse two characters, or forget a characters name and think the main character of the chapter was a whole new character, instead of a side character from a previous chapter. I also did not like how Crichton left certain plot lines hanging. He would bring up a character in one chapter and never use or even reference them again throughout the book. Either that or a chapter with a character I liked would come between the less interesting chapters of the book. A final thing I disliked was how the main characters the story centered around could not be determined until I was a decent way into the book. The layout of the book, switching from character to character in each chapter, is entertaining in moderation because it reveals plot to the reader without certain characters knowing, but had a negative effect when used to this extent, because the reader loses the focus of the other characters easily. Crichton probably should have just left the new plot each chapter to the raunchy late night comedy show Robot Chicken. Also some of the court rulings in the book were hard to believe; you have to remember that Crichton has a medical degree, not a law degree. I would recommend this book to any young adult interested in genetics, and any adult interested in an easy read because it is completely based around the world of genetics and is not a very high-level book, while it maintains a good entertainment value. I would not recommend it to any hardcore religious believers, because the genetics aspect of the book will most likely offend their beliefs. I give the book 4 out of 5 stars for being very entertaining, but being written in a confusing manner.Book Review: Nice concept--but mediocre.
Summary: 3 Stars
I just finished reading "Prey" and was so bored I couldn't finish it. For me, "Next" was better, but not as good as some of Crichton's best like "Timeline," "Jurassic Park," "State of Fear," "Andromeda Strain," etc. With the advances in science and the ethical issues surrounding biotech (cloning and stem cell research to name a few), this was a novel that needed to be written. Crichton uses the novel to bring up interesting issues and ethical dilemmas, but the story is too unbelievable and a little hokey. It's fine for a summer beach read but don't expect more than that.Book Review: No title
Summary: 1 Stars
This is an addition to the review I gave earlier on this book. I had said that this order was cancelled, etc. I should add that this order was cancelled by the seller.Book Review: Not New 'As Advertised'
Summary: 1 Stars
I purchased this hardcover book at a reasonable price. It was listed as "New", so that's what I bought. A used book arrived, as opposed to what I ordered. If I wanted a used book, I would have ordered a used book !Book Review: Not his best, but a decent read
Summary: 3 Stars
The overall story was pretty interesting in my opinion. Raised alot of questions about genetic testing, gene patents, people's rights to their own cells beleive it or not and transgenic experiments.
My biggest issue with the book is how much it skips around. Towards the end a few of the subplots come together, but there are MANY chapters within the book dealing with characters that never appear again. I suppose this was to flesh out the pros vs. cons of genetic testing, gene patents and the like, but even as far as 300 or so pages in the book, new characters would be introduced that had nothing to do with the main characters in the story, which you'd probably be hard pressed to define who's a main character. Every person penned in this book seems to have an equal role, that is, the major players anyway. As you can see from that description, it can get a little bit confusing while reading!
It does read rather fast though and brings to light some very interesting true life articles dealing with genes, cloning, things of that nature as well as how much of a slippery slope the whole debate is.