Jurassic Park

I think it’s safe to say you’ve heard of Jurassic Park.

I just finished reading the book last week, and it’s a lot better than the movie, that’s for sure. There is plenty of character background, back story, spread throughout the novel, along with some scientific factoids blended in. It is a well-crafted cross between a sci-fi book and a horror novel.

The storyline is significantly different, and much darker than its cinematographic counterpart. The characters are different as well. While Spielberg played-up the “Cool, Dinosaurs! Oh no, they’ve escaped” part in the film (though many character deaths were written out), the book has plenty of other things to balance it out.

Jurassic Park opens with the attacks of several Compsognathi, which had somehow escaped Isla Nublar. While everyone is confused about the “lizards” behind the attack (which were assumed to be Basilisks), Dr. Grant and company are at a dig site. They are asked a few questions by a government official concerned about the actions of the InGen corporation, who had been transferring supercomputers and genetic sequencers to their island off the coast of Costa Rica. After the official leaves, Hammond contacts them, and offers Grant and his student Dr. Sattler payment to come down to his park for the weekend.

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