Staff Book Review

State of Fear by Michael Crichton

Michael Crichton has written dozens of novels well known by the public: Jurassic Park, Congo, The Andromeda Strain, Timeline, and now, State of Fear. Now, the title may not suggest the theme of the story as well as his previous novels and so it is difficult to judge this book by its cover. However, I began reading this stunning piece of work after I received it as a Christmas gift and finished it within a week. Here is the basic synopsis.

A group of people, containing an FBI agent, a lawyer, and some "environmentalists", work their way around the world trying to stop a group of environmentalist-terrorists who believe they will persuade the human race to save the environment through violent displays of disasters. It is interesting to read because Crichton confuses his readers with his constant point-counterpoint propositions regarding the legitimacy of global warming. He does, however, provide a little "author's note" regarding the science of the issue along with an overwhelmingly long list of sources and citations, so if you're skeptical of Crichton's ideas regarding this "no-brainer" environment issue, he has allowed you to "go see for yourself".

However, State of Fear is not just an action-packed story meant to preach the "truth" of things, although it may seem like that at numerous times. I felt that the more important message throughout was that one should remain skeptical of the media since there is a lot of stretching involved in order to get people's attention. I still hold my previous beliefs regarding the environment but with an additional awareness of what people may do to get things their way.

Being over five hundred pages, most people probably would not want to spend that much time reading a skeptical writing, but I found every single moment to be a page-turner. The way Crichton writes the story keeps you interested the whole way through. At no point does he leave you to take a break from the story and nap. You want to know what happens next. If you were to read just one book this year, State of Fear by Michael Crichton is quite high on my recommendation list.

RATING: 4 / 5 STARS

Book Review by Colin Lenehan at Cranesbill Books

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