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chanidev's review against another edition
2.0
This review contains book and movie spoilers.
This is my first wrapped book of 2024!*
I was so excited to read this book because of course, I love the 1975 movie. Perhaps it's unfair to compare them. In my mind Chief Brody is Roy Scheider! But in the book, he's a completely different character. He's more aggressive, mean, and impatient. Perhaps most of it stems from the shark terrorizing the water, though. He has the same care for the general good of the townspeople as in the movie, but his interpersonal relationships are a mess.
I wish I were joking when I say. That sixty pages. SIXTY. Were not about the shark. Or even the effects of the shark on the town. It is about Chief Brody's wife cheating on him. With, of all people, the scientist Matt Hooper. It was cringey and boring. It's also pretty clear that Mr. Benchley had some misogynist views.
The action though? Incredible. It was only the final 30-40 pages, but the build up and suspense (minus the whole cheating subplot) was great. It was genuinely pretty scary and I couldn't put it down. The fear from something so unforgiving, so unrelatable, so unrelentless, attacking you just to attack is terrifying. I think what I was looking for was a novel version of the movie and while the plots are pretty much the same, this isn't it.
*I took 15 books I own but haven't read yet, wrapped them in wrapping paper, scrambled them, numbered them, and put them back on my shelf! Now I roll a die to see which I'll read next!
https://ucplbookchallenge.blogspot.com/2024/01/jaws.html
This is my first wrapped book of 2024!*
I was so excited to read this book because of course, I love the 1975 movie. Perhaps it's unfair to compare them. In my mind Chief Brody is Roy Scheider! But in the book, he's a completely different character. He's more aggressive, mean, and impatient. Perhaps most of it stems from the shark terrorizing the water, though. He has the same care for the general good of the townspeople as in the movie, but his interpersonal relationships are a mess.
I wish I were joking when I say. That sixty pages. SIXTY. Were not about the shark. Or even the effects of the shark on the town. It is about Chief Brody's wife cheating on him. With, of all people, the scientist Matt Hooper. It was cringey and boring. It's also pretty clear that Mr. Benchley had some misogynist views.
The action though? Incredible. It was only the final 30-40 pages, but the build up and suspense (minus the whole cheating subplot) was great. It was genuinely pretty scary and I couldn't put it down. The fear from something so unforgiving, so unrelatable, so unrelentless, attacking you just to attack is terrifying. I think what I was looking for was a novel version of the movie and while the plots are pretty much the same, this isn't it.
*I took 15 books I own but haven't read yet, wrapped them in wrapping paper, scrambled them, numbered them, and put them back on my shelf! Now I roll a die to see which I'll read next!
https://ucplbookchallenge.blogspot.com/2024/01/jaws.html
njdarkish's review against another edition
3.0
I am always surprised when a film is better than a book. I can think of only a handful of times that I’ve seen that as the case—The Shawshank Redemption, or The Godfather, as a couple examples—but my recent experience with both reading and watching Jaws shows that this horror classic definitely fits into that small category.
There are some things I really love about the book. The scenes from the perspective of the shark during the earlier attacks are fantastic. You feel like you are really thinking as a shark would think during the brutality. It’s some of the best non-human perspective work I’ve ever read.
The problem with the book is that it is kind of bloated. That sounds weird to say about such a short novel, but it’s true—the book spends way too much time on nonsense that really didn’t seem to matter in the story. The plot threads about the mayor and the mob were okay, but the stuff about the affair felt very cheap, like Benchley was afraid the book wouldn’t sell if he didn’t sex it up. It didn’t feel like it contributed to the story and stuck out like a colloquial sore thumb.
And that’s why the movie was better—it cut out the nonsense and stuck to the shark and to what the shark was doing to the town.
But on its own, it was a pretty fun read, especially if you skip the affair chapter. It was enough of a fun popcorn book to sell a ton of copies and make people scared to get in the water.
There are some things I really love about the book. The scenes from the perspective of the shark during the earlier attacks are fantastic. You feel like you are really thinking as a shark would think during the brutality. It’s some of the best non-human perspective work I’ve ever read.
The problem with the book is that it is kind of bloated. That sounds weird to say about such a short novel, but it’s true—the book spends way too much time on nonsense that really didn’t seem to matter in the story. The plot threads about the mayor and the mob were okay, but the stuff about the affair felt very cheap, like Benchley was afraid the book wouldn’t sell if he didn’t sex it up. It didn’t feel like it contributed to the story and stuck out like a colloquial sore thumb.
And that’s why the movie was better—it cut out the nonsense and stuck to the shark and to what the shark was doing to the town.
But on its own, it was a pretty fun read, especially if you skip the affair chapter. It was enough of a fun popcorn book to sell a ton of copies and make people scared to get in the water.
scott_you_reading's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kstericker's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
mash369's review against another edition
3.0
honestly I think for the first time ever... the movie was better.
chloewiart's review against another edition
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Fun but overall quite forgettable in my opinion
jrice92's review against another edition
4.0
“There's nothing in the sea this fish would fear. Other fish run from bigger things. That's their instinct. But this fish doesn't run from anything. He doesn't fear.”
Great film, a good book, look forward to the second one!
Great film, a good book, look forward to the second one!
sean_hughes123's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
chs2022's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0