You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
verosnotebook 's review for:
Planet of the Apes
by Pierre Boulle
4.25*
Most people have heard of The Planet of the Apes, whether the Charlton Heston movie (with its shocking final scene permanently seared in our consciousness) or the more recent ones. Less people know that the story was in fact penned by a French man in the early 60s, who also wrote Bridge over the River Kwai (another great film adaptation).
I finally read it, well, twice: the paperback in French, and an English audio version performed brilliantly by Greg Wise. And would you believe it, the written words pack a much stronger punch. Boulle gives us the narrative of Ulysse, a journalist following a scientist and his aide on a space journey to a far away planet. What they find - you can imagine - is a complete reversal of roles between apes and humans. Now, think about what we have done to apes in the name of scientific discovery and do it to humans instead. Right. The result is that the author shows us that Humans and Apes are as bad as each other, each believing to be in their God-given place at the top of the pyramid. It highlights the fear and hate of THE OTHER. Anything that is not like ‘US’ is therefore 'lesser' and ‘bad’ - something we sadly witness all too often now. It also shows us the growing apathy afflicting humanity. Again, quite scary as we can see this now, here.
This was a very thought-provoking read. Boulle’s account makes you ponder and forces you to look at things in a different perspective. Good, even when his story was not perfect (some of his choices were dubious). Being a product of its time, there is sexism and racism. I do hate that sentence - product of its time... Ulysse’s belief in himself, a being one step from God, above all, is horrendous. The apes have it too but it is more shocking in the human because we are in his head. I don’t know Boulle’s own belief and will give him the benefit of the doubt. Was this stance chosen to indeed shock us OR was it a reflection of its contemporary society OR of the author’s belief? I don’t know, perhaps all three, but it left a bad taste. Still - an important read.
Most people have heard of The Planet of the Apes, whether the Charlton Heston movie (with its shocking final scene permanently seared in our consciousness) or the more recent ones. Less people know that the story was in fact penned by a French man in the early 60s, who also wrote Bridge over the River Kwai (another great film adaptation).
I finally read it, well, twice: the paperback in French, and an English audio version performed brilliantly by Greg Wise. And would you believe it, the written words pack a much stronger punch. Boulle gives us the narrative of Ulysse, a journalist following a scientist and his aide on a space journey to a far away planet. What they find - you can imagine - is a complete reversal of roles between apes and humans. Now, think about what we have done to apes in the name of scientific discovery and do it to humans instead. Right. The result is that the author shows us that Humans and Apes are as bad as each other, each believing to be in their God-given place at the top of the pyramid. It highlights the fear and hate of THE OTHER. Anything that is not like ‘US’ is therefore 'lesser' and ‘bad’ - something we sadly witness all too often now. It also shows us the growing apathy afflicting humanity. Again, quite scary as we can see this now, here.
This was a very thought-provoking read. Boulle’s account makes you ponder and forces you to look at things in a different perspective. Good, even when his story was not perfect (some of his choices were dubious). Being a product of its time, there is sexism and racism. I do hate that sentence - product of its time... Ulysse’s belief in himself, a being one step from God, above all, is horrendous. The apes have it too but it is more shocking in the human because we are in his head. I don’t know Boulle’s own belief and will give him the benefit of the doubt. Was this stance chosen to indeed shock us OR was it a reflection of its contemporary society OR of the author’s belief? I don’t know, perhaps all three, but it left a bad taste. Still - an important read.