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amandawritings 's review for:
Congo
by Michael Crichton
Once again, Crichton writes an entertaining novel filled with science and facts that make it seem like a fictionalized telling of actual events. Seriously, I looked up Project Amy on Google thinking it might be a real government project that happened back in the 1970s. He does a phenomenal job of mixing real facts with fake ones so the made-up aspects in his novel are taken at face value. This is a commonality in a lot of Crichton’s books that is aided by his love of research and experiencing things first hand.
It was no surprise that I found Congo to be an entertaining read. After reading a couple of Crichton’s other books, I’ve become accustomed to his factual, direct and straight to the point writing style. Yes, there are a lot of facts and scientific research placed in this work that may put some people off. But, that’s what I like about Crichton’s books. In my opinion, he uses his research in a way that amplifies his stories to curate a wonderful work of science fiction.
As much as I enjoy Crichton’s writing style and the overall story of Congo, I had to give this book 4 stars. I did really want to give it 5 stars but, as things got to a boiling point in the book, it felt a little anticlimactic. There was a ton of action happening at the back end of the book, but to me, the journey to the Congo was more captivating. Possibly because we got a lot more of the character Amy, a seven-year-old gorilla, in the beginning.
All the characters of Congo were interesting, but nobody was like Amy. She was my absolute favorite character in the entire book, and I loved every single moment she was a part of. A smart, kind, and sign language speaking gorilla? How could we not love her! Also, by proxy, I liked almost every single moment Dr. Peter Elliot was a part of too. Dr. Ross was another main character who was nice to see as a strong female in an important scientific role, even if I didn’t like her as much. I appreciate the strong females Crichton writes about. He does a good job writing everyone’s faults to be inline with their personality and never based on gender. Munro was another very interesting character. I’d say second to Amy. Honestly, Munro and Amy could have had their own spinoff books and I would have consumed them greedily.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to any science fiction lovers, especially if you’ve liked other books by Crichton. If you watched the movie first, it’s still worth a read because I’ve heard the 1995 Congo film wasn’t the best writing, and we all know books are usually better than the movie. So, check this book out and go on an adventure to the Congo rainforest with some smart and interesting yet flawed people.
It was no surprise that I found Congo to be an entertaining read. After reading a couple of Crichton’s other books, I’ve become accustomed to his factual, direct and straight to the point writing style. Yes, there are a lot of facts and scientific research placed in this work that may put some people off. But, that’s what I like about Crichton’s books. In my opinion, he uses his research in a way that amplifies his stories to curate a wonderful work of science fiction.
As much as I enjoy Crichton’s writing style and the overall story of Congo, I had to give this book 4 stars. I did really want to give it 5 stars but, as things got to a boiling point in the book, it felt a little anticlimactic. There was a ton of action happening at the back end of the book, but to me, the journey to the Congo was more captivating. Possibly because we got a lot more of the character Amy, a seven-year-old gorilla, in the beginning.
All the characters of Congo were interesting, but nobody was like Amy. She was my absolute favorite character in the entire book, and I loved every single moment she was a part of. A smart, kind, and sign language speaking gorilla? How could we not love her! Also, by proxy, I liked almost every single moment Dr. Peter Elliot was a part of too. Dr. Ross was another main character who was nice to see as a strong female in an important scientific role, even if I didn’t like her as much. I appreciate the strong females Crichton writes about. He does a good job writing everyone’s faults to be inline with their personality and never based on gender. Munro was another very interesting character. I’d say second to Amy. Honestly, Munro and Amy could have had their own spinoff books and I would have consumed them greedily.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to any science fiction lovers, especially if you’ve liked other books by Crichton. If you watched the movie first, it’s still worth a read because I’ve heard the 1995 Congo film wasn’t the best writing, and we all know books are usually better than the movie. So, check this book out and go on an adventure to the Congo rainforest with some smart and interesting yet flawed people.