Jurassic Park #BookTag (#JurassicJune)

JURASSIC PARK, 1993. ©Universal/courtesy Everett Collection

It’s hard to believe that Jurassic Park first released in theaters today, June 11th, twenty-eight years ago. In honor of its birthday, and to help celebrate #JurassicJune, I’ve decided to do another book tag because . . . well because they’re fun.

I believe it was Port Jericho who originally created the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World book tag. I took out the Jurassic World questions to keep it pure JP although I suppose it doesn’t much matter.

I discovered the tag on The Literary Phoenix‘s website. Here is their take on the tag.

Rules are simple:

• Link the original post, and whoever tagged you – I did above and nobody tagged me 😦
• Pick a book that fits each quote theme.
• Have fun!
• Tag 3 or more people.

I think that’s all the logistical stuff so, let’s get started. In the immortal words of Samuel L Jackson:

“Spared no Expense”

A series that seems to go on forever. / The most expensive book you’ve purchased.

For me. The Wheel of Time was this series. Clocking in at some 20 books, and 4,410,036 words, much like a male caster of Saidin, I burnt out hard somewhere around Crown of Swords (book 7). I thought the prequel, A New Spring, would get me back into the series, but I was wrong.

I think the most expensive book I’ve purchased (that wasn’t a textbook), was Jurassic London’s last book, The Extinction Event. It’s a gorgeous (in my mind) dino-skin leather bound which only ran me like $45. I got number 85 of 150.

“Life (uh) finds a way”

A book with amazingly intricate worldbuilding. / What crazy extremes have you gone to in order to get a book you wanted?

Since I just finished The Empire of Gold I’m gonna go with the Daevabad Trilogy for amazingly intricate worldbuilding. Emphasis on the ‘amazing’ part. I’m sure I’ve read books that were more complexly developed or intricate, but this series is perhaps the most spectacular world. Lots of time and energy went into developing this world and very little of it is mundane by any definition. Simply put, it’s great.

As for extreme lengths? I waited in a suuupperrr long line for Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows. It was a whole thing. People dressed up. We all waited around outside of Borders until midnight. Some of my friends and I continued to wait in the line after the midnight release for several more hours to get our copy. Somebody drove by and shouted the ending as we waited.

My friend left us and ran across the street to Safeway where there was no line and was already through several chapters by the time we go our books. I don’t regret a second of it.

“Hold on to your butts”

An extremely fast-paced book. / What’s the fastest you’ve read a book, and what book was it?

In terms of pacing, I’d have to go with Dean Koontz’s Velocity. It’s kind of right there in the title. It’s been years since I read it so I don’t really remember much of it other than I pretty much crushed through it. I haven’t read a Koontz book since so perhaps it literally wasn’t my speed.

I read The Great Gatsby in a day one summer because . . . well it was assigned summer reading and I only had one day left before my first class. Naturally we didn’t discuss it until the end of the semester. I held onto everything pretty well I feel like but I’m a bit bitter I rushed through it.

“Mr. Hammond, after careful consideration I’ve decided not to endorse your park.”

A book you refuse to read (or finish).

I was pretty much resolved to NEVER read Isaac Asimov’s Foundation. 1966 winner of the Best All-Time Series Hugo Award. I understand Asimov is important to SFF (some might even argue [ahem] ‘foundational’), but this seemed like too much. I just can’t imagine any story being soooo gooood that there will never be anything better. Especially not something written in the 50’s.

But, we’ll see. I hear Apple is making a TV show of the series so . . . perhaps I’ll have to give it a shot eventually.

“Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

A book that left you going ‘Why?’

Without a doubt, Robert Heinlein’s The Puppet Masters. I read Starship Troopers in school, and remembered it being pretty good (and I loved the movie though they’re really not that similar I don’t think) so my expectations were high. It was pretty much embarrassing.

Essentially, some slugs (from space!) get loose in Iowa, and start mind controlling people by jumping on their backs and ordering them around to set up a new society. The government reacts but is completely ineffectual. For some reason I’m sure I can’t remember, the MC is tasked with stopping the whole deal with a secret agent lady who’s totally badass until she starts working with our MC.

I don’t really remember much else except he keeps asking her to marry him, and she keeps saying no for reasons that make no sense to the MC but are pretty much: “Ew get away”. By the end of the book I’m not even sure whether she says yes or not but I think it would be giving Heinlein too much credit to think it wouldn’t end in a yes. Oh, and to make sure you don’t have a slug on your back controlling you, everyone needs to go around shirtless . . . no exceptions.

I finished that book hoping it would turn, or get better, and when I got the end I was just like “Why? Why does this exist? And why did I do this to myself?”

Oh well.

Dada daa da da, Dada daa da da . . .

Welp, that’s it. The post is over. I realize after writing this whole thing, that it actually has very little to do with Jurassic park which it was meant to honor, but I think that’s ok.

I might try to do some more posts about it, as #jurassicjune continues (there’s a marathon of the first three movies on Saturday!) so keep a look out.

What are your answers to these questions? Any thoughts on the books I mentioned? Or on Jurassic Park? Just leave em in the comments. See you next time!

Oh! And I’m supposed to tag three people. I only managed two. I’m tagging:

Tar Vol on and The First Line Reader