The Best of Michael Crichton

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One of my favorite authors, Michael Crichton, passed away on November 5 from cancer. I have always liked Crichton, but it was not until his passing that I realized how much I had come to rely on his books to stimulate and fuel my interest in science.

Not only was his writing exciting and adventurous, it was an education. Whenever I would get frustrated with a concept I could not understand (usually in quantum physics, a discipline my brain does not wrap around without significant effort), I would pick up a Crichton classic and be instantly energized by the many possibilities that await us in scientific discovery.

In honor of that rare and wonderful gift, I have put together a roundup and review of his best work.

The Andromeda Strain: One of his first novels, Andromeda is a classic tale of the deadly virus run amok. It’s a medical adventure, and probably set the stage for his work on ER. It has the ER pacing and feel, just on a larger scale.

Congo: This novel gets panned in reviews of Crichton’s work as being “cheesy,” but I love it because it shows you how much imagination he had even in the early years of computing. He wrote this in the early 80s, and it is a lot of fun to go back and read about the cutting edge of technology at that time. There is also some interesting biological research in this tale of gorillas run amok (something is always amok in a Crichton novel).

Sphere: Sphere also gets a bad rap, but it is a work of pure Crichton imagination. This is much more of a science-fiction novel set in the deep dark ocean. I loved it for that reason alone. Sphere is also a great probe into the psychology of humans under extreme stress and pressure.

Prey: I find nanotechnology fascinating, and Crichton explains it so well here as to make it totally understandable. He combines the tour through the nano world with swarm and behavior theory, creating a world where microorganisms run amok. I love this one.

Airframe: Airframe is a departure from Crichton’s usual formula in that the only thing running amok in airframe is the human ego. But the journey is still worth taking, especially if you have any interest in planes and aerodynamics.

Eaters of the Dead: Eaters of the Dead is more like Airframe than most people realize. The enemy is a version of man himself, and it requires men working together to defeat it. The fun part of Eaters of the Dead is the incredible glimpse it offers into historical cultures.

Jurassic Park: It seems trite to list this here, but the book is so much better than the movie. In this story the dinosaurs run amok, with grave consequences for the humans. Few realize it, but Jurassic Park is actually a precursor to Crichton’s final novel – Next.

State of Fear: This is the book that earned Crichton the reputation for being “anti-global warming.” In reality, if you read the book, it’s not that he is anti-global warming so much as anti-hype. He pretty much tears apart any idea that is not totally scientifically, as well as discrediting many of the more ridiculous players of the environmental movement. The book is definitely NOT preaching that people neglect the planet, harm it, or ignore its problems. It just suggests that solutions be carefully weighed and researched so that they do not do more harm than good. It is a great book, and his most edge-of-your-seat adventure.

Next: Crichton got better at creating tension and dramatic adventure as his writing matured, and Next, his last novel, highlights this talent. Though not as dramatic as State of Fear, he does a wonderful tour of biology, law, DNA, and the protection of privacy in this fascinating story. It is an appropriate final act for a man who started out as a medical doctor.

As you can tell, I’m quite the fan of Crichton. If you haven’t read him before, I suggest you start with a book where the science in it is of interest to you, which is why I focused on that aspect in my reviews. If you have read him before and are not sure you want to do so again, try Next. It is a great one for speculating about the future. Enjoy!

P.S. Yes, I know Crichton wrote a few other books: Timeline, The Terminal Man, Disclosure, Lost World, The Great Train Robbery, and a few others. I just don’t love them the way I do the ones on this list.