...
So before I tell you what I think about State of Fear, I'll quickly talk about the premise of the book.
The book is essentially about a group of eco-terrorists that go around deliberately causing climate related disasters around the globe in the hopes that this will heighten fear and ... Read review
The undisputed master of the high-concept thriller has written his most gripping and ... more
entertaining book yet In Paris a physicist dies after performing a laboratory experiment for a beautiful visitor. In the jungles of Malaysia a mysterious buyer purch...
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In Paris, a physicist dies after performing a laboratory experiment for a beautiful ... more
visitor. In the jungles of Malaysia, a mysterious buyer purchases deadly cavitation technology, built to his specifications. In Vancouver, a small research submarine is...
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In Paris, a physicist dies after performing a laboratory experiment for a beautiful ... more
visitor. In the jungles of Malaysia, a mysterious buyer purchases deadly cavitation technology, built to his specifications. In Vancouver, a small research submarine is leased for use in the waters of New Guinea. And in Tokyo, an intelligence agent tries to understand what it all means.
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Advantages: You get to understand the other side of the Global Warming arguments Disadvantages: Very biased against Global Warming.
...you what I think about State of Fear, I'll quickly talk about the premise of the book.
The book is essentially about a group of eco-terrorists that go around deliberately causing climate related disasters around the globe in the hopes that this will heighten fear and raise awareness about global warming. Against them is a chap called Dr Richard Kenner who is a Professor Geoenvironmental Engineering at MIT along with some odd associates ... ...believable.
State of Fear has great action sequences but in between these the author clearly attempts to arm the reader with additional knowledge that they may not come across in the traditional media. In essence he manages to summarise the arguments for and against global warming and leaves the reader with a mind that has been opened up to the possibility that all these scientists that have been going on about climate change for ... more
Okay this is my first book review so please bear with me.
I'm a big Micheal Crichton fan. I've read all his Jurassic Park novels, unwittingly watched movies based on his books and loved ER which I didn't realise until recently he was responsible for.
So before I tell you what I think about State of Fear, I'll quickly talk about the premise of the book.
The book is essentially about a group of eco-terrorists that go around deliberately causing climate related disasters around the globe in the hopes that this will heighten fear and raise awareness about global warming. Against them is a chap called Dr Richard Kenner who is a Professor Geoenvironmental Engineering at MIT along with some odd associates that he picks up along the way. One of these is a lawyer who is employed by a millionaire philanthropist who figures out that his donations towards groups that are trying to raise awareness of global warming have been redirected to the bad guys responsible for carrying out these terrorist actions. The good guys then set off in an attempt to thwart the efforts of the bad guys and along the way, they manage to teach the reader quite alot about climate change and the different arguments for and against the theory of global warming.
The terrorists themselves have access to a surprising amount of hi-tech equipment and are able to start storms, flash floods, and cause large chunks of glaciers to fall into the sea.
So the stage is set for a good guy / bad guy show-down. I think I'll leave it there as anything more will spoil the book.
Okay so earlier on I said I'm a big fan of Mr Crichton. Theres a reason for this and it is to do with the way his novels are written. He manages to uniquely mix science fact with his fiction in order to create science fiction books that are totally believable.
State of Fear has great action sequences but in between these the author clearly attempts to arm the reader with additional knowledge that they may not come across in the traditional media. In essence he manages to summarise the arguments for and against global warming and leaves the reader with a mind that has been opened up to the possibility that all these scientists that have been going on about climate change for the last 20 years may in fact have a different agenda.
To illustrate this I'm going to quickly go over a couple of examples of mis-leading data taken from the book.
Urban Heat Effect. One of the arguments used to dispute global warming is the effect of the increasing size of cities. Crichton suggests that built up areas such as cities where temperature readings have shown the average temperature to have increased could be explained by the fact that the size of these cities has grown since measurements had started. e.g New York shows an average increase in temperature in the last 100 years yet the allowances made for the fact that 100 years ago the number of people in New York was in the 100's of thousands and now is in the millions has not been sufficient.
Another argument is the fact that whilst glaciers in some parts of the planet have receeded, in others they have grown larger.
Throughout this book, Crichton uses dialogue between different characters to illustrate his viewpoint that global warming is at best a little understood phenomenon and at worst a theory put forward by those people with a vested interest in maintaining fear throughout the world in order to control the actions of citizens. He points out that the Earth has a long history of climate change and that the amounts of CO2 inserted into the environment by man is negligable compares to that inserted by natural events like volcano eruptions. He even maintains that termite flatulence adds more methane to the atmosphere than humans !!!
This book does give the reader pause for thought. The other day I read in the Times that the two hurricanes to hit the Gulf of Mexico were the direct result of climate change but then I read elsewhere that the strongest hurricane to hit that area occured about 100 years ago. So did climate change cause that one ? Doubtfull since all the experts agree that carbon emmisions have increased only in the second half of the last century.
So the question is just who is responsible for maintaining our State of Fear and why.
Advantages: Is probably going cheap by now and should kill a few hours Disadvantages: Trivialises the issue of Global Warming
Or: Why America Didn't Sign Up To Kyoto
Okay, I'm not going to beat around the bush - I hated this book. Alot. Not only that, but I also see it as being at best highly irresponsible, biased and insulting, and at worst potentially damaging. If I were to sum up the plot in one sentence, it would go along the lines: America says global warming doesn't exist, so everyone else is wrong and stupid.
The actual plot, in a nutshell, goes something along ... ...group stages 'natural' disasters relating to extreme weather conditions to try convince the world about the dangers of global warming and secure large amounts of funding. A crusading government agent who knows the truth about global warming (!) recruits a group of people and sets out to stop them.
While Michael Crichton is an author I've previously respected and enjoyed, with his usually compelling storylines incorporating plausible cutting edge ...
apert 18.01.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of State of Fear - Micheal Crichton
Advantages: Very Informative and Entertaining Throughout Disadvantages: Can Get Confusing In Places
...it. Now read on.
State of Fear is a novel by renouned author Michael Crichton. In this novel he tackles the subject of the environment, specifically global warming. This is one of Crichton's longest novels, possibly because it features a much larger cast of main players than his previous work. In places it can seem a little muddles and confusing but all in all another great novel.
The book basically follows characters from around the world and ... ...people are concerned about the state our Earth is in and although many, many people appear to be trying to help or solve the problem (if this is possible), most of have hidden agendas in the hope of gaining something themselves. At least that is what i percieved it as.
I recommend this novel as, normally, i don't do book reading as, frankly, i don't enjoy it, so i avoid it. But this book was recommended to me so i thought i'd read a few chapters ...
Joe11Joe11 15.08.2006 (16.08.2006)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of State of Fear - Micheal Crichton
Advantages: Engaging and thought provoking Disadvantages: None
...change your opinion as the state of 'fear' about climate change is only causing people to avoid seeing the bigger picture, and is likened to many historical event, including the fall of the Berlin wall. The breaking of this wall then lead to another fear factor needing to be developed and as time went on climate change become this fear factor, hence the title of the book. ENJOY. ...
J-D-C 17.01.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of State of Fear - Micheal Crichton
Advantages: The other side of global warming Disadvantages: Too biased againsed global warming
Crichton again creates a truely gripping and believable masterpeice.
As an environmnetal scientist myself, exposed to scientific literature and aguements of global warming frequently, Crichton has made even me stop and think!!!!!!
I read this book as a Crichton fan before I realised its subject matter. This book covers the pros and cons for global warming issues in a gripping adventure that spans the globe in an international effort between lawyers, ... ...including a blue ringed octopus, to prevent terrorists from causing catastrophic damage, in a bid to fool the world into believing that catastrophic climate change is afoot!
The heros are an unlikely combination of individuals who work together fighting ecoterrorists from the ice fields of the Antarctic to national parks in the USA. Each chapter brings a new and exciting adventure that you could not have imagined in your wildest dreams, yet, they ...
Suzanne8 17.11.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of State of Fear - Micheal Crichton
Advantages: Explains the other side of the global warming argument you don't hear often. Disadvantages: It's a bit bias against global warming.
Hello there people. I am a Michel Crichton fan and this book really is something everyone should read. Before I read this book I was pretty sure global warming was occuring and our climate is suffering because of it. However, after reading this book I have been given the other side of the argument that I have never heard before so I am kind of in the middle of this whole global warming idea. Seriously people, you should all read this book because ... ...for and against it by scientists, environmentalist and politicians. You never really hear to argument against global warming and here it is, arguing against real facts. The novel takes you all over the globe in an attempt to stop these deadly eco-terrorists succeeding in their mission to promote fear of global warming all over the world by starting and controlling massive electrical storms to tusami's. The race is on for the small group that take ...
Jason2006 18.01.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of State of Fear - Micheal Crichton
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