Sphere

Rating:
Summary: MY FAVORITE CRICHTON STORY
Review: I can't believe that no one else has reviewed this book! Has everyone been living under a rock? Or maybe the movie deterred Crichton fans from undergoing this one? Well, the readers are missing out, because this is his most fantastic story yet! Crichton takes you into the characters heads and makes you feel what they feel. What an adventure! And what a scare! VERY EXCELLENT BOOK!

Rating:
Summary: Enjoy the thrilling tales, but avoid blackholes
Review: I bought Sphere since it looked like a promising science fiction. It turned out to be one of the most astounding novels I have ever read. The decoding of an alien message and a conversation with Sphere itself reminded me of the parallels in Carl Sagan's epic: Contact. They are masterfully written, backed by the Crichton's sophisticated knowledge in psychology and computer algorisms. Sphere brings us much more than a thrilling entertainment; it repeatedly feeds us with the newest information in technology, while not omitting the fundamental elements of scientific methods: Yes, telepathy might be possible but we always have to ask for plausible reasoning based on confirming evidence.

However punctilious Crichton might be, he is no professional cosmologist like Stephen Hawking. In explaining time travel, he suggests a future spaceship from earth passes through "blackholes" to get into parallel universes and travel through time when "wormholes" would have been the more relevant choice (when any object would be torn down into subatomic partials by a blackhole's super strong gravitation). Moreover, the ending of the novel doesn't brought conclusion to the unsolved mystery of neither the future spaceship, nor the sphere. Their significance to the advancement of human society was left ambiguous. Perhaps Crichton should write a sequel.

Sphere is only the second Crichton book I read. Just a week ago, I picked up Disclosure mindlessly from my bibliophilic grandpa's 9-foot bookshelf just to kill some time. It was sitting beside a 1906 German Bible and a pile of ancient Japanese literature analogies. I didn't know why in the space-time continuum did such randomness take place, but increasingly, I discovered that Crichton was very enjoyable to read and there was always depth in every plot. I deeply recommended his books for novice airplane riders, skeptical psychologists, skeptical physicists, and professional poets.

Rating:
Summary: He knows to use the time
Review: Michael Crichton is really good at using time elements like jurrasic park and timeline again a novel about the connection between the past and the future he really knows to use the time and he gets advantage of the myst of these mix people who like dinos would like them present and more dangerous

Rating:
Summary: Just okay
Review: I loved the idea, that's why I bought the book. However, reading the book was just good in the fact it passed some time. I thought the movie was of the same quality.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome book!
Review: This is one of my favorite Michael Crichton books. It's basically about a team who must investigate an old spaceship on the bottom of the ocean. The beginning might seem a little slow-moving, but it becomes a real exciting and suspensful adventure later on. It's definitely a page-turner.

Rating:
Summary: I'll give one half a star with that.
Review: It's a interesting, twist of a tale. The movie was not half the book....The book has alot more to more understand what is going on, and alot more dialoge that you'd remember. I personally liked the movie, after watching the movie, I thought nothing of the book. Then not to long ago I came across the biook and decided to read it. Well it's not as fast paced as it say's it is. But that's okay, it's a mind twister, and it get's you to think, like when the *THING* starts to speak on the computer screens in a series of numbers as communication, you get the urge to figure it out yourself, (well I did). All I can say it's a twisted tale, and is worth a short read, if you have seen the movie then it's a must.

Rating:
Summary: Michael Crichton
Review: When I read words from Michael Crichton, I can visualize them all. I imagine visually the entire story. His stories are technical and flowing. This book is highly recommended. I won't bother to tell you about the book because you should read without knowing to make it more exciting. This book is for techincal thinkers who can visualize.

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Summary: Another Amazing Adventure!
Review: This book begins when Norman, A psychologist, is called by the Navy for a very special project. So special, that the Navy doesn't tell Norman and a group of scientists what they think is really going on. The special group is sent underwater to spend a few days investigating a space craft. There the group finds a beautiful sphere.They are all dumbfounded about why the mysterious sphere is there. It doesn't seem to do anything.....At first. Crichton, once again writes another thrilling novel. "Sphere" keeps your attention, and makes you believe you are a part of it's world.With never a dull moment, you will absoutely love "Sphere."

Rating:
Summary: Good technical details+ok storyline
Review: This story has excellent technical details. The psychology tests information was great while the explanations on quantum theory were just brilliant. The effects of mind-control, how man has little control over his mind is also there. The plot is ok. After an interesting start, it peters out along the line. If you like sci-fi, psychology and techno-thrillers, go ahead and read it.

Rating:
Summary: Best Book I've read
Review: Excluding books that come in series (Wheel of Time, Lord of the Rings, etc.) this is the best book I've ever read. I've worn out my copy by re-reading it every year. I've just about got it memorized. It has so many surprises!! It has mystery, suspense, high-tech gadgets, psychology, and everything else (except romance, Crichton seems afraid of that subject). You get to the end and think, "He'll never be able to end this book.", but then, WHAM!! The awesomest ending!! It doesn't seem so at first, but as you re-read it, you realize the ending is kind of ambiguous. The whole book keeps you on your toes. Who else could bring us giant squids, alien spheres, black holes, time travel, deadly jellyfish, and shrimp that have no stomachs? While the characters are sort of shallow, you have to love them. I love the scene where they argue over what order their names get announced on TV. I laugh every time I read it. And where else can you get an alien life form that tells a group of scientists, "We'll be back after a word from our sponsors"? You have to read this book. You'll love it!!