0A1: Paleontological / prehistoric science fiction reviews

Almost Adam, Petru Popescu. DESCRIPTION: In a remote region of Kenya, a paleoanthropologist discovers the real missing link in the evolutionary chain. A young boy, a living fossil, is a proto-human, a classification believed to have been extinct for three million years. When a high-powered conspiracy forces the scientist and the boy to take refuge deep within the jungle, a bond of trust and friendship forms. REVIEW: I enjoyed this novel immensely. It is so lavishly detailed and descriptive that I felt transported into the isolated African savanna and jungle of the Dogilani. My criticism is that the story is too long because of too much effort spent on the political and love story subplots. Still, many readers like this aspect as well! Almost Adam is a best-seller, and not by accident.

The Annotated Lost World, Arthur Conan Doyle / Roy Pilot & Alvin Rodin. This is the amazing adventure which inspired the name for this fiction sub-genre. Even today, when we know that much of its paleontology and anthropology is outdated, it a very believable classic. It is written in a slightly wordy style but this does not slow the pace noticeably. Doyle supplemented this novel with drawings and photos which contribute greatly to the effectiveness of the fantasy, and his plot includes proving the veracity of reports about a plateau which escaped the triggers of extinction. Its plot unfolds with numerous vivid, hair-raising surprises. Doyle also brings us a very large number of prehistoric animals from both the Mesozoic and Cenozoic (post dino) eras. The prose is primarily composed of articles which its humble hero, a reporter, sends out of the wilds by tossing them off the plateau to a loyal porter. The annotated version is far superior to other editions because it includes fascinating detail on how the book was written and marketed as well as updates to its scientific aspects. A must for your paleo-adventure library!

At Earth’s Core, Edgar Rice Burroughs. Soon to be reviewed. For the print novel, try inter-library loan.

Back to the Stone Age, Edgar Rice Burroughs. Action-packed, perhaps too much so. Here, I must give the venerable Burroughs a B+, not an A. The description is breathtaking but the machismo and escapes of hero Von are too predictable and almost repetative. One does come to care about him, and his relationship with La-ja. But the plot is predictable. Overall, a very good adventure and a fairly quick read that will not strain the brain. Try inter-library loan.

Child of Time, Isaac Asimov and Robert Silverberg. Not reviewed. Try inter-library loan.

The Dechronization of Sam Magruder, George Gaylord Simpson. The manuscript of this novella was discovered by the author's daughter after his death. Apparently, Simpson did not feel that the story was finished. Yet, even in its brevity, it is surprisingly well written and wonderfully descriptive. It is thoughtfully constructed and quite effective in supporting the fantasy of a future time researcher accidentally transported back in time amongst a wide and accurately-portrayed array of Jurassic animals. The fiction portrays Sam Magruder's fossil diary carvings dug from the Sonoma Dessert in what is to us the future. Far fetched? What about the recent find of unmistakably human footprints, set in indisputably Cretaceous rock, in Texas? That part's no fiction and makes this novel's premise all the more fascinating.

Dinosaur Beach, Keith Laumer. To be reviewed. Traveling time has become possible. Being marooned, though, with dinos is not what our hero bargained for.

Dinosaur Park, Hayford Peirce. To be reviewed. This novel was published just prior to Jurassic Park.

Dinosaur Planet, Ann McCaffrey. To be reviewed. Mission: The Exploratory and Evaluation Corps of the Federated Sentient Planets had sent ARCT-10, with its mixed crew of shipbred and planetbound technicians, to Ireta to catalogue fauna and flora and search for new energy sources. It was a simple mission. A standard crew. Problem: Kai and his beautiful co-leader Varian, the best xeno-vet in the business, followed all the standard procedures -- but the results were astounding... and the rescue ship inexplicably disappeared. Now comes the nightmare!

Dinosaur Summer, Greg Bear. Soon to be reviewed. Excellent reviews in "Locus" and "Kirkus Reviews." Description: 1947: In an "alternate history", dinosaurs never became extinct, their living descendants still survive on a plateau in South America. Now, in the most exciting adventure of his life, Peter Belzoni has accompanied his journalist father to see the world's last dinosaur circus return its few surviving attractions to their natural habitat. But something goes terribly wrong--and the Belzonis find themselves stranded in dinosaur territory.

Direct Descendant, Charles Wilson. This novel is very unique and quite a surprise: Though not strictly a ‘prehistoric-related science fiction’, the storyline of Direct Descendant is most entertaining. This tale is actually a fast-paced detective mystery which builds into mainstream science fiction. Ancient human-like DNA is used to recreate boys who are alarmingly advanced, physically and mentally. Indeed, they are of deadly intent. The protagonist, Cameron Malone, is heroic yet convincing. The ending feeds the reader’s imagination with unsettling possibilities about the influence of sentient species in our planet’s past… and future.

Eden Trilogy, Harry Harrison. Soon to be reviewed. Premise: Dinosaurs survived, evolved and developed techniques of biotechnology. Human clans try to claim dominance led by Kerrick. a young hunter who grew up among the dinosaurs. The trilogy is composed, in series order, of West of Eden, Winter in Eden and Return to Eden. It's worth checking Amazon's search service for paperback or hardcover. Try your library or inter-library loan also. The video movies are a real treat!

Ember from the Sun, Mark Canter. This heart-warming tale treats readers to an experience of the emotional side of Neanderthals: their spiritual identity, demise and rebirth. Description is extensive, vivid and inspiring. Protagonist Ember Ozette is a lonesome Neanderthal girl who was harvested from her frozen mother's womb to mature among modern humans. 'Modern' does not mean nicer, however. Physically a Neanderthal and spiritually more human than moderns are, Ember yearns for acceptance. She endures ridicule yet reaches out in courageous empathy, eventually searching for her identity and purpose in life. She finds that she can link, as her ancestors did, to the souls of others to feel their pain and joy. Through engaging talks with her adoptive sister, mother and other moderns with whom she relates, she gains strength to persevere in her often solitary and occasionally dangerous quest. Ultimately she discovers that regeneration, for her and for her once-butchered people, is manifest more through the life-giving miracle of forgiveness than through medical technology. Publisher description: When a modern forensic scientist discovers a pregnant Neanderthal, preserved for centuries in arctic ice, he implants the tiny embryo in a surrogate mother and Ember Ozette, a Neanderthal infant, is born. Raised among the Quanoot Indians in Washington state, Ember's otherness is a source of great shame and confusion to her--until she seeks out a band of mysterious golden-skinned people--the last of her race--who are fleeing genocide.

End of an Era, Robert J. Sawyer. To be reviewed. A very imaginative fiction with a unique theory of the demise of the dinosaurs. Try inter-library loan or Amazon's search service.

Esau, Phillip Kerr. This story is a near-copy of Darnton's Neanderthal but much better written. It was necessary that a copy of Neanderthal be written by a more talented writer and, therefore, the blatent heist is the reader's gain. Here's the story line from the publisher as reprinted from Amazon: Abominable snowmen, downed satellites, Pakistan and India on the threshold of war--Philip Kerr packs his latest novel with one thrill after another. It begins at the top, or at least very near it. Just as Jack Furness makes it within striking distance of a forbidden Himalayan mountain summit, all hell breaks loose. An enormous avalanche kills his partner (not to mention his Sherpa party further down the mountain) and traps Jack in a cave. There he finds the skull that become the focal point of Esau. Once down from the mountain, Jack takes the skull to Dr. Stella Swift, his former lover and a paleontologist. She recognizes in it a "missing link," an alternative line of hominid development: the Yeti. This discovery inspires another expedition up the killer mountain, but this time the danger doesn't come from nature alone: the U.S. military has planted among the climbers an agent whose mission is to recover a downed satellite ... at any cost.

The Eternal Savage, Edgar Rice Burroughs. A Tarzan story. Not reviewed. Try inter-library loan.

Extinct, Charles Wilson. Review: Charles Wilson's Extinct, like Steve Alten's Meg, brought me face to face with a prehistoric shark... and triggered a nightmare. I found them to be equally wonderful stories, yet very different experiences. Extinct is a unique tale of heroism and real-life scientific plausibility. The ample evidence for modern megalodons was chillingly woven into this enthralling novel. Realistic characters, heart-punding action and gut-wrenching suspense all combined to give Extinct quite an emotional wallop. Extinct devoured me in one sitting! Description: From the Gulf of Mexico's shallow waters to the deepest parts of the Pacific, terror comes to the surface when six-year-old Paul Haines sees two older boys disappear under the surf. His mother, Carolyn, a charter boat captain on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, finds herself embroiled in the tragedy to an extent she could never have imagined. Soon to be an NBC miniseries.

Footprints of Thunder, James F. David. To be Reviewed. When a freak phenomenon dissolves the boundaries between yesterday and today, the world is transformed into a patchwork mixture of the present and the distant past. While ordinary people struggle to survive in this strange new world, the president and his advisers search for a way to undo the catastrophe. But the solution may be more devastating than the dinosaurs.

Hadon of Ancient Opar, Philip Jose Farmer. Not reviewed. Try inter-library loan or Amazon's search service.

A Journey to the Center of the Earth, Jules Verne. A wonderful experience from the originator of science fiction! Told as a first-person recollection, the reader knows before hand that modest hero/narrator Harry Lawson will survive all of the numerous perils encountered on this thrilling adventure deep within the bowels of the earth. Both marine and terrestrial prehistoric beasts are featured and the descriptions & action scenes are extremely vivid. The style of writing is, despite prevalent nineteenth century practice, nearly free of pace-slowing pleasantries of expression. Journey is a classic not because it is the first science fiction but because it is among the very best ever written.

Jurassic Park, Michael Crichton. A wonderful adventure; among Crichton's best and among the best paleo-related fictions ever written. Regeneration of extinct species, postulated through the extremely technical science of genetics, is a difficult venue in which to have readers suspend disbelief. Crichton pulls it off smoothly, narrating in a reporting style which is lucid, vivid and ensnaring. Though much artistic license is taken, the scientific accuracy and suspenseful style of this fine adventure leaves the reader convinced that regenerated species parks are just over the horizon! "Complexity," the invisible force which the author portrays as responsible for moving plot events and natural history itself is inaccurately described to the reader. Yet even religious people, who would take issue with Complexity being the force behind all events, easily brush past this view of reality because of Crichton’s masterful storytelling.

"King Kong" videos. Starring Jessica Lange. The original is still the best but these others are also not to be missed! For the paperback or original video, try your library.

Paperback $ Check this link periodically to see if copies are back in stock.

Link, Walt Becker. Now, here’s an amazing tale! Pay close attention because you may one day find that this fiction is unsettlingly close to fact. Link is a tale of adventure that draws from recent archaeological and linguistic discoveries. These discoveries strongly suggest that human civilization, perhaps even our genes, may have been influenced by visiting extraterrestrials – who themselves may have known our God. This is not as far-fetched as it may seem, for Link fictionalizes only the characters and story line, not the vast amount of supporting evidence for this intriguing hypothesis. Becker weaves this evidence into his prose seamlessly, but even scientists may want to read it, for this novel is an irresistible catalog of factual material worthy of further investigation. A meticulous bibliography is also provided. The tale itself reads well, carrying readers along with artfully penned mystery, discovery, romance, terror, and catharsis. Dr. Samantha Colby unearths a hominoid yet alien-featured skeleton in Africa, along with a shining artifact from an ancient civilization. To trace the origin of these, she needs the help of a specialist – her former fiancé, Dr. Jack Austin. After a hair-raising escape from natives, the artifact leads them to Tihuanaco in Bolivia. Their sleuthing draws them beneath these mysterious ruins, where the pair ultimately fight a double-crossing sponsor, dangerous labyrinths, and competing emotions of resentment and love – only to fight for their lives and the very survival of humanity. Few storytellers can captivate readers by evoking the thrill of discovery, that dawning awe at the majestic, frantic impulses to survival, and the irresistible tug of love. Becker has accomplished all of this in Link while helping to strip parochialism from the search for humanity’s past. An important work, Link is strongly recommended for fiction and non-fiction readers alike.

The Lost Kingdom, Clint Kelly. To be reviewed. A modern "Indy" type explorer finds Mokele-mbembe and thrills in unexplored African rainforest.

The Lost World, Michael Crichton. Literary history will bludgeon Crichton for this compromise of his literary excellence. Action scenes are nothing short of thrilling and most of the tension-building is effective. However, descriptions of dinos whose chameleon-like abilities include near-photographically replicating the pattern of a chain-link fence along which they move are interruptions in the reader’s fantasy. Some of the language appeared to have been first-draft. A T-rex attack upon a trailer used "roar" as the main word for the animals’ sounds in tired, almost incessant repetition. The plot was predictable at each build-up of events, so it appeared that the author had little imagination. Nevertheless, an excellent author wrote a "pretty good" adventure which fans of such literature should have in their collection and enjoy.

The Lost World, Arthur Conan Doyle. Novel only; not the annotated version but the novel itself is the same as is reviewed in the annotated version (near top of this web page).

The Lost World & the Poison Belt, Arthur Conan Doyle. Professor Challenger's adventures on the prehistoric plateau continue. A magnificent set of sequels with not a bit of the excitement of the first novel lost!

Meg, Steve Alten. This prehistoric shark story flows well and is easy to follow. The prose is quite taut: Meg is a quick read with brief, fast-paced chapters; even the dialog has minimal "he/she said" phrases. Human relationships are well portrayed and characters, including the Megalodon, seem real. Action scenes are powerful & vivid. I actually had a nightmare! Bravo! ...Publisher's description: Seven miles beneath an isolated section of the Pacific Ocean, a prehistoric predator thrives. It is a Megalodon, a 60-foot, 20-ton progenitors of today's great white sharks. Professor Jonas Taylor, paleontologist and former crack deep-sea submersible pilot has spend years trying to forget the mission that convinced him of its existence. Now, a number of high-tech deep sea probes are being mysteriously disabled and Taylor has been brought in to investigate--and gets more than he bargained for and maybe more than humankind can handle.

Mysterious Island, Verne, Jules. Soon to be reviewed. This conclusion to the spellbinding adventures of Captain Nemo and his submarine, Nautilus, features text now reset in the original typeface and illustrations newly reproduced from the original canvases. Full-color and black-and-white illustrations.

Orphan of Creation, Roger MacBride Allen. To be reviewed. Willy Mammoth's description: On a Thanksgiving trip home, a Smithsonian paleoanthropologist discovers memoirs of a slave ancestor describing the "beasts" working beside them in the fields and a near uprising when the overseer tries to bury these "beasts" in the slave cemetery. Thinking she's found an account of an early gorilla importation, the scientist follows the description of the burial and unearths on the ancestral home not a gorilla but a group of 19th Century australopithecus robustus. The story continues with a safari to West Africa and deals with the definition of humanity. Out of print; try interlibrary loan or Amazon's search service.

Past Times, Poul Anderson. To be reviewed. Out of print. One of the true greats of SF. Try Amazon Search or Inter-library loan.

The Pleistocene Redemption, Dan Gallagher. An author can't review his own work! So, please read the comments of others by pressing the hypertext below. By way of description, it is an allegory, spanning twenty years of future scientific and spiritual discovery. Geneticist Kevin G. Harrigan learns more about human nature and destiny than he wanted! He redeems fossil genetic material to regenerate fantastic animals, including human sub-species, which became extinct over the last several hundred thousand years. "At the dawn of humanity, a whisper was heard amidst the din of fantastic beasts. Soon, the voice and the beasts will be heard again. But will this herald a new dawn ... or the sunset of humankind?" As science fiction, this work follows in the footsteps of Jurassic Park but is no rehash of it at all!

Raptor Red, Robert Bakker. The perspective of this intriguing work is rare in literature - and seldom executed successfully. The mind, instincts and behavior of a female Utahraptor, interacting with varied environments, others of her kind and with other species is explored in a convincing and authentic manner. Accurately portraying the lives of creatures long extinct, it is void of humans and mammals more advanced than the shrew-like biters of the Cretaceous. It is filled with scenes which awe, intrigue and thrill. Slightly shorter than many novels and fast-paced, this adventure in survival moves quickly and enthralls the reader. The scientific digressions are few and quite interesting. Raptor Red is a fun and informative adventure which is sure to "hook" you!

Return of the Dinosaurs, Mike Resnick and Martin Greenburg, eds, A wonderful anthology of thrills and fascination: Twenty-three trips into prehistory, or related fantasy. Saurian and other prehisterical grrranimals abound! Where did they find such marvelous short story gems? Who knows but this plate of snacks is just the thing for between-novels reading! get the first in this pair also: Dinosaur Fantastic!

Rivers of Time, L. Sprague De Camp. To be reviewed. Reginald's 21st-century safari business is struggling . . . until the invention of the time machine. He quickly begins leading safaris back in time, after the biggest game of all. But taking hunting expeditions back to the age of dinosaurs is very dangerous indeed.

The Shield of Time, Poul Anderson. Soon to be reviewed. Try inter-library loan.

Tarzan: In The Land that Time Forgot and The Pool of Time, Russ Manning. Soon to be reviewed.

Time Safari, David Drake. To be reviewed. Out of print. Try amazon and inter-library loan.

Valley of Gwangi, movie staring Franciscus, J.. This vivid color video has excitement for everyone. This was the first prehistoric adventure film to have great actors, an involving & believable plot and convincing interaction between prehistoric animals. 1880's cowboy and cowgirl revive their long estranged love, only to have their uncertain lives and a Mexican town threatened by a survivor from the Cretaceous: Allosaurus. At first, this animal's digestion of Plateosaurus and altercations with Pterodactyl and Styracosaurus are merely exciting. But when it is captured and placed on show in a circus, well, you've just GOT to see it! A classic.

Reviews of Apparently great stuff destined for the deepest discounts at yard sales!

Neanderthal, John Darnton. CIA and Russian spies, long suspecting that Neanderthals survived into the present and that they possess psychic powers, locate and attempt to exploit our humbler cousins. (Er, right! And Elvis gives concerts for extra-terrestrials.) A divorced couple, scientists, have mucho gratuitous sex & decide to remarry while saving the telepathic boneheads, most of whom are free of original sin. The spiritual dimension is obtuse, the sex rarely needed, the pace teeedeeeous, and the plot is well-worn snippets from poor literature & film. I gave my copy to the library because an employee there was once rude to me. (I regret that now because unsuspecting nice people might borrow it!)

Revised: September 3 2011.

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Revised: September 3 2011.