BookOpinion

I was about seven when my godfather and I spent a couple hours of an afternoon watching “The Andromeda Strain.” At that young age, I became a Michael Crichton fan. Of course, I have seen the movies – Jurassic Park, Congo, Disclosure and the list goes on. His fame in the realm of television cannot be discounted either. Without him, there would have been no doctors Greene, Benton, Carter, Lockhart, etc., etc. I spent many a happy Thursday evening watching ER.

My favorite Michael Crichton book is also his most controversial. State of Fear is a book about many things. At first glance, it is a challenge to the theories behind global warming. But at its core, it’s about how people in power use fear to manipulate the public. I encourage people to read this novel with an open mind, and understand that Crichton’s goal was to bring people together for rational discussion. He was a great believer in the law of unintended consequences. You can see this throughout his works. This law is something I believe to be paramount in any scientific or political discussion. The public and those in power often rally behind what appear to be great ideas without sifting through the rhetoric and analyzing these ideas.

Michael Crichton leaves behind a great legacy, not only some entertaining novels, movies and television (more than most of us can say at any rate), but also, hopefully, the idea that we are at our best as human beings when we thoughtfully examine our actions and move forward understanding in that all we do, we have an impact on the world. Crichton certainly had an impact on my world, and he will be greatly missed.

– Jane Leisteiner

BOOKOPINION REVIEW: When I began reading “Jack Bauer’s Having a Bad Day,” I was not sure exactly what I expected with such an enticing title. Tim Wesemann explicitely states in the first chapter that it is his desire “to investigate twenty-four unexpected faith truths, using a bridge point from each of the twenty-four episodes from the first season of the hit TV show 24.” In other words, “learn more about what it means to live a life of faith in God in the process.” Okay, so far, so good.

The reader is taken on a journey with a brief review of each individual episode of 24 illustrating the similarities or the differences between what Jack Bauer is experiencing and walking through the Christian life. Tim Wesemann explores the turmoils of compassion, greed, healthy ambition, fear, etc., etc., etc. and attempts to relate Jack’s emotional situations to what we encounter in our own rather humdrum existence.

Frankly, I think this entire endeavor was a rather dismal failure. “Jack Bauer’s Having a Bad Day” read on its own philosophical merits, minus the Jack Bauer connection, is enlightening and relates well to the confusing, and sometimes frightening confrontations that we meet on a daily basis. The sincerity of Tim Wesemann is obvious and the idea is highly original but frankly, I do not believe that the intended goal was met.

If you choose to read “Jack Bauer’s Having a Bad Day,” I suggest you check out your local library first. The lack of cohesiveness and the disjointed connections make this book a disappointing purchase.

– Elizabeth Channery

In addition to several characters named after philosophers, Lost also has a variety of literary references throughout the series. The books carry a variety of themes: worlds within worlds, the individual vs. the group, religion, various island topics, etc.

One of the more intriguing books that has had multiple appearances on the show is Watership Down by Richard Adams — a sensational read. The book originally belonged to Boone who was reading it before Flight 815 went down. Sawyer has been seen with the book in the episodes “Confidence Man” and “Left Behind”. Once again this week, the novel has made another appearance with Sawyer. Blogger J. Wood in his most recent post on Powell’s discuses some symbolic parallels between Lost and Watership Down:

The last echoes to be discussed are literary. In this episode, Sawyer is once again into Watership Down. He first cracked the book in the first season episode “Confidence Man” (hearkening back to the idea of cons). The anthropomorphic tale about rabbits follows a group of rabbits from the Sandleford warren. They leave their warren when one rabbit, a seer named Hazel, has visions of Sandleford’s destruction (via construction — construction leads to the warren’s destruction). They eventually run into a militantly fascist warren called Efrafra run by a despot named General Woundwort; he first institutes his police state to keep the warren free of myxomatosis, a disease that renders rabbits blind shortly before they die (echoes of Saint Lucy). The warrens are kept under control by an Owsla, or rabbit militia. One of the Efrafra Owsla, Blackavar, is not allowed to move up in ranks because his mother isn’t from their warren, which somehow makes Blackavar genetically untrustworthy. When Blackavar tries to leave the warren, he’s caught and his ears are torn as a mark of shame. A Sandleford rabbit named Bigwig feels pity for the fighter and frees Blackavar, who then joins Sandleford refugees. In this, we have some clear echoes of third season plot/character development: Des has gained a Hazel-like ability to foresee death, and Juliet — with her mark, her untrustworthiness to the Others, and her willingness to go in with Jack — makes her a Blackavar-like figure. (Does this suggest Jack is a Bigwig?)

More…

Actually, it wasn’t Hazel who saw death, it was Fiver. He is the seer of the group and would make a natural fit to tie in with the Lost character Des. Rather than Jack being symbolic of the character Bigwig, it’s possible that Locke would now fit that role…as he has gone off with the Others and has generally seemed as one of the strongest, most able-bodied persons on the island. This would make Jack the natural fit for whom his character most resembles, Hazel. Hazel the leader, the decision-maker, the one others turn to. Is Ben General Woundwort? Or are we still waiting to see General Woundwort? He fits the role in some regards. What about the black smoke monster on the island. Any similarities to the Black Rabbit of Inle, the rabbit grim reaper who makes sure rabbits die when they are supposed to?

Turning to Juliet, hard to say whom her character really resembles at this point. The interesting thing about her character is that at one point on Lost we see her in a book club discussing her favorite book, Carrie by Stephen King. The book is criticized by another member as “by-the-numbers religious hokum-pokum”, and she’s also told that Ben didn’t like it. It was an odd moment. Perhaps she identifies with that character more, which could have interesting ramifications down the line.

There are other parallels with Watership Down: The hints of a plague of some sort on the island. The use of the phrase “Aegrescit medendo”, which could be translated as “the remedy is worse than the disease”. This was used in Watership Down when discussing whether the community should stay and try to survive the plague or evacuate. It was written on the blast door map in Lost.

It’s very difficult to determine what role any of the books used in Lost have in the actual storyline. They could be used as a simple homage. Or, perhaps, they are being used by some other, as yet unseen force, that is manipulating the so-called “island” to help those who are “lost” to resolve their tormented psychological issues. In that case, perhaps they are all test rabbits.

Stay tuned, for more…

According to Lostpedia, the following books have been featured in the show:

After All These Years
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret
Bad Twin
Bible
A Brief History of Time
The Brothers Karamazov
Carrie
Dirty Work
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Evil Under the Sun
The Fountainhead
Harry Potter
Heart of Darkness
Hindsight
I Ching
Island
Julius Caesar
Jurassic Park
Lancelot
Laughter in the Dark
Lord of the Flies
The Mysterious Island
Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge
The Odyssey
Of Mice and Men
Our Mutual Friend
The Outsiders
Rainbow Six
Stranger in a Strange Land
A Tale of Two Cities
The Third Policeman
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Turn of the Screw
Watership Down
The Wizard of Oz
A Wrinkle in Time

Lostpedia Literary Works