A Special Thank You to My Dad

I've always considered myself to be well-read mostly because of the hefty amount of classics under my belt, but it wasn't until my Dad started lending me his books that I became widely-read. 

My preferred literary genres consisted of Chick-Lit and 19th Century British Literature until my Dad introduced me to two authors I'd never heard of before.  Robin Cook healded in a love for scientific thrillers and led to my reading a lot of Michael Crichton as well, and Nelson Demille ushered in an affinity for crime dramas - especially when John Corey was on the case.

These two new genres dumped a ton of boks into my lap that I couldn't put down.  I began checking the "coming soon" section on bn.com to see when these guys would publish again - thankfully Robin Cook writes a lot.  Eventually I started sending my Dad my copes of Cook and Demille as my collection became more current than his.

After my Dad died, all these books came to me.  Now they sit on my bookshelf, slightly out of place among Elinor Lipman and Jennifer Crusie but significantly more important than most of the books in my library.  They forever unite me to my Father (I love how books can connect people!) and constantly remind me that steppin gout of one's comfort zone (in anything) can yield something wonderful and new you never knew existed.

Next by Michael Crichton

It took a while for me to figure out exactly what Next was all about due to the large amount of characters introduced early on, but once I got all the people (and talking animals) straight, I was off and running. Using dynamic characters from every side and every situation relevant to the study of genetics, Next explores all the angles of genetic research, testing, patenting, theft, and espionage.

A fast-paced narrative takes you through a relatively brief period of time where there is never a dull moment. One man is suing for the right to "own" a gene within his own body that a corporation has patented. A mother and son are running from a bounty hunter who's after them for "stealing" genetic material that's a part of their bodies. Dave, a chimp whose genes were mixed with a scientist's is trying to survive elementary school. A bio-tech company is testing what they call the maturity gene to prove it has positive effects on human behavior. This list just scratches the surface of activity - I told you there was a lot happening in this book.

True to form, the action never dulls, the characters never cease to intrigue, and the relevance to issues of today never fall by the wayside in the story. Crichton paints the study/testing of genetics as a scary, unregulated mismash of shady research, large profits, and confusing ownership. He's asking big questions like, "If my tissue leaves my body, is it still mine?" and grappling with all the potential answers since the "right" one hasn't been found yet.

Fictionalized scientific novels are a tricky genre to read. You can't help but be influenced by them even though nothing occurring within them is really real. At the very least, while being highly entertained, Next will empower you to seek out a little more truth about a very relevant topic and get you thinking.