SF. Alternate universe where dinosaurs never became extinct. Extension on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle book: The Lost World

https://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2023/06/2023087-dinosaur-summer-greg-bear.html ( )

Lovely illustrations in this fun dino tale. ( )

review of
Greg Bear's Dinosaur Summer
by tENTATIVELY, a cONVENIENCE - February 18, 2015

Once again, I can accuse myself of being in my '2nd childhood' b/c this is a bk targeted at younger readers or for "kids of all ages". It was only over a mnth ago that I read Robert Heinlein's Space Cadet (see my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3220256-space-cadet ). The problem is, I really enjoy reading these things, I read this one quickly & even though the trajectory of the plot was somewhat predictable I was engrossed in it anyway.

I didn't really know it was a kids bk, it was just another Bear bk to me. I've read 15 bks by Bear by now so I obviously like his work but he's still not one of my favorites. It's like reading a work in translation where you get the feeling that some of the original verve of the language is lost. In this case, of course, the writing lacks verve to begin w/. The writing's competent - but there's rarely or never anything that surprises me about it. Bear's an "idea man", many of his ideas are grand & visionary but his way of telling the story is a bit too dry. I think of him as a 'classic' "hard science" SF writer.

Anyway, one of the things that's most fun about this for me & all the other SF & Fantasy movie geeks is that this is a sequel of sorts to Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel The Lost World that includes important figures in early dinosaur movies as characters - esp clay animation legend Ray Harryhausen.

According to wikipedia & other sources, Bear's reference to the Doyle story is only one of many that included:

1915: Russian scientist Vladimir Obruchev produced his own version of the "lost world" theme in the novel Plutonia

1916: Edgar Rice Burroughs published The Land That Time Forgot, his version of The Lost World

1926: a silent film adaption

1970: adapted in Czech comics by Vlastislav Toman/Jiří Veškrna

1994: release for the Forgotten Futures role-playing game was based on and includes the full text of the Professor Challenger novels and stories.

1995: Conan Doyle's title was reused by Michael Crichton in his novel The Lost World, a sequel to Jurassic Park.

1998: a movie directed by Bob Keen

1999-2002: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World is a syndicated television series loosely based on the 1912 novel

2002: animated adventure Dinosaur Island written by John Loy

Obviously, this idea of finding dinosaurs on Earth in contemporary times in a remote place has mythological staying power that appeals to many people. Perhaps what makes Bear's version somewhat unique is his inclusion of Harryhausen & other people important to the early history of movies inspired by dinosaurs & other metafauna: Willis O'Brien ("The Lost World", "King Kong"), & Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack ("King Kong").

In Harryhausen's bk entitled Film Fantasy Scrapbook he writes:

"In 1933 a star was born with the original and fascinating name of King Kong. Thirty-eight years after its release the film has become a classic in almost every country of the world. Its key advertising campaign was based on the words, "The Picture That Staggers the Imagination." As far as I am concerned there was never a more accurate statement made by a publicist, for this highly original film laid the basic foundation for my choice of career." - p 14

"The Lost World, initiated by Willis O'Brien in 1925, was the first feature film to employ the technique of three dimensional figure animation. His earlier experiments go back to 1914 when he made a number of short subjects with figurines for the old Edison Company." - p 15

Bear's narrative imagines a world in wch Doyle's characters have created dinosaur circuses that fascinated the public at 1st wch they then became jaded to. A side-effect of this is that Harryhausen's proposed animations don't appeal.

""Ray would like to animate things we've never seen before, creatures from Venus and Mars, Greek gods and fire-breathing dragons. But dinosaurs spoiled the public for any of out imaginary monsters." O'Brien raised his hands in resignation.

""Fickle," Anthony commiserated.

""At least we've got work," Harryhausen said softly.

""Yeah, moviemaking is about the public's dreams, not our own," O'Brien said with a sigh." - pp 41-42

Of course, Harryhausen's phenomenal animations went on to inspire such greats as Douglass St Claire Smith's "The Wad and the Worm" (1969) & "Reproduction Cycle" (1978) & Bruce Bickford, who collaborated w/ Frank Zappa from 1974 to 1980.

Bear's 'upgrade' of the story is different from earlier SF insofar as what constitutes a 'manly man' isn't necessarily someone who's gung-ho to blow away everything in his path:

""Do you wish you hadn't brought me?" Peter asked, his voice sharp.

""Yes," Anthony said. "But . . ."

""I haven't done anything stupid or wrong," Peter said in a rush. "I learned how to tend the dinosaurs . . . the animals. Vince—Mr. Shellabarger—thinks I'm doing well. I could learn to shoot—"

"Anthony gave him a stern look. "I don't want you to ever have to learn to shoot people."" - p 131

Dinosaur Summer is also 'upgraded' in the sense that it's a bit more respectful of the indigenous people than, say, a Tom Swift bk wd've been. Take this example from my review of Tom Swift and His Flying Lab:

""Yee-haw! Ride 'em cowboy! Yep, the myth of the Cowboys & the Injuns lives on:

""the Indians suddenly appeared again.

"""They're going to shoot!" Hanson cried. "Run!"

"""Wait!" Chow cried.

""To everyone's amazement, he stepped forward and haltingly spoke a jargon of guttural sounds. Slowly, smiles of understanding broke out on the faces of the Indians.

"""What are you telling them?" Tom asked.

"""That I fetched 'em some presents from the Lone Star State."

"""Presents?"

"""Sure thing. I'd never get caught in Injun country without some little ole knickknacks."

""From a pocket he pulled several cheap bracelets, rings, brooches, and four pearl necklaces, and distributed them." - pp 122-123" - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6349868-tom-swift-jr-his-flying-lab

Bear, at least, has the natives be hired hands competent at their work, NOT sidekicks, & somewhat in-tune w/ their environment:

"There, on a sandy bank by the water, he showed Peter bootprints. "They are going north. like us," Billie said.

"Peter touched the prints. "We can follow them."

""They go along this river. You follow. I will go another way."

"Peter thought about arguing with Billie and decided that he would be entirely too white a thing to do. "If you have to," Peter said.

"Billie nodded, "You find your father and the others and go back. You do not belong here."

""Don't I know it," Peter said.

""I will learn whether I belong," Billie said, looking down at the stream swirling beyond the mud and sand bank. "You take this. I go naked to steal Odosha's magic."

"He passed the machete to Peter, and two yuca roots." - p 262
Dinosaur Summer resonated partially w/ me b/c Charles Knight, a pioneer of dinosaur depiction artwork is mentioned. I just recently installed an exhibit of Knight's artwork at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

"New plants, new animals; he thought of the Charles Knight paintings he had seen in New York and tried to imagine them come to life. The forest was not static; it had changed, evolved, in the tens of millions of years since its isolation." - p 257

Another thing I liked here is Bear's frequent descriptions of smells. Am I just imagining this or is that something usually lacking? "The tunnel into the mound was not so small, but it was dark and smelled of skunk and vinegar and foul, beery burps, and beneath all those smells, the now-familiar parrot-cage odor—making him want to vomit." (p 301)

All in all, Dinosaur Summer is a vehicle for describing dinosaurs both historic and invented by Bear. I'm not really such a big dinosaur buff but I reckon this comes close to being a 'must-read' for people who are.

Also important is the way this fits into the literary genre of picking-up-where-other-writers-left-off. To some literati this might be 'blasphemous' but I'm sure that to many of us we're glad to have some things continue past the original author's death. Take, eg, Poodle Springs: a finishing of the great detective novelist Raymond Chandler's unfinished last novel by his admirer Robert B. Parker. ( )

A slow start leads to the expected ending…but definitely worth the trip--and the adventure. The starting premise is that dinosaurs were discovered in a hidden valley in Venezuela after WW1 and some have been captured and brought to the US for exhibition. But, in 1947, the celebrity has worn off and the dinosaurs are returned to the secret valley from which we stole them. Obviously the real action will come at the end of the long trip back--and the action is well worth the read. This is another page turner from Greg Bear. And then, add to that, are the illustrations--both b/w and color--that flesh out the story helps us identify with the hero. ( )