Customer Reviews

Close Encounters of the Third Kind: A Novel

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This is Spielberg's novel version of his more famous movie. It's not a bad book but, being Spielberg, it reads more like a movie screenplay than an actual novel. It's not that the writing is dry or boring (it's actually quite well-written and captivating in spots), but it doesn't go into extreme detail on some of the more mysterious and awe-inspiring scenes, as good science fiction invariably does. Of course, this was reconciled in the movie where you could actually SEE what is merely being described in this book. Still, this is a fun book, and I reccommend it to you for a rainy day or something of the kind. It's nice, quick read that you'll enjoy.

Steven Spielberg's novelization of his groundbreaking movie is a bit uneven. It's impossible to know whether the book was entirely written by Spielberg himself, or whether it was partially or totally ghost-written. The writing is very good in spots, such as the depiction of Roy Neary's obsession and its effect on his family. In other places it reads more like a movie script, or even a treatment. There are a few instances where there is a little extra background informantion that is not in the movie. Unfortunately, the grandeur and scope of the climactic final scene does not come off anywhere near as powerfully as it does in the movie.

I would recommend this book to people who like to read novels, comics, picture books, and who like to read about aliens. The part that I didn't like was that I knew what was coming up because I already saw the movie twice.