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The Andromeda Strain (1969)

by Michael Crichton

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: The Andromeda Strain (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
9,636144703 (3.65)185
The United States government is given a warning by the pre-eminent biophysicists in the country: current sterilization procedures applied to returning space probes may be inadequate to guarantee uncontaminated re-entry to the atmosphere. Two years later, seventeen satellites are sent into the outer fringes of space to "collect organisms and dust for study." One of them falls to earth, landing in a desolate area of Arizona. Twelve miles from the landing site, in the town of Piedmont, a shocking discovery is made: the streets are littered with the dead bodies of the town's inhabitants, as if they dropped dead in their tracks.… (more)
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» See also 185 mentions

English (135)  Spanish (3)  Hebrew (1)  Danish (1)  Italian (1)  Czech (1)  Portuguese (Brazil) (1)  German (1)  All languages (144)
Showing 1-5 of 135 (next | show all)
My second time reading this, prepping myself before Andromeda Evolution. I kind of remembered it, but it was a good refresher. Kind of odd how it could be so scientifically boring at times, but also a fast paced thrill ride at times. Not Crichton’s best, but a good novel in its own right. ( )
  MrMet | Apr 28, 2023 |
Did I enjoy it? Yes. There is a lot of scientific detail and it's clear that there was a lot of research that went into the book. Like another reviewer, I expected zombies at any time; but, only got research. The ending was also oddly anticlimactic. ( )
  buffalogr | Jan 23, 2023 |
I really liked this book. The way it was set up, and the way the author wrote about the science behind everything was quite captivating. Hell, even the climax was tense and I felt myself sweating a little as the pages turned.

However, the ending is shit and I feel let down. The climax was so great, the denouement... not so great. Stephen King writes a better ending and that's saying something. ( )
  zenseiii | Dec 13, 2022 |
I found the premise of the book very interesting and wanted to like this, but I simply didn't.

The execution was simply too dry. Considering the stakes in the story, there was no tension for me. I'm sure it was intentional to a degree, considering this was supposed to be an official account of what happened in the situation, but documenting a story in this fashion is a way of telling a story that can be - and has been - done amazingly, so it isn't an excuse.

I just don't understand why anyone would want to reduce an interesting story to it's base elements and strip it off all suspense and personality. All the characters blended into each other and were in no way sympathetic, which translated into me not giving a shit about them or their fate. The only interesting characters were the baby and the old man, both of whom were completely wasted in the story.

If this book is indicative of Crichton's overall authorship, I don't really feel compelled to read anything else from him. ( )
  tuusannuuska | Dec 1, 2022 |
This would have been five stars if it weren't for the eugenics aspect of it. ( )
  burritapal | Oct 23, 2022 |
Showing 1-5 of 135 (next | show all)

» Add other authors (11 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Crichton, Michaelprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Noth, ChrisNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Epigraph
The survival value of human intelligence has never been satisfactorily demonstrated. — Jeremy Stone
Increasing vision is increasingly expensive. — R.A. Janek
THIS FILE IS CLASSIFIED TOP SECRET
Examination by unauthorized persons is a criminal offense punishable by fines and imprisonment up to 20 years and $20,000.
DO NOT ACCEPT FROM COURIER IF SEAL IS BROKEN
The courier is required by law to demand your card 7592. He is not permitted to relinquish this file without such proof of identity.
Dedication
for A.C.D., M.D., who first proposed the problem
First words
A man with binoculars.
Quotations
"All yours, Gunner." Wilson did not answer. He dropped his nose, cracked down his flaps, and felt a shudder as the plane sank sickeningly, like a stone, toward the ground. Below him, the area around the town was lighted for hundreds of yards in every direction. He pressed the camera buttons and felt, rather than heard, the vibrating whir of the cameras. For a long moment he continued to fall, and then he shoved the stick forward, and the plane seemed to catch in the air, to grasp, and lift and climb. He had a fleeting glimpse of the main street. He saw bodies, bodies everywhere, spreadeagled, lying in the streets, across cars ... "Jesus," he said. And then he was up, still climbing, bringing the plane around in a slow arc, preparing for the descent into his second run and trying not to think of what he and seen. One of the first rules of air reconnaisssance was "Ignore the scenery"; analysis and evaluation were not the job of the pilot. That was left to the experts, and pilots who forgot this, who became too interested in what they were photgraphing, got into trouble. Usually they crashed.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
This is the book The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton. Please do not combine with any of the film adaptations.

ISBN 0061172278 is actually for The Andromeda Strain / The Terminal Man
Publisher's editors
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References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (1)

The United States government is given a warning by the pre-eminent biophysicists in the country: current sterilization procedures applied to returning space probes may be inadequate to guarantee uncontaminated re-entry to the atmosphere. Two years later, seventeen satellites are sent into the outer fringes of space to "collect organisms and dust for study." One of them falls to earth, landing in a desolate area of Arizona. Twelve miles from the landing site, in the town of Piedmont, a shocking discovery is made: the streets are littered with the dead bodies of the town's inhabitants, as if they dropped dead in their tracks.

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Book description
Haiku summary
Space germ kills humans.
Gather team of researchers!
We only sent four?
(benscripps)

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Average: (3.65)
0.5 2
1 33
1.5 17
2 202
2.5 44
3 839
3.5 155
4 988
4.5 61
5 505

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