It’s kind of fun when a book takes you on a nostalgia trip.
When I was a kid, I loved the “Jaws” movies.
I remember watching “Jaws” and “Jaws 2” for the first time when they debuted on network television. (I *think* they aired on ABC, but the years that have transpired since then leave things a bit hazy.)
I remember going to see “Jaws 3-D” in 1983 at Six West Theatres (in Westroads Mall) with my friend Ryan Anderson. I saw the dreadful “Jaws: The Revenge” with my mom in 1987 at Cinema Center.
Those movies were fun adventures centered around a deadly creature wreaking havoc.
Steve Alten’s novel “The Meg” is a throwback to movie franchises like “Jaws” — and the ocean-based thrillers of author Peter Benchley. “The Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror” was first published in 1997, but Alten has since revised the story in subsequent editions (he says in the foreward that this is a “new and improved” version).
The novel follows the exploits of Dr. Jonas Taylor — a marine paleontologist who had an encounter with Carcharodon megalodon in the U.S. Navy when he was a submersible pilot during a top-secret mission in the Mariana Trench.
Megalodons are pre-historic sharks — capable of growing up to 70-feet long — that subsist on a diet of whales. Because the predators were thought to be extinct, the Navy chalked up Taylor’s claims as those of a crazy man.
In the intervening years, Taylor has dedicated his life to the study of megalodons in an effort to prove what he saw was real.
In “The Meg,” Jonas Taylor is given the chance to return to the mysterious depths of the Mariana Trench by his Sun-Tzu quoting colleague Masao Tanaka (who needs someone to take a look at a damaged sub, and find out why UNIS research drones in the trench have stopped working).
Taylor is intrigued at the potential for finding a living megalodon — something that would allow him to find redemption.
“The Meg” reads like a big-budget movie. Alten’s prose is fast and fluid, and the story stays intriguing throughout — including the passages told from the shark’s point of view.
It’s not a surprise that Hollywood eventually adapted Alten’s tale for the big screen. “The Meg” (starring Jason Statham) was released Aug. 10.
The novel is a lot of fun. Sure, it has its flaws (a subplot involving Taylor’s petulant wife feels a bit contrived), but the action sequences are well executed, and the novel is loaded with interesting details about Carcharodon megalodon (and other sea life).
I’m planning to see the movie adaptation of “The Meg” this week. I have heard the movie strays from the narrative in the novel, so I’ll be interested to see how they compare.
As an added bonus, this edition of "The Meg" includes a 67-page prequel "Meg: Origins."
There are currently six books in “The Meg” series. If you are interested in learning more about the novels, visit Steve Alten’s website at www.stevealten.com.
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