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Customer Reviews of Contact

Excellent if you have ever had an interest in science
..and this is from a guy who dropped out of first semester physics. I don't agree with the reviews that have made it sound like Sagan was trying to show off the breadth of his knowledge, or achieve some literary standing that remained out of his range. It was a rare pleasure to read a novel written by someone who expressed (and revived in me) the far-reaching curiosity I knew as a child and teenager. The novel did have a "flat", restrained feel to it, similar to Sagan's nonfiction, but I felt that this was not inappropriate, given the context (it certainly did not read like a textbook--the reader who said that needs to see some textbooks!). There were some minor unnecessary features, but fewer than I have seen in other authors who turned the experiences of a prior career into a novel (recently I've read a lot of Grisham, for instance), and I wasn't bothered by them. I read the novel after seeing the movie, and recommend this sequence, since I enjoyed the book far more, and particularly because the third act of the book is significantly longer, more scientifically interesting, and more detailed than the one in the movie (although not having read the book beforehand, I enjoyed the movie's version). Although I enjoyed the entire book, the part involving Pi really won me over. I don't know if it was Sagan's idea, but it is the most original sci-fi concept I have read about in years (I haven't gotten a tingle like that for a long time, probably because I keep seeing the same ideas rehashed). He does have some of the same appeal as Crichton. While he is less skilled as a storyteller, he more than makes up for it by having such a well-performed climactic section of the book; he does not suffer from Crichton's typical pattern of amazing and thought provoking openings, an even stretch in the middle, and a formulaic, disappointing wrap-up.

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A Good Science Fiction Read!
In my mind there are two kinds of science fiction in the world ... one: Earth is under attack by aliens, space ships, secret government aircraft, save the president!, laser missiles, and a lame movie ... and two: the good kind. Guess what kind this is?

Contact is mostly about the impacts of a message from intelligent life forms on the human race. Argus, a project set to scan the cosmos for communications from intelligent life forms finds a baffling sequence of zeros and ones, coming from somewhere around the star Vega. It is decrypted, and Earth is sent into a multi-trillion dollar investment, and a huge controversy. Religious leaders fight against scientists over the true meaning of the message.

The characters entertain me, and I love their personalities. They are all very human ... no one is a super hero. It takes place from the point of view of Eleanor Arroway, director of the Argus project and genius. She goes through a transformation in the course of the book, her personality changing and her mind widening. Other characters include the intriguing Hadden, (and his spectacular ending), and a hilarious female president of the United States.

This is not a modern book, (we're past the year 2000 and there are no space stations or alien communications in sight), but it is not dated. Set your mind back a few years before you read it.

Contact, though the abrupt ending may disappoint some, is about the unification of the world. This is not lame alien attack science fiction ... the aliens actually open the eyes of scientists and bring about a new age for Earth. A common goal helps to bring about world peace.

If you love science fiction, read this! Entertaining, intriguing, and a book that will hold you interest, Contact is what I recommend for the science fiction reader.

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Excellent Novel; Failed Political Point
"Contact" is the story of one Dr. Eleanor Arroway, a radio astronomer whose work is responsible for Earth's first contact with an extraterrestrial species. From the start, Dr. Arroway is presented as a curious, confident, rational, independent lady--the ideal scientist. His description of her childhood and adolescence especially is poignant and serves to establish the Dr. Arroway we see throughout the novel.

Though Dr. Arroway is the quintessential inquisitor, she is still a human being, subject to human yearnings and human desires--and, primarily, human failings. This plays significantly throughout the book, as the political obstacles she must deal with are often complicated by her romantic and professional involvement with scientists in key influential positions, both in and out of government.

Faced with opposition from the Department of Defense, which is worried about what the Soviets; religious evangelists, who are concerned that they might not like the theological implications of contact with an alien species; and envious colleagues, who are worried that they might be publicly embarrassed, Dr. Arroway is forced to make compromises and concessions to reacher her one goal--the construction of the "Machine" described in blueprints transmitted to Earth by the alien civilization.

It must be said, though, that the primary purpose of this novel is to build support for government funding of scientific work, especially projects such as the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). At this, the novel fails miserably. Dr. Sagan's argument takes for granted that government has any place funding any sort of scientific work in the first place, a tenet that many (myself included) do not accept.

Dr. Sagan wrote "Contact" to present a fantastic case for continued funding of SETI. What he produced was a fantastic story--in fact, the best science fiction novel ever written--but did not make his point.