Contact Mass Market Paperback – July 1, 1997

Usually the movie is worse than the book, but I don't think that is true here. I was surprised by how boring it was at times. The movie changed many things, but I like the ending of the book. It is much more uplifting!

Dr. Sagan places you with the characters

This is beautifully written science fiction, considering science, religion, sociology in a beautiful pros.The ideas were original and unexpected, a truly enjoyable experience.Ps - nothing like the movie!

Possibly the greatest hard science fiction book I have ever read! I highly recommend it. Much better then the movie.

Another great book by Carl Sagan. I expected a great book by the Pulitzer Prize winner author of Cosmos... Carl Sagan ( see my review 5 stars) and I was not disappointed.As an amateur astronomer of 40 years I knew of the famous distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan. All of the basic astronomy used in this great Sci Fi I knew about but I know very little of Radio Astronomy. By reading this book I learned a few tidbits about Radio Astronomy. To me this book was fascinating.We see the central character Ellie Arroway growing up and eventually getting a PHD and becoming a world class astronomer in charge of a huge radio telescope... project Argus. Dr. Arroway leads a team and finds an ET signal originating from near the star Vega beaming to Earth. Project Argus receives a signal of prime numbers and then the The ETs beam back a radio signal received from us of Hitler and the Olympic games in the late 30s. Embedded in the signal is a message of instructions for us to build a 2 trillion dollar machine but there is problems getting the "primer" message to understand it. Eventually we get the "primer" and build the machine in the US, Russia and Japan. 5 people are selected to go into the machine ( Dr. Arroway is one of them) and using wormhole technology on double black holes are.....that's enough I wont ruin the book for you. Just to say the famous 5 are threatened to not say what they discovered and let the world think the machine did not work. But it did....! At the end of the book we learn the final message.Carl Sagan was a world class astronomer and scientist that also worked as part of the Viking Mars spacecraft team. One of the things I liked about Carl was his seemingly effortless way of making complex problems in astronomy and science understandable to the general public. That is a rare gift. Many times brilliant men/women can not write to the average laymen complex thoughts in a way for the less educated to understand. Carl was a master at this.This is excellent Sci Fi. Also some real Astronomy and some Radio Astronomy is used. The book reads very well. A fast read. The characters are well established and there is good interaction. As a novice to Radio Astronomy it was great learning a few very, very basic tidbits of Radio Astronomy.Also Contact was a major motion picture from Warner Brothers. I remember seeing the movie and liked it too. The book was just as good.5 stars for a very enjoyable book.Sadly Carl Sagan passed away in 1996. The world misses a great astronomer, scientist and a great man. Even though he never knew of me I considered Carl Sagan a friend who I respected very much.

“Contact” is one of my favorite movies and years after seeing it I decided to read the book. Not a disappointment!The story weaves together the Biggest Questions (is there a supreme intelligence? Are we random outcomes of biological evolution through adaptation or is there a purpose to human existence?) with our individual lives - questions of love, parentage, kindness, spirituality, and ethics.Sagan seems a precursor of author Kim Stanley Robinson. Both associate with and base this science fiction on the cutting edge of scientists of their time,

1) Plot (5 stars) - After spending a lifetime listening to the stars, one astronomer finally hears a message to build a machine. But should humanity build it? What will the machine do? Will it be friendly or hostile? The decision pulls all facets of our modern society to the table for a heated debate and the tension of their interplay and the final result was fascinating. Sometimes, however, I felt the pace was a bit slow.2) Characters (4 stars) - Ellie is the brilliant scientist charging forward for the cause of the rational, while sometimes missing the subtleties of interpersonal relations or emotions. She's a romantic which puts her at odds with her fellow scientists, but also deeply analytical which puts her at odds with much of humanity. On top of it, she's a female in a male dominated profession which allows for sexual and gender conflict as well. I enjoyed riding along with her on this journey.3) Theme (5 stars) - Are we alone in the universe? It's so immense that it seems almost mathematically impossible for us to be the only "intelligent" life form. But if so, why haven't we made contact? Is it a lack of technology on our side or theirs? A lack of interest? A time or space distance too large to hurdle? Or are we just too different to understand each other? This was the surface question of the book, but underlying it was the theme of faith vs. empirical rationality, and how we need both to dream and advance. A message which was summed up beautifully in the book's conclusion.4) Voice (4 stars) - Sagan became famous for translating esoteric scientific principles into simple and engaging parlance for non-scientists, and this ability shines through in his prose. Through Sagan's eyes all the prosaic backdrop we take for granted--ants, stars, mathematic concepts--come alive with his curiosity and the teeming science behind them.5) Setting (4 stars) - The book takes place in a variety of science facilities on Earth, and a bit in outer space. All were described well and I felt transported there.6) Overall (4 stars) - An excellent story on the role of science in our present and future, made accessible through a strong lead, interesting plot, and a kindly professorial voice. Smart and fun. I'd recommend it.

The film of Contact has been a favourite of mine for years, and when I saw the book had been released for Kindle users, I didn't hesitate to buy it. What a book! It's a cliche to say that the book is better than the film, but in this case it really is true... in fact there are huge differences in storyline; crucially, one whole aspect of the story is entirely missing from the film, and it is a mind-blowing concept that Carl finishes the book with (I won't give anything away).I can't recommend this book highly enough, in fact I'd urge you to read it, to enjoy some of the finest sci-fi out there.

Sagan may have had his critics in the science community, but no one could ever doubt his passion for the subject, or his success in bringing astrophysics, astronomy and cosmology to the wider public interest. He was an imaginative visionary, and in this respect, Contact could be seen as his crowning glory. A certain type of sci-fi fan will hate this novel, but for all the wrong reasons. By avoiding the cliched pitfalls that he could have easily fallen into, Sagan presents a hard SF novel with a fascinating spin on how an alien race might 'manage' first contact with us. Told from the point of view of a very human, warm, yet flawed protagonist, the novel satisfies as a story, dazzles with the science, and is thoroughly readable on every page. Amongst the best novels I have ever come across. Hugely underrated, highly recommended.

I'm a fan of the film. It has its flaws, sure, but it is thoughtful, keeps you interested despite some pacing issues, and apart from a woefully miscast McConaughey is well acted and directed.Which just goes to show what an amazing job the scriptwriters must have done - as the book contains small nuggets of interesting plot endlessly bloated by unnecessary waffle. Somewhere in there is a quote from Herman Melville, and the book reminded me of Moby Dick - where I'm flipping through page after page of speculation, the author forcing down your throat his opinions on everything from interstellar alcohol to religion. I like science, I'm no stranger to Physical theories... but jeesh, this novel is dry as papyrus. Carl clearly had a brilliant mind, but little skill as a writer, even less understanding of the need to keep readers' attention, and zero understanding of pacing or plot. Watch the film.

I really enjoyed the film and to the best of my memory it seems the film was true to the book but missed out the more complicated science. I love reading about space, engineering, physics, any science really. I don't claim to always understand what I'm reading but this is where a Kindle e-book trumps a real book, as a dictionary and Wikipedia are at your fingertips. I was really surprised to find all the words I was unfamilar with were actually in the dictionary, as some of the words seemed quite obscure. The Kindle didn't let me down and even though I had to pause to look words up it didn't detract from the story because I felt I was also learning something.Beyond the science, the story encourages you to condider what first contact would mean. What about our safety, our future, our beliefs? Would the world unite? Would the populace want trillions to be spent on a machine specified by a voice from space, when they don't know what it will do or if it will even work and when millions of people are in need? Carl Sagan looks at these questions. I don't know if his answers are realistic, that's up to you to decide but hopefully you will enjoy the journey that helps you get to that point and if you weren't before, perhaps you will also be captivated by the resplendence of the stars.Overall, a great read that opens minds to science and out of this world possibilities. Definitely a journey to enjoy.

This is a proper book. It tackles massive issues and questions and it does out in a sensible, non excitable way. The book itself is detailed, it's narrative told through the detail of science and maths rather than characters. That's not to say there is not character development as there is but the development is based on the science and what is occurring and how this affects the players, but there are not long conversations or plot developments through talk. Sagan raises many issues and whilst the ending might be surprising from an author that is a man of science it's also refreshing that he is willing to raise the questions and spark the debate amongst readers that he has. Highly recommended that like their science fiction thoughtful and questioning rather than exciting and faced paced.