Tripods: When the Tripods Came (John Christopher, YA Fiction - Robotic aliens invade Earth)
The Iron Giant (Special Edition)
(1999 animated movie DVD, well worth watching)
The Iron Giant
Ted Hughes
Knopf
Fiction, YA Sci-Fi
**
DESCRIPTION: A metal-eating giant robot appears in a small farming town. Initially feared, he eventually is called upon to save the world from a great threat.
This story, originally published in 1968, formed the basis of the 1999 Warner Bros. animated movie of the same name.
REVIEW: If I had read this before seeing the movie, I wouldn't have gone. I would've missed a very good movie, too. I really liked the film, but the only resemblance
I see between the book and the movie is the robot and the boy named Hogarth. This story is very basic and superficial, with a wandering plot and no characterization whatsoever
- unlike the film. The parable aspects are very obvious, the iron giant representing dangerous new technologies and war machines, which humans distrust upon their arrival but
ultimately appreciate when they're needed. I also found the ending to be hokey, even for a book aimed at young children. Maybe I'm being unfair comparing it to a modern movie,
or maybe I'm too old to appreciate it for what it is. Then again, maybe it was intended for a more innocent era, and it just doesn't have the same impact today as it
did back then.
Once again, if you ever get the chance to see the film - especially if you have an appreciation for older sci-fi - do so. If, on the other hand, you find a copy
of this book, I wouldn't bother picking it up if I were you.
You might also enjoy:
Tripods: When the Tripods Came (John Christopher, YA Fiction - Robotic aliens invade Earth)
The Iron Giant (Special Edition)
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