Michael Crichton

The Great Train Robbery

Though it has a somewhat dry start, I think "The Great Train Robbery" delivers a satisfying tale of colorful characters, meticulous logistics, and a professional execution of thievery.

This book makes me really wish I could commit some grand larceny with Edward Pierce. In the beginning, he truly feels like a cartoonish character: he has knowledge of everything and simply always comes out on top. When things start going wrong and the reader actually gets to see how Pierce's planning works, you can retroactively praise his masterminding and realize the man was, indeed, human after all and just excelled at adapting to roadblocks.

It didn't help that also in the beginning, the idea to steal the gold seems impossibly far off. You don't see how anything you're reading could eventually end in train robbery. Obviously, again in retrospect, this does make it all the more impressive; but in the moment, this doesn't make for a very interesting read. I was worried about this novel for a while and didn't think I would enjoy how cold it felt.

Crichton clearly did a comical amount of research, and eventually either he gives the story more life or the story simply gains that along the way as things take better shape. Halfway or so through the book, I was definitely enjoying myself and really wanted to see the heist.

This is a story about the planning and work put into the robbery more so than the robbery itself (Crichton clearly admired Price's ingenuity). I think there's a required patience needed to actually enjoy this book, or at least its beginning. It's ~270 pages, and only something like 12 are of the heist. Something worth knowing going into it.

Evan

Though it has a somewhat dry start, I think "The Great Train Robbery" delivers a satisfying tale of colorful characters, meticulous logistics, and a professional execution of thievery.

This book makes me really wish I could commit some grand larceny with Edward Pierce. In the beginning, he truly feels like a cartoonish character: he has knowledge of everything and simply always comes out on top. When things start going wrong and the reader actually gets to see how Pierce's planning works, you can retroactively praise his masterminding and realize the man was, indeed, human after all and just excelled at adapting to roadblocks.
It didn't help that also in the beginning, the idea to steal the gold seems impossibly far off. You don't see how anything you're reading could eventually end in train robbery. Obviously, again in retrospect, this does make it all the more impressive; but in the moment, this doesn't make for a very interesting read. I was worried about this novel for a while and didn't think I would enjoy how cold it felt.

Crichton clearly did a comical amount of research, and eventually either he gives the story more life or the story simply gains that along the way as things take better shape. Halfway or so through the book, I was definitely enjoying myself and really wanted to see the heist.

This is a story about the planning and work put into the robbery more so than the robbery itself (Crichton clearly admired Price's ingenuity). I think there's a required patience needed to actually enjoy this book, or at least its beginning. It's ~270 pages, and only something like 12 are of the heist. Something worth knowing going into it.

I recommend "The Great Train Robbery".

The Great Train Robbery

Reviews