Before I read The Book of Atrus, my brother Lt. Death Star, told me that this was a really good book. At the time, I was into other Science Fiction like Star Wars, and was not that interested in Myst. I had played the computer game, but could not figure it out (I'm horrible at games.) Eventually, my brother persuaded me to read the book, and I was instantly hooked on it. It really fascinated me. The phrase "you can't judge a book by it's cover" certainly applies here. Anyhow, here's the review. This is the first book of the Myst Series. Inspired by the computer game, the authors bring you into worlds of beauty, betrayal, and mystery. It takes place before the computer game. The end of the book is the beginning of the events of the game. This is the story of Atrus, son of Gehn, the last of the D'ni race. The D'ni were a technologically advanced culture. They were very artistic. Through their descriptive writing, they created worlds and made linking books to these worlds. This book starts out with Atrus' birth. Soon after, his mother dies. And his father, Gehn, leaves without giving Atrus a name. The child is eft with Anna, his grandmother, who gives him a name later on. During his childhood, Atrus listens to tales of D'ni, told by his grandmother. He believes thay are just legends. Atrus and his grandmother live in a crack in the ground, a hole in the earth surrounded by desert. Then, Gehn comes back and takes him away to see what remains of the great D'ni culture. Gehn teaches Atrus the ways of the D'ni, in hopes of restoring the culture, creating worlds of beauty. But Atrus father is a mad man, reckless and impatient and wanting to restore the D'ni overnight. He is trying to make as many worlds as he can instead of making stable worlds. Meanwhile, Atrus has a desire to share this amazing beauty with his grandmother. But Gehn stubbornly will not let him, and is still bent on creating hundreds of worlds at a very fast rate, restoring the D'ni , and not caring how unstable they will be. What will Atrus do? More problems generate, but I will not give them away. I very much enjoyed this book. It made me think and want to know about what would happen inthe events of the book, and thus kept me reading. I would like to read the next books in the series - it should be interesting. Since I couldn't understand the game, this explained it better. I am also fascinated by the art created by the D'ni culture. Thus I gave the book a "5" rating.
Title: The Book of Atrus |
1/19/05
