Eaters Of The Dead
(Michael Crichton)
When the line separating fact and fiction is erased, the result is ?Eaters of the dead?. It does not even stop there; although the language used is archaic the paragraphs are spaced according to the modern convention. Indeed this book transcends the genres making it a refreshing read, a respite from the stereotypical fiction and non-fiction books. Crichton, often referred to as the ?master of techno thriller?, proves his versatility in giving the readers a book that is anything but related to technology. The story is based upon an Arab traveler Ahmad Ibn Fadlan, and the epic poem ?Beowulf?. In June AD 921, the Caliph of Baghdad sent Ibn Fadlan as an ambassador to the King of Bulgars. Gone for three years he never accomplished his mission for he encountered a company of Norseme (loosely the Vikings) and had many adventures among them. Being from a conservative background, Ibn Fadlan has a critical, almost cynical, view of the Norsemen?s customs, disregard of cleanliness and cold-blooded human sacrifices. While living in the company of the Norsemen, the Norsemen receive a message that their counterparts up north are in mortal peril, for a terror visits in the veil of the night. As per a divine revelation, a group consisting of thirteen warriors is chosen to travel to the northern land to counter the terror. Ibn Fadlan learns much to his horror that he has been chosen as the thirteenth warrior. This book was conceived as a wager that Michael Crichton had placed with his friend Kurt Villasden. Villasden proposed to teach a course in college, which he called ?The great bores,? that would include all the extra text that were supposedly crucial to Western civilization but which were no longer read willingly. The very first of the great bores he would address was the epic poem ?Beowulf?. Crichton disagreed, and argued that it was an exciting story. That is the point he tries to prove through this book, and to say that he succeeded would be an understatement.
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