A few days ago, I posted this on my Ria Jose Facebook Page:

I created the post in celebration of #ScienceFictionDay. But it also gave me soooo many memories.

As far as I can remember, Jurassic Park was the film that piqued my interest in the sci-fi genre.

First Cinema Experience

Interestingly, my first memory of watching a film in the cinema was another sci-fi film. All I remember was it was a King Kong film and the first scene I remember was King Kong in a some sort of hospital bed or operating table. Via Google Search, I recently found out that this movie was “King Kong Lives.”

According to Wikipedia, it was released in 1986. I was around 4 years old in 1986 but I am not too sure if the film was released in our city on the same year or if my memory is accurate. I did enjoy that movie and many other sci-fi movies like ET, Batteries Not Included, Back to the Future, and even Robocop. But I was not particularly attached or fascinated by these films.

Entering Jurassic Park

Sometime in the early 1990s, I saw the trailer for Jurassic Park. I do not remember if I saw it while watching a movie in the cinema or on tv, but I remember being intrigued by the tagline “An Adventure 65 Million Years in the Making.” I must admit there was a part of me that thought that some of the dinosaurs used the film were actual dinosaurs. My 10 year old self apologizes. Haha!

When I finally saw the film, I fell in love with it. Who didn’t? I was not a science nerd nor was I fond of scary movies. But I thoroughly enjoyed entering Jurassic Park. I was completely enamoured by the whole idea of seeing dinosaurs, taking an exotic trip to see extinct animals, everything in the park (advanced technology, automated car tours, themed rooms and restaurants), and geeks saving the world. Well, not the world, but the important characters in the story. I even love the film’s music and musical scoring. Until now, the Jurassic Park theme puts a smile on my face.

From then on, I loved sci-fi movies. Even the crappy, campy ones and even those so bad, they’re good.

Journey to the Lost World

Fast forward to 1996 or 1997, one of the options for our project for Physics 1 was a book report on a sci-fi novel. And it had to be a unique novel that no other classmate was writing a report on. Back then, I was not really into sci-fi novels or any novels for adult readers. I was into Sweet Valley Twins, Choose Your Own Adventure, Archie Comics, and other easy to read books.

Of course, I wanted to do a report on Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton but somebody had beat me to it. A classmate (if I am not mistaken, it was Kenneth Jacob), suggested that I read Lost World. He said it was the sequel to Jurassic Park and that it was even better than the Jurassic Park book.

So I got myself a copy and read. And I finished reading that book in just a few days. A feat for me considering it was my first sci-fi book. The book had math, biology, geology, medicine, and other science stuff in it but it was still easy to understand and believable. Fourteen year old Ria had a grand time trying to analyze the math and science of it all.

I had an easy time doing my book report and if I remember correctly, I got a high grade for it, too.

I have read so many sci-fi books, most of it by Michael Crichton. One of my favorites is still Lost World. Other Crichton favorites are Congo, Sphere, and Timeline.

Returning to My Lost World

While I have watched so many sci-fi films over the years, I have, unfortunately, not read as many sci-fi books. Or any book, to be honest. The last sci-fi book I read was Mockingjay and that was years ago.

This year, one of my resolutions is to read more. Specifically, I hope to read at least one fiction book per month. This month, I am working on “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas. (More on that in a future post.)

For February or March, I hope to read a sci-fi book. I’m thinking about reading 1984 by George Orwell or The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, as recommended by Davao Bloggers.

I do not wish to recapture the magic of reading my first ever sci-fi novel, but I do hope to learn, be entertained and intrigued, and be enriched by the experience. The Jurassic Park film and the Lost World novel will always have a special place in my heart that may never be replaced by any other film or book. But I believe my heart and my mind have space for more wonder, exotic locations, outrageous stories, intriguing theories, and beguiling characters.

If you have suggestions for sci-fi books to include in my reading list or if you think there’s a sci-fi film I might have not watched yet, please leave a comment down below.

Image sources:
King Kong Lives Movie Poster
Jurassic Park Movie Poster
Jurassic Park Logo
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Book Cover