Fairy Tale Spotlight: Land of the Giants: Flight of Fear [Book Review]

Ever heard of the TV show "Land of the Giants"? It was a science fiction about a group of people who crash land on a planet of giants. It ran from 1968 to 1970, and I am a huge fan of it. The show was developed by Irwin Allen, the same guy who gave us "Lost in Space," but, in my opinion, this show is much better. Imagine my surprise when I found out a set of novels had been written to expand out the lore of the show. I found one, and I read it.

"Land of the Giants: Flight of Fear" is an authorized novel written by Carl Henry Rathjen and published 1969 during the run of the show. The version I found was a very clean hardback book, and I think my eyes sparkled a bit when I first held it in my hands. I nerded out a bit. There was even a little "69¢" sticker on the front.

Was the book good? Well... yes! It is like an episode of the show I never got to see. The author seems to seriously understand each character in the show and how they interact with one another. You see, the characters in "Land of the Giants" are very unique. Steve, the captain, is often viewed as the true hero of the show, someone whom you know you can trust. His opposite would be Fitzhugh who fills the role as the cowardly type who always tries to get out of doing work. Carl understands what makes these characters tick, and he represents all of them well.

Oddly, the book is so much like the show that I could actually see in my mind how they would show it happening with the special effects at the time. And you must understand that the show had top-notch special effects. Nothing done in the book couldn't have happened in the show. It was like reading about an episode that was never produced.

Most of the giants in this universe are sociopaths and evil. They made that clear in the show. But there are exceptions. Medical doctors tend to be good, the same as in this book. That was something canon in the show. As bad as it is, it is not a show without hope.

Another interesting thing about this world of giants is how similar it is to ours. Of course, it was more of a 60's version of us, although they are on the tail end of government overreach. A lot of people in this world are living in a very calm, orderly policed state. There are a few rebels but not really enough to change anything. Most giants have just come to accept it.

The book also did something I did not see much in the show: They flew their ship! (The ship is called 703.) It was a major theme of the book, and it was fun to read about. The ship was mostly stationary in the show, acting as merely a shelter for the passengers and crew.

So, yes! I did enjoy this book! If I had to force a criticism, I really have to say that the chapter titles of this book are the most generic ones I have ever seen. They are titles that I think every writer feels compelled to use when writing a book but have to force them out just to get something original. Even I have thought of just about every one of these titles many times. To name a few: "Necessary Risks," "Plan of Action," "Desperate Measures," "Difficult Decision." Understand that these titles are not necessarily bad, but they are crazy generic and common.

I totally recommend this book and the show that goes along with it, however finding a copy of it may prove difficult. Most of the novels for this show are just too rare to find. I did, however, find another one, and I'll be sure to let you know what I think of it when I get around to reading it. Cheers!

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