Jeff Jensen

The second half of this book is pretty darn fun. It's full of action and robots and alternate history and fantastic other worlds. It's good setup for the motion picture without giving away anything about that story.

The problem is that the reader is misled into believing they must wade through the first half of the book to get there. And the first half of the book pretty much sucks. One could argue that the first half helps us understand the characters better. Except it doesn't. All it does is bog the reader down with angst, tragedy and opaque mysteries. Better to hit the ground running and invite the reader to tag along. At least let them actually care about the characters. I completely understand folks who gave up.

I'm glad I didn't though. Knowing a bit more back story for the world of Tomorrowland helped me enjoy the film just a little bit more.… (plus d'informations)

On a flight back from the UK a few months ago, I watched Tomorrowland starring George Clooney and Britt Robertson. I absolutely LOVED it. I loved it so much, in fact, that when I discovered a prequel to the film was written I snatched it up immediately. The book is Before Tomorrowland by Jeff Jensen, Brad Bird, Jonathan Case, and Damon Lindelof. The basic premise is to set up the world that is already constructed in the film. The best part about the storyline was how famous figures from the past were incorporated. Imagine Nikola Tesla, Howard Hughes, Albert Einstein, and Amelia Earhart all working together in a super secret organization where the technology of the 1930s far exceeds that of today. If that wasn't impetus enough to go out and read this book then I don't know how I can convince you. (Except maybe you'll get excited about the fact that at the back of the hardcover edition there's a short color comic that is referenced throughout the book for extra immersion.) Also, go watch the film because I don't think it got nearly enough praise.… (plus d'informations)

A fun prequel to the upcoming Disney movie, Tomorrowland.

As the movie hasn't come out yet, I don't yet know what connections that this book is supposed to have in terms of characters and the plot progression. So I won't go into detail on that. The story takes place in 1939 as our various characters learn about the world of Tomorrowland. It's interesting to see how they all come together towards the climax of the story, but that was pretty much all I felt. It was interesting. What I felt lacking the most was a connection to these characters, which I did not get during the course of this reading. Likewise, I felt that some of the action was awkwardly written. Sometimes it would take a few paragraphs for an event to happen. Other times, a simple sentence. I would be reading and then realize a whole bunch of stuff happened…wait, I should go back and read that part. Because my mind wandered when I read it the first time.

This could have been a lot more than it was. More imagery and descriptions of the wonder of Tomorrowland, perhaps? More reasons to feel connected to the characters? I still have high hopes for the movie, and am sure many of you will/have enjoy(ed) it without having to have read this book.… (plus d'informations)