::READERS REVIEWS::

Better than the film - I have seen the movie of course many times, and must admit, I thought this had a lot to live up to.
Well it did and it did very well, I will now read more of Peter Benchleys novels.
He keeps the suspense up all the way through.

Not as enticing as the film (Spoilers) - I have to admit that I slightly prefer the film over the original Peter Benchley novel. One of the things I had a problem with this book is that there's more politics and social issues than the shark itself. By the end of the second act, you'll feel the urge to skip a few pages and get on with the famous hunt on the Orca boat. Plus, the romance between Hooper and Mrs. Brody just comes out of nowhere. It was truly unnecessary, and I'm glad they took it out in the film.

But there are some good things going here. The descriptions of "the fish" are absolutely terrifying (the human deaths as well). Hooper's annoying personality makes me cheer for the shark when it eats him alive. The similarities between the deaths if Quint and Ahab adds a nice touch in the conclusion of this book. And the ending overall is not your typical Hollywood ending, and so it adds another plus.

I did enjoy reading the original novel, but not as much as I enjoyed the film.

Jaws - first edition - The book is "Jaws" by Peter Benchley. My son is a Jaws "geek". He knows everything about the movie and then some.
I wanted to get him a first edition copy for his birthday and this book was certainly in our price range.
It was exactly as described, in very good condition but without a dust jacket. I would certainly order from this
seller again.

Jaw's a dispointment - I didn't buy this book off Amazon I bought it at the local barnes in nobles but non the less I feel I should warn you about this horendous book.
The book has very few deaths compared to the movie and centeres around the people more.
The cheif is a bitter middle aged man who bitches about his wife and her anoying yuppie background.
The wife is an insecure and what she feels under aapreciated wife she has an afair with cooper who is a yuppie marin biologist unlike in the moviewheres kinda of a nerdy hippie.
The old shark hunter guy is pretty cool hes about the same.
the mayor has a sub plot with some mafia people and that takes up some of the story.
I felt it was more about the people than the actual shark eating people mind you this was peter benchleys first book.
Also the death of the shark isnt as exciting as in the movie where it gets blown up.

Highly recommended especially for horror fans - Jaws, the novel that inspired the horror movie that left a generation terrified of shark attacks, is now available in unabridged audiobook format for the first time. Narrated by former Acting Company performer Peter Benchley, Jaws is sure to fascinate fans of the movie unfamiliar with its original source material. The novel features multiple twists of plot as well as entire characters that were trimmed from the film, and overflows with terror and tension at every turn. Highly recommended especially for horror fans. 8 CDs, 9 hours 38 minutes.

Better than expected - First off, my favorite film is Jaws and this novel has an almost impossible task of living up to that, but I decided to read this as an original piece of fiction and tried to review it as such, not letting the film sway me either way.
SPOILERS!!!!

The bad? The romance between Hooper and Ellen covers about 60-70 pp in the middle of the book and feels like so much filler. It brings the novel's momentum almost to a complete halt. The same could be said about Vaughn and his involvement with the Mafia although it is not nearly as prominant and is much more tolerable.

The good? The rest of it. The opening scene with the girl being attacked is exceedingly well done as are the rest of the scenes in this fine novel. None of the characters are the same as in the film, not really, but they are still interesting. I found the hunt for the shark to be thrilling, frightening and vividly drawn, and I liked the different ending, where the shark simply dies from its wounds and is held up by the barrels, with Quint there, too. Simple, beautiful writing, very effective. And I found the scene where Hooper goes down in the shark cage even better than in the film.

Is it as good as the film? No, but the next time I read it, I am skipping over the whole part of the Hooper-Ellen affair and going on from there.

Oh, and the HC is a nice edition for the price.

A Novel with Bite. - This is a great book. This book is about a twenty foot Great White Shark, that has acquired a taste for human flesh. They are out to kill it. (Reminds my of when my friend's neighbor's dog got into their chickens, you have to kill an animal if it has acquired a taste for something you don't want it to.) Well anyways if yo want a book about a Great White with out all the mutations and the prehistorical crap, then this is the book for you.

Martin Brody and the great white shark - This thriller is the book that began the shark craze of the mid 1970s and resulted in the blockbuster movie of the same name. The book details the everyday life of Amity's police chief Brody as it does the fish that terrorizes the island's summer patrons who have no idea of the danger that lurks near the beaches. The shark senses the presence of prey in the area and circles menacingly for several days as it waits for the opportunity to feed. Brody's relationship with his wife is a major issue in the book that is absent from the film and creates tension between him and a young man from the naval oceanographic institute whose expertise on sharks and their habits may bring closure to the horror that is gripping the island's vacationers and the merchants who need their business for the coming summer. Narrator Erik Steele brings Peter Benchley's novel to life with a delightful nuanced reading and makes a fine story a great audiobook experience.

1975 Film Awards - The movie deserved its awards.

Before starting this book, I so looked forward to all the details that are normally left out of the movie, those tidbits that they ruthlessly edited out of scenes to shrink a few hundred pages into an hour and a half movie.

Yet to my surprise most of those scenes didn't exist in the book. To the point that on a few occasions I found myself checking the cover to make sure I had the right book.

For my personal taste, this is one of the few books in which the movie was better.

Slow, Ponderous, Thank God for Spielberg - We listened to this audiobook on a recent cross-country car trip, and I was surprised by how boring it was.

Benchley is simply not a very good writer, and his tangents and obsessions with food (the ordering sequence at the restaurant took forever!) reflect a mid-70s sensibility that seems horribly dated now.

Spielberg made some significant changes to the plot and characters, as well as the narrative -- all for the better.

While I found it interesting at times, it is no match for the movie.