Waterworld

by Max Allan Collins

In a future world of global warming that has covered all land masses with water, a single man learns of the possibility of dry land and challenges the remaining human survivors to help in the search. Original. Movie tie-in.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Novels, Dystopia, Adventure, Romance

324 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 2006.

He has also published under the name Patrick Culhane. He and his wife, Barbara Collins, have written several books together. Some of them are published under the name Barbara Allan.

Book Awards
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1984) : True Detective
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1992) : Stolen Away
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1995) : Carnal Hours
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1997) : Damned in Paradise
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1999) : Flying Blind: A Novel about Amelia Earhart
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (2002) : Angel in Black

Japanese: マックス・アラン・コリンズ
or マックス・アラン コリンズ

Reviews

[Ben Boocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first novel that I read in my life. I was in fourth grade and won it from a Scholastic book fair contest in which my class had to design bookmarks that promoted reading. I drew a kid catching the novel Moby Dick with a fishing pole. I had no idea what Moby Dick was about and would not read it until nearly two decades later, but just knew it was about whaling and thought it would be a funny concept. Somehow that won and I was allowed to pick one book from Scholastic's shelves for free. I don't remember why it was this one. I don't even remember much about this book. Maybe I picked it because the film was rated PG-13 and I was not allowed to see such movies. Maybe I thought the contents of the novel would be salacious and eye-opening to my delicate fourth grader sensibilities. Whatever the reason, I'm glad I did because even though I don't remember much about the actual novel, I remember thoroughly enjoying it. This novel, as silly as it may seem, became my gateway novel to a lifelong interest in reading. So thank you Max Allan Collins, Waterworld, and the Scholastic book fair.

[Phair · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so taken with the film that I immediately sought out the novelization which in fact did have "more of the story" than made it to the screen. Excellent book that allowed me to enter and expand on the visual experience of Waterworld through my minds eye. Critics be damned- one of my all time favorite films with characters and images that stay with me. The novelization did it justice and more.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well this was an undertaking. A 324 page novelization is impressive, for the average novelization is typically closer to but not much over 200 pages.

This movie has a rep. It is what it is, you can see my review on Letterboxd if you want to know what I think. I don't hate it. I was super curious how this would add context and information to that world. And it does, but not as much as you'd think. I mean, there's a lot of info here, but not a lot of context. More scenes, more dialogue, not much more building out the world.

Still, not bad. I won't say it necessarily fixes everything, a few of the motivations for the Mariner are adjusted, but there are still some issues with him. Overall, I liked this.

[Menion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hey, say what you want about movie tie-ins, they do have some advantages. They are a lot like 'Star Trek' books; they are cotton candy for the brain. They taste good, go down fast, and take no thinking. That's not a bad thing!
You don't need the plot for this one-you know it, or you should! Main thing I liked is it did breathe more life into the fighting sequences (more shooting and more descriptive in this one than the film) and it did add in some of the parts missing from the original film, although some of said parts did show up in the longer version released for TV. It also added a few more details on the Mariner and the Deacon, although I would have loved more on the Deacon, and how he came to recruit his crew and choose the Valdez as his base. He was such a great character! Too bad they never released the original full film. Hell, they managed it with 'Aliens' after years, why not 'Waterworld?'
Last thought: don't use the tired old line 'oh, REAL authors would never write a movie tie-in!' Alan Dean Foster, Terry Brooks, and even Orson Scott Card have done it, and no one would say they are not 'real' authors. Hell, Foster's 'Alien' and 'Aliens' tie-ins are STILL in print, and it has been over 30 years since they were published! Just pick up the 'Waterword' tie-in, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. It's a good ride!

[Louise TM · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is impossible to grade: It is so absolutely horrible that it does not even deserve a single star - yet it is also so absolutely horrible that is serves as stellar entertainment landing it a dazzling 4 stars.

(Lyt til podcasten “En Verden af Vand” for et godt grin).

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

What could be better than the novelization of the greatest over-budget scifi post-apocalyptic blockbuster of the 90s? Once you've seen the movie, you owe it to yourself to read the book...

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

was a good book even though there was some swear words

[K Todd Ramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this novel adaptation to be very well done. It lacked a few elements I would typically like to see in regards to a Dystopian future, particularly the gap from apocalypse to current events. We got both but very little in between.

BUT, I thought they did a great job adapting and developing the characters AND modeling Homer's Odyssey into a modern Dystopian world.

I read this originally in Junior High and again recently, still held the same quality for me. More so now that I'm writing myself.

A SOLID 4 stars. I would recommend it as an Adult read for the higher concepts and violence, but this could easily be handled by a teenager. Especially since the climate change element in the story can greatly be related too today, still.

[Natt Cham · Rating 4 out of 5]

ย้อนความทรงจำไปกับเรื่องจากภาพยนตร์ไซไฟเรื่องเยี่ยมเมื่อสิบกว่าปีก่อน ยังสนุก แปลก แตกต่างจากเรื่องอื่นๆ ไปกับสภาพโลกที่ล่มสลาย เต็มไปด้วยนำ้ทะเล โลกที่ปราศจากดิน

โอว...ช่างมีวิสัยทัศน์จริงๆ

อุเหม่ ระยำปู อ่านไปๆ พลางนึกถึงภาพยนตร์ไซไฟ อลังการงานสร้างในปี 2015 อย่าง Mad Max: Fury Road พล็อตและตัวละครช่างคล้ายคลึงซะนี่กระไร โลกวิบัติ วีรบุรุษผู้แปลกแยก ความสัมพันธ์ที่ขัดแย้งและขาดความไว้เนื้อเชื่อใจของมนุษย์ ผจญกับเหล่าร้ายที่เชิดชูผู้นำศรัทธาลัทธิพิกลพิการ เหล่าสมุนผู้กล้าตายสนองศรัทธา

หมายเหตุ คำว่า วิสัยทัศน์ และ ระยำปู มีใช้เยอะในเล่ม. แปลกดี

[Sketching Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this, and chose to read it because I loved the film. The writer's style wasn't always to my taste, I think I would have liked a little more description with it, of the boat and it's hidden compartments, what it looked like inside, and how it felt being on board it. Although having said that, the emphasis is on action more in this novel, as is the film. I could picture the actors playing the roles, and the characters did come to life for me. So an enjoyable read!

[Giada Ciriello · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trovato per caso dopo aver visto il film che da bambina adoravo, ebbene il libro e molto meglio del film. E molto più affascinate seppur molto simile, io lo consiglio

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better books based off of the success of a movie, not perfect but still fun.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool world building, meh story

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well-written novelisation of a pretty bonkers film.

[Jonathan-David Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked Waterworld when I saw it more than 20 years ago, and now I also like this book.

[Red__Violet · Rating 2 out of 5]

why

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has been a seriously long while since I have seen the movie and I know that it wasn't one of those classic hits that someone is going to remember in about a century unless they are a true fan. But all in all it was a great one that allowed the introduction of green theories on how the world would end and how it would end up affecting the human race while at the same time capturing in great detail the classic human response to an emergency.

Unfortunately when you are trying to condense a movie into a book, especially a young adult book, it usually takes a bunch out that it doesn't think is really important while making the book shallow. Although the book's plot makes sense if you are comparing it to the pictures that are included from the film then you know there are a few holes in the story.

The writing is simple to understand and although there is some violence in the book it isn't the graphic stuff that you see nowadays. All in all a quick and easy read that will either take the reader back to the old movie or bring a new reader into a world that many haven't thought of since its appearance in Hollywood.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

We loved the movie, now we can tell what everyone is thinking in the book. It's not all stoic self-reflection by our hero and pouting beauty by our heroine. These are real people in a story that could really happen if we don't stop driving and using electricity...tomorrow. Earth is flooded and it's a race to find land...if there is any?

Very close to the book, but with plenty of "new" things that makes it more than a rerun of a movie I've seen about a half dozen times. Yes...I'll watch it one more time with you.

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic novel by Max Collins turned into a classic SYFY movie starting Kevin Costner. The book is easy to read and following to The story line is simple. I like to say the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. There are interesting areas and a few hiccups in the novel. The movie follows the storyline as much as possible, but Hollywood is Hollywood. The novel is an excellent read for the genre and the movable is a classic SYFY adventure.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely a great book! I heard that the movie wasn't super great, but I thought this book was real terrific.

[Beauregard Shagnasty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another decent adaptation from a very prolific writer.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth reading.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I assume most readers of Waterworld have seen the film and, like me, sought after the novelization out of curiosity. They likely wanted to see if the novelization added anything to the story. In short: yes, it does, sort of. I haven't seen the extended cut of Waterworld and I'm guessing the novelization is based off of that version. So the average Waterworld fan who has only seen the theatrical cut will get some added scenes here as well as some internal monologue that adds to the characters. But is it worth reading this novelization?

Well... perhaps not.

If you are easily annoyed by peculiar writing styles you may want to rethink this one. There is an overabundance of frivolous usage of ellipses. I'm no professional writer but I'm pretty sure you aren't meant to place three or four dots after sentences willy-nilly. There are an obnoxious amount of dots after sentences.... It's rather strange... I'm not sure why any writer would do this.... ESPECIALLY a professional one...

As a result, sadly, by the end of the novel it was a chore to get through. The last bunch of chapters dragged.

I do think Waterworld is a shamefully underrated movie. This book adds to the story a little bit. But I wanted more.

[Edward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple as. You loved the film you’ll love the book, well written and adds a bit more depth. Alternatively if you were not a fan of the film then you’ll likely find the book of similar merit. I loved the film and fee the same about the novelisation.

[dzula · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ | Na początku nie umiałam się wdrążyć w historię przez zbyt dużą ilość informacji, ale później szło już dobrze.

[Heather Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple retelling of the film; not at all in depth in terms of lore or establishing more of the world. It was nice to refresh my memory on parts of the movie I had forgotten.

[Lee Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the further folk heroification of the Mariner.

[Juan Chan Gómez · Rating 5 out of 5]

excelente

[Morgane Le faye · Rating 3 out of 5]

niente di che

[Joy H.]

Added 3/1/11.
I did not read this book but watched the film which I borrowed as a DVD from our local library in 2009.
"Waterworld" (1995)
http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Wat...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114898/
"In a future where the polar ice caps have melted and most of Earth is underwater, a mutated mariner fights starvation and outlaw 'smokers', and reluctantly helps a woman and a young girl try to find dry land."

Reviewer Roger Ebert wrote:
===============================
"'Waterworld' is a decent futuristic action picture with some great sets, some intriguing ideas, and a few images that will stay with me. It could have been more, it could have been better, and it could have made me care about the characters. It's one of those marginal pictures you're not unhappy to have seen, but can't quite recommend."
FROM: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/p...
================================

I tend to agree.