Jumper Griffins Story
Steven Gould wrote Jumper: Griffin's Story as a tie-in to the 2008 film Jumper, an adaptation of his novel of the same name. The novel, released on August 21, 2007, focuses on Griffin, an original character created by screenwriter David S. Goyer specifically for the film, and adapted from Goyer's script for the film. Because Griffin had not appeared in the two prior novels, Gould developed Jumper: Griffin's Story as a backstory of the character's early childhood before the film. When writing the novel, Gould had to work closely with a producer of the film to ensure that the story did not conflict with the film's premise.[1]
Jumper Griffins Story
The novel focuses on the character Griffin, who was created by screenwriter David Goyer specifically for the film. Because Griffin had not appeared in Gould's two prior Jumper novels (dealing with David Rice and Millie Harrison), Gould developed Jumper: Griffin's Story as a backstory of the character's early childhood before the film. When writing the novel, Gould had to work closely with a producer of the film to ensure that the story did not conflict with the film's premise.
Jumper: Griffin's Story is an extension of the movie, Jumper, that starred Hayden Christensen. This version tells the story of the Jumper, Griffin, which was portrayed by Jamie Bell in the movie and voiced by him in the game, telling the backstory of how he learned of being a jumper and the family tragedy that lead him into war against the Paladins.
Jumper: Griffin's Story is actually the background story forthe character Griffin O'Connor who will appear in the movie Jumper,based on Stephen Gould's novels Jumper (1993) and Reflex (2004), whichare about another jumper named Davy. The author also notes this book is meantto follow the story of the movie, not the other novels. This book wouldprobably be best suited for more mature teen readers as there is some sexualcontent in it. There are several characters who speak in Spanish or French inthis story as Griffin becomes fluent in both. This can be a littledistracting at times for readers who can't understand those languagesbut might also be a good way to inspire students to learn another language.The Languages also help give a global sense to Griffin's abilities as hecan literally go anywhere, any time. Overall it is an enjoyable story. Thoseinterested in superhero stories or science fiction would probably especiallyenjoy it.
Fifteen-year-old Eragon believes he is merely a poor farm boy - until his destiny as a Dragon Rider is revealed. Gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. Now, his choices could save - or destroy - the empire.
In a day when the young adult reader has been bombarded with wizards and magic, here is a completely different type of story for them to read. It is a follow-up to the first book penned by this author ten years ago, Jumper, which is a major motion picture due to be released by 20th Century Fox/New Regency Enterprises in February 2008. Griffin's Story is the backstory of a character created for the movie. As I was unfamiliar with the first book, I had reservations about enjoying this one. The author proved those reservations misplaced.
The storyline is mainly dark with a few happy highlights sprinkled throughout. Life is difficult when you are on the run, and this story touches on many of the difficulties faced by a fugitive. Young adults may be able to identify with many aspects of the story: loneliness, frustration with authority, sexual exploration, the value of and pain of losing those you love. Steven Gould also touches on questioning the wisdom and abilities of the establishment to make the right decisions.
At times, the movement of the story is unclear, with no definite resolution in the horizon, no denouement, which is irritating to me as a reader. It is obvious that this is a story to build the background of a character. I am unsure if my unfamiliarity with the future of this character affected my frustration with the story. Perhaps if I knew where the story was headed, I would have enjoyed the book even more.
Steven Gould WebsiteISFDB BibliographySF Site Review: ReflexSF Site Review: Blind WavesSF Site Review: HelmSF Site Interview: Steven Gould and Laura J. MixonA review by Jayme Lynn Blaschke Advertisement Jumper: Griffin's Story is, to say the least, an odd bird. I'm not quite sure another book like it exists. It isa tie-in to the David Liman-directed science fiction action film, Jumper, starring Hayden Christensen andSamuel L. Jackson. The movie itself is loosely based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Steven Gould, taking the corepremise from the book and essentially re-inventing everything else. When the time came to produce the inevitable movie tie-in,one presumes Gould stepped up to the plate in order to preserve the spirit of his original work (and its 2005sequel, Reflex), even though the film's universe differs in significant ways from the source material.Got that?Griffin O'Conner is a major character in the film, one that doesn't exist in Gould's other novels. Jumper: Griffin'sStory certainly qualifies for this year's Truth-In-Advertising awards, because that is exactly what the novel is: thebackstory of Griffin, giving readers the inside story on how this disaffected young man gets to the point where cinema goersfirst encounter him on the silver screen. It sounds awkward, and, in truth, it is. But Gould has a personal stake in thisproperty, and the end result is a novel with far more heart than any movie-tie in deserves.Griffin is a jumper -- a rare human with the ability to teleport to any place he has physically been. After his ability firstmanifested itself at age 5, sinister men began showing up, asking probing questions, and his family was forced to flee theUnited Kingdom. When Griffin is 9, living a normal life in San Diego, California, he accidentally jumps in front of witnessesand very quickly the goon squad shows up again. Only this time, Griffin barely escapes with his life. His parents are notso fortunate. The killers are self-styled "Paladins," members of a super-secret, conspiratorial organization dedicated tohunting down and eradicating jumpers -- preferably when they're young and defenseless. The Paladins are sensitive to jumpers,and can detect teleportation activity within a certain radius. They have a nasty arsenal of weaponry at their disposal aswell. Thus begins an extended game of cat-and-mouse, with Griffin managing to stay one step ahead of his pursuers, althoughnever quite as far ahead of them as he would like to believe.Two things hamper Jumper: Griffin's Story, preventing it from reaching its full potential as a stand-alone novel. Firstis the fact that it is a back story movie tie-in. Griffin's story doesn't come to any real resolution -- his fate is left quiteopen-ended, and what little closure he achieves pales in significance to the larger issues at stake. This is to be expectedto some degree -- after all, if Griffin's story were indeed resolved, there'd be little left for the movie -- but onecan't help but wonder what Gould could've achieved had he not been fettered by the restrictions of a tie-in. The secondflaw is that Griffin's coming of age, mastery of his powers and initial grasps of independence echo the character arc ofDavy in the original Jumper a bit too much. Bank robbery and hidden desert fortresses are all well and good, butit exposes a weakness in Gould's writing process -- something that up unto this point had been a great strength. Gould isa ruthlessly logical writer. He takes a fantastical premise and tuns it inside out, attacking it with steadyrationality until he comes away with situations, solutions and consequences that ring true. Because they aretrue -- if such fantastic abilities existed. And any person facing the same situations would make very much the samechoices simply because that's the logical course of action. Except that all people aren't rational. Heck, most of the peopleI encounter on a daily basis are anything but. That both Davy and Griffin are both able to "work the problem" in socalculating a manner, like a super-powered NASA flight controller, stretches the borders of credibility more than alittle. Then again, this is a novel about teleporting kids and the people who hunt them.Shortcomings aside, Jumper: Griffin's Story is easily the best movie tie-in anyone will read this year, and theodds-on favorite to be the best of the decade. It confronts the limitations of the form head-on, and in many cases overcomesthem. At its worst, it's a meandering biography with some nifty action sequences thrown in. At its best, however, it's afascinating alternate reality exploration of those same questions he posed in the original Jumper, seen throughthe warped glass of a funhouse mirror.Copyright 2008 Jayme Lynn BlaschkeJayme Lynn Blaschke writes science fiction and fantasy as well as related non-fiction.A collection of his interviews, Voices of Vision: Creators of Science Fiction and Fantasy Speak, is availablefrom the University of Nebraska Press. He is also a contributor to the group blog No Fear of the Future,which can be found at nofearofthefuture.blogspot.com.If you find any errors, typos or anything else worth mentioning,please send it to editor@sfsite.com.Copyright 1996-2014 SF Site All Rights Reserved Worldwide
Developer(s): Collision StudiosPublisher(s): Brash Entertainment (US), Eidos Interactive (EU, AU)Genre: ActionWikipedia: LinkGame review links: Metacritic: 34/100Game description: Jumpers, people with a genetic anomaly that enables them to teleport themselves instantaneously to anywhere on the globe, have existed for centuries. An age-old battle rages between the Jumpers and the Paladins, a clandestine organization set on eliminating them from the planet. The Jumper game extends the film's storyline, following Griffin, a battle-hardened Jumper determined to avenge the death of his parents at the hands of the Paladins. 041b061a72