Michael Crichton has been called a "megastar" who has made a resounding impression on the literary world. Critics applaud him as a writer who is entertaining to read and who can "elaborate a gripping high concept into a crackerjack tale" (Publishers Weekly, 1 November 1999). Often referred to as elusive or "an enigma," Crichton is a graduate of Harvard Medical School; a noted critic of contemporary social issues, including science and new art; a screenwriter, director, and producer; the executive producer for the popular television program ER; and the writer of more than twenty-five books that range in style, structure, technique, and topic from adventure, drama, mystery, and science fiction to nonfiction reporting. Crichton is credited with inventing the "techno-thriller," a work that combines technology, suspense, and contemporary social issues.
In his autobiography, Travels (1988), Crichton claims, "Writing is how you make the experience your own, how you explore what it means to you, how you come to possess it, and ultimately release it." While his literature is, to him, self-expression, it is also a craft--one of which critics and scholars have taken note.
