
Robin Cook
A Critical Companion
Lorena Laura Stookey(Author)
Greenwood Press
Published on 24. September 1996
Book
Hardback
224 pages
978-0-313-29578-2 (ISBN)
Description
Like Arthur Conan Doyle before him, best-selling novelist Robin Cook has turned from the practice of medicine to that of writing popular suspense fiction. Widely recognized as the Master of the Medical Thriller, Cook uses the medium of the popular novel to address a range of social issues: environmental pollution, gender inequality in the workplace, the risks inherent in the common practice of secrecy in science research, and above all, the ramifications of medicine's transition from profession to corporate industry. This study analyzes in turn each of Cook's medical thrillers, from Coma toContagion.
Following a biographical chapter, the genre chapter examines the ways in which Cook's medical thriller incorporates plotting conventions and strategies borrowed from such popular literary genres as the science fiction novel, the murder mystery, and the gothic romance. Each novel is then examined in a separate chapter with subsections on plot, character, and theme. Stookey also offers an alternative critical approach to the novel, which gives the reader another perspective from which to read and discuss the text. A complete bibliography of Cook's fiction, general criticism and biographical sources, and listings of reviews of each novel complete the work. The only study of one of America's most popular contemporary novelists, read by adults and young adults alike, this is a key purchase for schools and public libraries.
Following a biographical chapter, the genre chapter examines the ways in which Cook's medical thriller incorporates plotting conventions and strategies borrowed from such popular literary genres as the science fiction novel, the murder mystery, and the gothic romance. Each novel is then examined in a separate chapter with subsections on plot, character, and theme. Stookey also offers an alternative critical approach to the novel, which gives the reader another perspective from which to read and discuss the text. A complete bibliography of Cook's fiction, general criticism and biographical sources, and listings of reviews of each novel complete the work. The only study of one of America's most popular contemporary novelists, read by adults and young adults alike, this is a key purchase for schools and public libraries.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
524 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-313-29578-2 (9780313295782)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
09/1996
1st Edition
Greenwood Press
€47.99
Available for download
Person
LORENA LAURA STOOKEY is a lecturer in the English Department at the University of Nevada, Reno, where she teaches courses in mythology, poetry, and British literature./e She is also interested in writing in the sciences and in language theory.
Content
Series Foreword by Kathleen Gregory Klein The Life of Robin Cook Robin Cook's Medical Thrillers Coma and Terminal Brain Godplayer and Mutation Mindbend and Harmful Intent Outbreak and Vital Signs Mortal Fear Blindsight Acceptable Risk Contagion Bibliography Index