The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi Review

The Kaiju Preservation Society is John Scalzi's first standalone adventure since the conclusion of his New York Times bestselling Interdependency trilogy.
 

When COVID-19 sweeps through New York City, Jamie Gray is stuck as a dead-end driver for food delivery apps. That is, until Jamie makes a delivery to an old acquaintance, Tom, who works at what he calls “an animal rights organization.” Tom’s team needs a last-minute grunt to handle things on their next field visit. Jamie, eager to do anything, immediately signs on.
 

What Tom doesn't tell Jamie is that the animals his team cares for are not here on Earth. Not our Earth, at least. In an alternate dimension, massive dinosaur-like creatures named Kaiju roam a warm, human-free world. They're the universe's largest and most dangerous panda and they're in trouble.
 

It's not just the Kaiju Preservation Society who have found their way to the alternate world. Others have, too. And their carelessness could cause millions back on our Earth to die.

Imagine taking loose elements of Jurassic Park, bioengineer some crazy science fiction dinosaurs crossed with nuclear reactors, multiverse the research center onto an alien planet, and finally infuse the story with geeky pop culture references and endless popcorn entertainment. If that sounds wild, I’ve done a great job at recreating the feel of John Scalzi’s refreshingly fun The Kaiju Preservation Society. Light-hearted, comically giddy, and always unapologetically nerdy, for fans of the pop-cultured inspired side of science fiction, this novel is an absolute romp! Acknowledged by Scalzi himself as not being the most nuanced or mature novel of his works, The Kaiju Preservation Society is a fast-paced joyride and a breath of fresh air in a genre that can often take itself too seriously.

This novel sees certified geek Jamie Gray, a recently fired marketing member whose master’s thesis was on the bioengineering in science fiction culture, recruited into a secretive international research program following an uber eats-style delivery gig at the height of the Covid19 pandemic. Yes, that intro alone should give you a good idea of how gleefully prodding and casually self-aware the story is shooting to be. Many prototype vaccines, hrs on the plane, and a crash course through a nuclear-powered device later, Jamie arrives at an alternate world devoid of humans (apart from the research team) but inhabited by various gigantic Godzilla/Lovecraft-inspired monsters referred to as Kaiju (though to be frank, if you don’t know already have the base sci-fi knowledge of what a Kaiju is, it’s a sign this novel is not going to be for you). A manual labor grunt surrounded by accomplished doctorates of various fields, the story follows Jamie’s exploration and discoveries of the Kaiju and this foreign planet, as well as what it truly means to be employed and part of The Kaiju Preservation Society.

“The only real question is, who are the monsters?” “They ask that question in every monster movie, you know. It’s an actual trope.” “I know,” Tom said. “What does it say about us that it’s relevant every single time they ask it?”

Now I will fully acknowledge and admit that from a literary perspective, The Kaiju Preservation Society is decidedly not a shining example of dramatic or lyrical prose, nor is it a sweeping futuristic alien planet space opera one would expect for the genre (please see Scalzi’s Old Man’s War or The Interdependency series). Clocking it at only around 260 pages both on Tor’s ebook and hardcover editions, the story is a fast-paced read that has the feel and complexity of a novella. However, despite some of the occasional science fiction details being skimped over in places and the novel lacking a clear narrative direction until the last third of the book, The Kaiju Preservation Society is pure sci-fi action movie flick fun. While a good portion of the book doesn’t really have much of a story, you almost don’t care because the tasks and activities Jamie does on a day to day are so entertaining. There are many moments that feel like a cross between Jurassic Park’s bioengineering crossed with a Steve Irwin discovery documentary crossed with Top Gun if you swap fighter jets for helicopters. It’s wild, kind of unhinged, and shouldn’t work, yet it’s perfectly pitched with specific types of readers in mind.

I don’t mean this as a negative point, but the Kaiju Preservation Society screams and embraces the sci-fi/fantasy geek culture and is almost pitched like an anti-normie sucker punch that no doubt explains its often-polarizing reviews. From names of devices outright stolen intentionally from sci-fi works (a character wonders if they can be sued for copyright), to kaiju’s being named Edward and Bella, the humor and comical chops will either fully work for readers or come off as cringy; the tone is quite liberal and slightly dude-y, warning for conservative or sensitive readers. The character development and personalities are quite simplistic and limited, but the dialogue is so funny that you don’t really notice unless you look carefully. Full of lowkey sarcasm and jokes that often hinge incorporate irony, the story’s ragtag team of researchers are a lot of fun, a little crass, and reminds me of the Murderbot Diaries. While first and foremost a science fiction story/fantasy story, The Kaiju Preservation Society is nearly as much a humorous comedy.

“I was just thinking that Edward’s Tumescent Cloaca would have been an excellent band name.” “Emo, obviously,” Kahurangi said. “Their first album glistened with promise, but their follow-up was a little flaccid.” “Their third album was really shitty.” “To be fair, the competition was stiff that year.” “I just thought that they should have showed more spunk.”

While not quite Scalzi’s best example for world-building and science fiction theorizing, beyond its joyful tone and sass, The Kaiju Preservation Society actually has some pretty interesting science concepts introduced. While superficially resembling Godzilla, the Kaiju exists as a mix of living biology meshed with a nuclear reaction system. On paper this sounds random, at least for those not familiar with Godzilla, but the nuclear angle is used to explain other Kaiju’s signature atomic breath as well as how they’re able to exceed the typical living size limits of the square-cube law. Besides the energy-related concepts, the Tanaka research station also has some fascinating concepts of self-sufficiency, as well as preventative mechanisms to discourage the base from being attacked by the kaiju and other forms of life on the inhospitable planet. Due to the lack of satellite connections, the Kaiju are fitted with trackers and live information and footage are recorded and relayed using aerostat balloons similar to the real aerostat radar system. Certain team members are tasked with developing synthetic pheromones to trigger certain reactions or movement of the kaiju or to mask unwanted activities. While there are certainly areas where explanations or science theories that are skipped over (I found the kaiju’s visual descriptions to be particularly vague and lacking), the science fiction details aren’t a slouch either and in my opinion are appropriately developed to suit the novel’s shorter length. On a side note, I find it hilarious how some reviews criticize the book for info-dumping its theories or droning on about confusing science mumbo jumbo, hence why I mention that this book is not for and even makes fun of normies; case and point, Jamie’s ignorant and ridiculed ex-boss Rob Sanders.

While it’s neither perfect nor mass appealing, The Kaiju Preservation Society was clearly not written with either of those goals in mind. Instead, what it delivers is a quick and upbeat blast of sci-fi entertainment paired with a surprisingly clever and unique premise. Featuring great mix of camp, humor and science fiction, it’s the perfect material for an action movie adaptation with its kaiju featurette and unique visuals. This is likely a great tonal warmup to his recently published When the Moon Hits Your Eye, another Scalzi novel that’s a mix of silly humor with speculative science fiction theming which is also on my to-read list (not to mention Starter Villain). An off-the-wall pick but certainly one that will bring a smile to most sci-fi readers’ faces, the Kaiju Preservation Society is a hit! If not, kindly take a seat next to Bella while she’s venting and minutes away from spontaneous nuclear combustion-