Dinosaur Beach

I've been a fan of Keith Laumer since the 1960s. Most of his novels are considered "light" science fiction, but that doesn't begin to describe the strength of the writing. He usually seems not to take his own stories very seriously, but that's just his writing style. I guarantee he labored hard over them. Dinosaur Beach is one of his more serious efforts, and in my opinion his best work. The main character is a time traveler, on a mission to undo a lot of damage done to the timestream by previous time-travelers. The book starts, in typical Laumer fashion, with the main character being warned that he's about to he murdered. He's not impressed with the news, and asks what business the guy has telling someone they were going to die, even if it's true. Things get crazier and crazier, and in the end, make perfect sense. Laumer is a master at creating situations where things get so screwed up that one starts to think no author could make sense out of it, and then he proceeds to make such perfect sense of it that the reader asks himself how he didn't see it coming. And in the meantime, as one tries to unravel the plot, the writing style keeps the reader marvelously entertained, never letting up on the pace and keeping us guessing at every turn. I've read this book several times, and lent it to friends so often that I had to buy it again twice. This is a science fiction classic, and a masterpiece.

This book can be read on many levels. At once it is a love story, a book about time travel, war, the future of mankind and above all, consciousness itself.Perhaps I am reading too much into this little novel, but it struck me on a very deep level. The last 3 chapters of the book have a poignancy for me which I will never forget, which, upon reading it again, still brings a tear to my eye. It speaks to me of the nature of consciousness itself, which is not destructive, but loving.To me this is a superbly written classic, a beautiful novel that can be read as just good SF, or as a description of the universal nature of consciousness.I rank this little book at the very top echelon of the greatest SF of all time; indeed as one of the best works of fiction I've ever read.

This one is pretty much definitive. It will keep your attention. Tersely and well written. Pretty amazing considering how early in Keith Laumer's career this was - a pretty diverse guy in style.

Put this on the shelf next to The Big Time-- together these books say everything interesting there is to say about time travel based warfare. This is one of Laumer's best, with a nice balance between his silly and his serious sides. Highly recommended-- hope it's back in print soon.

I read Dinosaur Beach years ago; the delightful imagination and use of the time travel angle coupled with a love story made an interesting and wide ranging yarn. One of my Laumer favorites. I actually met with Keith Laumer in 1986 at his island house in Florida, and among other interesting topics, he stated that the book was even being considered for a movie at one time.