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| Image courtesy of www.amazon.com |
The first Asian-American writer at 'Road & Track' - one of the big three American automotive publications - and having led a charge of Asian-American representation within the automotive journalism industry, he's now turned his attention to fiction. He's very much incorporated his 20 years of experience into this debut novel, and I am here to tell you all about it because it's absolutely brilliant.
So what's The Prototype about? The main character is an Asian-American automotive journalist and gamer named Stockton Clay, who isn't well respected by his co-workers and is a tad down on his luck. He then receives a formal request directly from Tetsuro Kanda, the head of the world leading automotive manufacturer Kamita Motors, to attend an announcement about the future of Kamita Motors, which includes the launch of a secret prototype supercar.
However unbeknownst to Stockton, once he arrives at the location of the big Kamita Motors reveal, an attempt is made on his life and he is caught in the middle of the conflict between the CIA and a mad Russian scientist who is on the verge of upsetting the balance of world power. As Stockton fights for his survival, he discovers unknown things about his life, including his true identity.
Alright so if you've got the book, you'll know I essentially copied the summary of the plot on the back of the book but you have to admit, it really gets you invested, doesn't it? Well I can happily report that the story doesn't disappoint.
One thing I will say about The Prototype is, not trying to say it's predictable or formulaic because it isn't, but something of this sort of story and nature being so attached to a lot of elements I can identify with as a automotive and motorsport enthusiast, it really appeals to me. Just to deviate for a moment, back in 2013 when I saw the movie Rush, seeing the story I knew so well being shown in a way that made it appealing to anyone who wasn't necessarily into motorsport, I appreciated that so much. The Prototype evoked those same feelings that Rush did, with my automotive and motorsport wired mind being able to share it with someone who isn't necessarily into any of that stuff. It opens a door for that sort of thing to be possible, and I have to commend Mitani for that.
Something that Mitani does which I love is how deep he goes into describing very minor details, he definitely takes his experience from being an automotive journalist and pours it into this. He's describing the kind of leather a seat has in a helicopter, or he's having the character remember very specific things about whatever model of vehicle he's in that it would have a spare luggage compartment in a stated area in the model.
Also when he is describing the cars themselves and how they behave, even when the car is a Kamita and therefore completely and utterly fictional, you can really set it apart from another car. They aren't just transportation boxes, Mitani really writes about these cars in a very individual manner, you can really imagine yourself driving a little K-car, or a mildly quick sportscar or even the unimaginably powerful prototype.
He's the same when it comes to environment and location, whether that be describing locations of buildings in Tokyo or even the surrounding area of either Fuji Speedway overlooked by Mount Fuji or the endless sea of horrific looking paint at Paul Ricard, with an airport right next to it.
These little details could come across as annoying to the average reader, but in truth it adds so much more to the story, it really immerses you in the world. Not only that, during the Kamita announcement - no spoilers, go read the book - I was pretty damn happy with what I was reading! It offers a peak further into the world that Mitani has built, and I kind of wished we could see more of what he teased us with there. I hate being so cryptic about it, I do apologise but I just don't want to spoil the surprise, even if overall that element isn't a huge part of the story.
As for the story itself, Mitani knows exactly how to write intrigue and action, normally action in written descriptive form is very weak and whilst it tries to pull you in, normally it falls flat. Mitani on the other hand, he never fails to keep you reading, even in the calmer parts of the novel, it never has inconsistent flow and you're not trying to wade through these slower parts in preparation for the next big action scene. The way Mitani writes it, the story lends itself incredibly well to visual media, like a graphic novel or on the screen, more on that later.
Now I mentioned how Rush really impacted me and that The Prototype did so as well in a very similar manner. I bring this up because something I've already mentioned about The Prototype, is that it takes a lot of elements of thrillers and allows the audience who are that of a thriller loving disposition, but allows the story to ring familiar with those who love motor vehicles and thus it bridges a gap between those two audiences.
The reason I mention this is because the story also contains some twists, quite farfetched ones that maybe you'll read and be like "Really?", and that isn't me trying to criticise it. Being someone who doesn't get to identify and enjoy a lot of media to do with cars and motorsport, having something which does retain a lot of familiar elements within the genre but allows me to also read about it as a motoring enthusiast, it's something I really appreciate. Maybe your average thriller loving avid reader would be tired of the oversaturated elements within these novels, maybe they'll call it formulaic, but I as someone who doesn't get to read a lot of stories like this, it felt great to feel legitimised, exactly like when I sat in the auditorium for the first time in late 2013 to watch Rush.
I hope I put that last paragraph well. The last thing I want to do is call this book predictable or formulaic, because it really isn't. It's familiar, and assuring, it's not out of place among a plethora of other renowned thriller novels.
So overall, I absolutely loved The Prototype, and I appreciate Sam Mitani. He follows me on Twitter now and we have exchanged words before, I think he likes having a very vocal supporter and I assure everyone, he's very down to earth and is just honoured to be in the position that he is in.
Right I want to talk momentarily about something I touched briefly upon, and this is how Sam started following me in the first place, I mentioned that this novel would work well on a screen, and in the case I am about to talk about, a movie.
Now I know I've had this sort of belief about a novel being made into a movie before whether that be the Megan series by Mary Hooper, or The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. But as naïve as I may sound, I'm absolutely positive about the possibilities with this one even if I acknowledge the potential hurdles. So I tried unsuccessfully to get the attention of beloved actor Ken Jeong - who appeared recently in a movie called Crazy Rich Asians - on Twitter with as much as I could say in 280 characters about The Prototype.
I mention Crazy Rich Asians there because I know how important that movie is. With Sam Mitani being Asian-American and the characters in this story being mostly either of Eastern descent or directly from Far East Asia, a movie about these characters would require some Asian talent both in front and behind the camera. Unfortunately, there is a stigma or some hesitation from big Hollywood studios to steer clear of stories made about characters who are minorities, and even taking Asian derived stories and completely whitewashing them. But as we are thankfully approaching a future now where representation will certainly become the norm, The Prototype has come along at the right time for a movie to be made about it and it be an attractive option for studios.
Crazy Rich Asians was adapted from a 2013 novel of the same name by an author named Kevin Kwan and it was greeted to glowing reception, so the movie rights were picked up by Warner Bros after a heated battle with Netflix in 2016. The movie was directed by Jon M. Chu, whose work that went before was never really that of a glowing filmography but the reception was incredible, both critically and financially, with it making $238.5M on a $30M production budget. This success has guaranteed that the two follow-ups to Crazy Rich Asians - 2015's China Rich Girlfriend and 2017's Rich People's Problems - are also being adapted for the big screen.
With Crazy Rich Asians paving the way for Asian representation in media, a movie based on The Prototype and the themes that it possesses can open more doors for this to become the norm, with the themes of The Prototype being more thriller-based (a genre which typically gets more butts on the seats in the movie auditorium), studios may be more inclined to put the money behind this.
I even have Henry Golding from Crazy Rich Asians in mind to portray Stockton Clay, his career is on the up and he's well on his way to potentially becoming a solidified star of movies, and a movie like The Prototype could be well what he needs to kickstart that career leap into movement. I know I have people in mind for the other characters, like Tao Okamoto of 'The Wolverine' fame as the character Maki Takano, and Ken Watanabe as Tetsuro Kanda, and many more in mind but for the life of me, I wish I could remember the names of the characters but I do remember visioning people like Donnie Yen and Joel Kinnaman in the some specific roles. That last one being for the Russian agent because of how intimidating he was in Child 44.
The faith I have in this story is unbreakable and I am fully confident that this will make a great and successful movie, I don't know what detailing it here will do for the cause but I just need to say it. I had a brief talk at one point with Mitani a few months ago telling him about something, that being if he could have Kazunori Yamauchi - since he's quite friendly with him - recreate the very car that is featured within the story, in Gran Turismo. If a movie was indeed ever made, maybe as a part of the marketing, Polyphony could indeed recreate the Kamita prototype in either the current Gran Turismo title or a future installment depending on when the movie is green-lit and which GT game is out by then.
Anyway I know this is called a book review and I have just rambled nonsensically about all that but if you know me by now, this is what you have come to expect of me. But I do hope nonetheless that you enjoyed what I had to say and that you feel inclined to pick up a copy of The Prototype. If you want to do so, here's a link that will undoubtedly help you with that. - https://www.amazon.com/Prototype-Should-Existed-Depends-Survival/dp/1641369760
As for Sam himself, he's rather active on Twitter so go follow him @SamMitani and stay tuned to what he has planned next, he tells me he's already hard at work on his next project though for obvious reasons, I know about as much as you regarding what it's about. Even though I tried to suggest to him that he be the one to write a novel about a GT Academy winner, whether he does or not, who knows? I am confident that he will be writing about something to do with cars, and well, that's all the assurance I need.
Alright! That'll be all from me, thank you ever so much for reading. If you like what you see here and want to see more, either drop your email into the 'Follow By Email' option in the top right if you're on desktop, or follow me on Twitter @TheLucaFormat or even both! You can do whatever, it's a free country, maybe, to an extent. Hope to see you all back here soon.
Until we meet again.
Luca.
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