Author: Bret Easton Ellis
Publisher/Year:
Source/Format: Bought / nook
Date Finished: DNF 7 October 2012
Buy | Borrow | Accept | Avoid
The Short and Sweet of It
As far as I can tell, this is the story of a man obsessed with clothing, sex, food, and connections who may or may not be viciously, sadistically, and happily killing people.
A Bit of a Ramble
I cannot fully express how much I hated this book. So. Very. Much. Hated, hated, hated. At least, I hated the first 147 pages of it. Getting through those pages was torture, and when I realized the book was 441 pages long, I caved in to my burning desire to just freaking stop reading.
What did I hate you might ask? Everything. If Ellis used the term "hardbody" one more time, I was going to scream. If I had to hear about what some character was wearing one more time, I was going to stab out my eyes with kitchen shears. Honestly, the writing frustrated me to the point that I started skimming - something I never do - and then even skimming became painful.
And I get it. I really do. The book is clearly an indictment of materialism and loss of identity to the mass conscious. The protagonist, Bateman, focuses on hardbodies and clothing because he is obsessed with beauty, money, and power. I appreciate the sentiment. And I really enjoyed the not-quite-subtle suggestion that societal obsessions lead to a sheepy conformity: all of the characters in the book look alike; they are constantly mistaken for each other. Their need to fit in and be seen as cool means they dress the same, talk the same, go the same places, have the same opinions, etc. They are interchangeable. I get it. But....
Nothing happens (in the first 147 pages). There are all these words and words and words, but all they do is detail and describe a shallow life. An entire chapter is dedicated to his morning routine. Kill me now.
Readers are treated to a few nasty, murderous fantasies - and a possible murder - during this first portion of the book, but honestly I didn't care. At all. Usually hearing about a guy raping some girl with a can of hairspray would evoke some sort of emotion in me. In this case, not so much. I just didn't care at all.
Some may say I didn't give the book a fair shake; after all, there are 294 pages to go. But if I try to force myself to read those pages, I may go insane.
NOTES: This book was part of the Dueling Monsters readalong sponsored by The Estella Society, Fizzy Thoughts, and Love, Laughter, and a Touch of Insanity.
All I know about this book is that I saw the movie version over a decade ago, and it still makes me sick to my stomach to think about it. I've never been able to look at Christian Bale the same again. There is no way in hell I would ever attempt to read this book, just from that alone. Now, hearing all you say about the first 150 pages, I have more reasons to avoid it...
ReplyDeleteOMG really? I was all intrigued and everything with this book being what seemed to be the perfect scary novel. Ugh, it sounds awful. I have NOT seen the movie either, which is kinda strange because it is exactly the type of thing I'd watch. Well, now I'm rethinking.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about this book. I pretty much never wanted to read Easton Ellis again after reading it. It is numbing, and the murders are horrific. I'm sorry that this one wasn't better for you. Lord knows you tried
ReplyDeleteOy! Haven't read it (or tried yet), and given my mood I may not. Your review was hilariously honest, though.
ReplyDeleteI have not read this and I can't decide if I want to. I might watch the movie and decide if it is worth it from there. Sad, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteSo...does that mean point for Hannibal??? :)
ReplyDeleteI have this one on the shelf but I just don't think I'm gonna after hearing some of the chitchat on twitter. Plus my work book club voted Fight Club (a movie I adore but is still pretty violent) for November and I just want to be DONE WITH THE MONSTERS.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! Point for Bateman, since he's so bad you couldn't finish.
DeleteRight?!?
I will admit, though, that the overuse of hardbody made me want to scream.
You know, I do wonder if this means he gets my point. I haven't finished Red Dragon yet, so we'll see....
DeleteI'm reading this now after Jill sent me the book and I totally get what you are saying. Yet part of me finds the book compelling in a strange way … almost amused by the sheer ridiculousness of his life and his interests. So far, I've only gotten to a few of the horrific scenes. I was prepared for them but not really. I can see why you felt this way, and I'm not sure this is a book that anyone can love. When Jill told me that it was on the "Books to Read Before You Die" list, I was completely surprised.
ReplyDeleteIt's best to know your limits, especially with this one. I'm still traumatized.
ReplyDeleteDo you need a hug?! I skipped over the middle half ( I did the audio) and was amazed how I felt I didn't miss a thing. Still same detached nonemotional listing of fashion and carnage. But I wanted to know how it ended but by that time, I really didn't care. Just wanted to here that dead space of it being over. I recommend Beauty Queens as a good brain cleanser!
ReplyDeleteMaybe I should skip to the end. I hear it actually gets horrific. I was just bored.
DeleteOh man, this book still has me traumatized. And it's probably good you stopped because it gets worse (in terms of graphic violence) the further into the book you get. Though more graphic violence means there's less space for him to spend 30 pages detailing every outfit everyone is wearing.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what it says about me, but I would rather have graphic violence than that boring blahblahblah of the first 150 pages.
Delete*Laughing* Sorry, I'm not laughing because you had a miserable experience with this book. But the way you describe it is hilarious. And yes, a lot of this was pretty damn tedious. Deliberately so, I think, but tedious all the same.
ReplyDeleteIn response to your latest comment at my blog (and for the sake of expediency), Please don't waste time waffling about whether or not to read the rest of it. Honestly, you get it, so just skip to the last 10 or even 5 pages and see how it 'ends' and then put it away, call it done.
ReplyDelete:)
I think I just might do that...
Delete