The Haunting of Hill House

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Summary: Marketing
Review: Just another step towards were movie studios determine whichbooks stay in print & which do not. The Dream Works logo is biggerthan the authors name.

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Summary: Hill House walks alone in your mind!
Review: Shirley Jackson creates Hill House everytime someone picks up this book. In the quirky Oz of Hill House, Eleanor and her three companions confront the monster from within and the reader is held captive by the machinations of evil which slowly and methodically devour the psyche of the hapless "Nell". The author weaves a web of images which insidiously attaches itself to personal fears of the individual reader. Although most readers remember best the scene in the bedroom when "Nell" realizes it was not Theo's hand she was holding, I urge new and old readers alike to pay close attention to the walk to the grove for an old fashioned picnic on the lawn, which devolves into a frenzied dash from what I can only describe as the source of primeval fear itself. This is undoubtedly the finest horror book ever written!

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Summary: The one "ghost" story you should read
Review: This novel by Jackson is a major work in the ghost story genre. It has fascinated me since I read it as a teen and re-read it a few times after that. The character of Eleanor is key to the novel. Jackson's economy in this novel contrasts with the bloated one of King's in the Shining ( presumably King was influenced by Jackson). But the real frisson can be found in the slowly deteriorating personality of Eleanor by the HAUNTING handled cleverly by Jackson (again contrast King's bludgeoning style in the Shining).

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Summary: Absolutely Brilliant.
Review: Shirley Jackons classic is by far one of the best book i have ever read. She is able to purvey horror not through excessive gore but through mood, atmosphere, and inference. This novel is scary on a psychological level...your imagination runs away with you when you read it. The prose flows like a smooth liquid. When you put the book down you have to take a minute and recooperate. I highly reccommend it for anyone who loves haunted house stories or who has seen the movie.

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Summary: Hill's House is great
Review: I think that "The Haunting of Hills House" is one of the most chilling books i have ever read. I hae also just found out they are making a movie on it called "The Haunting" which i am going to see as soon as it comes out

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Summary: One of the best books I have ever read
Review: The Haunting of Hill House is an excellent thriller/horror story. It can be enjoyed over and over again and one seems to find out more about Eleanor than first assumed by the second go around. I hope though that the new screen debut is better than the original. The original movie confused and annoyed me as I watched it because the other characters are not really given personalities. Eleanor's thoughts out-weighted every aspect of the movie and was very annoying. So hopefully the movie will focus on Eleanor but at the same time the power of Hill House.

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Summary: The book was a disappointment after seeing the 1963 movie.
Review: I saw the 1963 movie version of this book when I was about 10. I am now 44 and still haven't recovered. I have just finished reading the book and was totally disappointed. I did realize that it isn't so much a haunted house book as it is a psychological thriller. Still, I thought the horror part wasn't very horrible and the psychological part was not very well explored. If you want to be scared, see the 1963 movie. I know it changed me for life.

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Summary: This book is excellent.
Review: I loved this book. Shirley Jackson can truly grasp the elements of horror and use to superb detail to compliment them.

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Summary: Beautiful language gives vivid life to a herky-jerky plot
Review: Jackson's classic is garnering much attention as a new film verges on release.

I enjoyed the book and was genuinely terrified several times, but these build ups of terror are seemingly jerked to an abrupt halt before they can climax. Clearly, the haunting of the title is merely a backdrop to the true action of the book - namely Eleanor's mental disintegration. Although there are superficial parallels to The Shining, the difference is clear. In The Shining, Jack is used by the house and fights back. In The Haunting of Hill House, Eleanor is invited by the house, and she joins the party.

Once this is established, the reader's view is subtly shifted from the fear which holds all of the characters in check, to Eleanor's growing paranoia and insanity. It is this switch which leaves many readers confused.

It will be interesting to see how this plays on scree, as I must admit that I have never seen the original movie. The question is, will the new movie emphasize the haunting or the Eleanor's paranoia and madness? If it chooses the first at the expense of the second, then the movie will clearly deviate from Jackson's intent. If it, instead, stays true to form, it will be interesting to see how the Eleanor's paranoid thoughts and views will play out on screen.

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Summary: The most frightening book I have ever read!
Review: I read the Reader's Digest condensed version of this novel in the early '60s as a 12 or 13 year old. No book has ever scared me more and no horror novel has ever stayed with me like this one did. The scene where the two female characters fall asleep holding hands and then awake to find that it wasn't the other's hand they were holding was absolutely terrifying. I hope the new version of the movie lives up to the original novel. Past movies didn't do it justice.