Rating: Summary: Manhattan in the 80s told by a serial murderer Review: This is a sick book but I am glad that I read it. This book centers around Patrick Bateman a Wall Street guy who seemingly does nothing but go out to eat at "in" spots, feed his Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, have sex with various women, shop for designer goods, and get envious if he thinks for a moment that someone may have surpassed him in any way. I found several things to be very interesting about this book, including the accurate portrayal of the 1980s in Manhattan as well as the massive amounts of detail that Ellis uses to describe clothing and home products that obsess Bateman. The murder scenes in the book are rather graphic, but really the name of the book is American Psycho not American Puppy Petter. I find that the controversy around this book is relatively unwarranted. Do I think that seven year old kids should read this? No. Do I think that adults with "normal" brain chemistry can handle this? Yes. (...)American Psycho is essentially about a man who is obsessed with posessions, and then with murder. In a way, women are one of his posessions as well as his victims. And while it may be demeaning to women in general, at the same time the main character finds everything besides himself underneath him so to make Patrick's image of women different would completely demean the theme of the book.
Rating: Summary: American anti-climax Review: To be quite honest with you, I expected big things from Bret Easton Ellis with his cult hit "American Psycho" To say I was dissapointed would be an understatement. Basically Ellis covers two topics - Yuppies and Gore. On the Yuppie side of things he does a rather good job at poking fun at materialistic, platinum am ex brandishing city slickers - a job which doesn't require the subtlest wit, but the joke quickly gets very tired then continues throughout the entire novel. On the gore side of things, Ellis goes way over the top and gets beyond gruesome and in to the realms of humourous. I couldn't help but be reminded of the "evil dead" films, which although over the top are in no way pretentious. That my friends, is basically it! Ellis pokes fun at yuppies then there is an over the top gory bit, then he pokes more fun at yuppies etc, etc, etc.. I couldn't find much of a plot, there was a very weak conclusion and to be perfectly blunt there is nothing more to discuss, Ellis has strung out enough material for about 50 pages of writing in to an entire novel then wrapped it up with a weak conclusion.
Rating: Summary: Excellently satirizes the yuppie culture Review: American Psycho, for all its controversy, should be looked at fairly for it is quite a great novel. There are aspects of the novel that are tiresome and gruesome( reading about all those killings may disturb the reader) but it is an excellent portrayal of a man, this one being a serial killer/sociopath, who is lost within the masses of those who he tries to blend in with while at the same time unconsciously screaming and lashing out for his own individuality. In his case, he kills and tortures those around him as a means of escape from this world. It also is a good example of how lonliness wears down a sould into nothingness. Patrick Bateman lives in a society so cold and greedy that human nature seems to be at stake and individuality is lost. his soul, like the ones of his friends, does not exist and lives a life that suits him best, even though many of the events he takes place in are either dreams, hallucinations or delusions. The book is extremely well written and takes risks to show the public to look at its own culture to see how morally corrupt it is. Plus, you gotta love those hilarious chapters when he talks about how significant huey lewis and genesis and whitney houston are.
Rating: Summary: Serial killer satire left me cold and empty. Review: An interesting thing happened to me while reading Ellis's American Psycho. When the controversial sex and killing spree heated up I was titillated, as it progressed I became disturbed, then disgusted, then outright offended. Then I grew bored. That's right, BORED. People were being maimed and slaughtered from left to right and the most I could think was..."is anything interesting going to happen?" When what I was thinking hit me I began to wonder if that was what Ellis had intended to do, have the reader experience the thrill, then the empty boredom, that his narrator Patrick Bateman obviously experienced. If that was the case then he succeeded. Everything else is more miss than hit. There is funny run in with a college student that Patrick mistakes for a homeless person, as well as an attempt at murder that is mistaken for a homosexual seduction, and his musings regarding the artistic validity of Whitney Houston, Huey Lewis and The News, and Phil Collins are quite snicker inducing as well. But they don't add up to a strong enough book to recommend to any but the curious interested in seeing what all the fuss the novel kicked up was about.
Rating: Summary: Terrible Review: This novel was garbage. It was terribly written. If you want a good book, read "The Shining" or "Interview With The Vampire."
Rating: Summary: dont miss the book even if you saw the movie! Review: one of the best books I have ever read. the book describes very well the time of 1980's America, time of Reagan...funny and scary! the character Bateman is superb.. I have read a Turkish translation and now planning to read it again in English.
Rating: Summary: How to kill on an unlimited budget... Review: Patrick Bateman is too young, too wealthy and too good-looking. He's on the loose in New York City, wining and dining the local ladies who seem to fall into his lap and then into his bed. He's a carefree bachelor and it's a never-ending party with a new lady every night. But rather than just stop inviting them on dates, or shuffle around with all the uncomfortable and polite conversation that ends a relationship, he just kills them. Written in first person, we find that Bateman is quirky. He can identify (or confidently assure himself that he can) every article of clothing or consumer product around him by manufacturer and retailer, but he can't seem to reckon with the people who are wearing or using the product. He's living in the 1980's fast lane, with all the money and drugs and booze that any one person can soak up. He will not be surprised by a four hundred dollar restaurant bill, but will agonize over a late-return fee for a video rental. He gets upset that his designer clothing is stained by blood when he takes a power drill to someone's face. He's extreme and he's out of control. But he doesn't get caught. No, he never ever gets caught. I can only guess that Ellis sat and thought for months about the top thirty ways to annihilate a human body. He must have pored over men and women's fashion magazines for weeks on end, just to describe all of the designer labels that Bateman identifies. It probably took hours to dream up every conceivable sexual perversion that would make even the likes of Anne Rice blush. And then he put it all into words. Even with all of this creative thinking, I believe this to be one of the most unimaginative writings that I have ever seen and certainly the most disgusting waste of good time. The story is repetitive, in an attempt to emphasize Bateman's equally repetitive daily fascination with repulsive behavior. Dear reader is intimately acquainted with Bateman's most eccentric thoughts and sometimes boys and girls; this is just a little too much. I'd strongly suggest something to read that finds its audience smiling by the end of the story. This induces smiles only to minds as twisted as the character.
Rating: Summary: Not for the faint of heart Review: This is one of those books everyone should read if only to admit each of us can have a dark side. The difference is most of us never act on those feelings. As others have said it's not for the delicate but a brilliant and disturbing book.
Rating: Summary: A modern classic Review: Patrick Bateman is a handsome, fit, wealthy Wall Street-yuppie. He is also a demented sadist and serial killer. In this fantastic novel, Ellis brings us into the mind of a serial killer so completely without remorse that it's hard to imagine such persons actually exist. The novel takes place in and around New York city in the 1980's, making the novel even more chilling. He has managed to capture the consumania of the 80's perfectly, with Bateman discussing at length the latest Whitney Houston album or comparing his new business card with those of his associates. When Bateman realises that his card isn't the best looking, it's enough to drive him to kill again. The book contains several long and detailed descriptions of how Bateman tortures and dismembers his victims, making this a book definetly not for the squeamish.
Rating: Summary: One of the American Literature Greats Review: This book is absolutley wonderful. I really like Bret Easen Ellis' writing style, and thought he got the picture through to the reader very well. stay away from this book if you can't handle violence(and this is the kind of book where it actually CAN be gross). This book may also be found offensive to people who are uptight. On the upside, there is much detail, on the downside, there is too much detail at times. If you liked the movie, you should like this even more, because there was so much not included in the movie that would never be permitted by the MPAA. This is an ELLIS must have. Highly Recommended!
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