Rating: 
Summary: Ignore the Ignorant/ Respect This Classic
Review: If people simply don't like this book--don't care for Ellis' writing style, perhaps--that's fine. We all have our tastes. However, most of your really extreme condemnations of the book are done out of shocking ignorance of what literature is about. Since the book portrays murder, these critical masterminds assume, it must support murder. What brilliance! I suppose they think Orwell was an advocate of the totalitarian state and Dante an apologist for eternal damnation. There is no way that a sane person would envy the grotesque and pathetic Bateman for anything but his money. *American Psycho* is a literary study of a monster, and the culture which helped produce him. It presents a man who lacks humanity and expresses his hostility and alienation through greed, arrogance, exploitation and murder. Of course, only that last one is disapproved of by his society--80s Wall Street yuppiedom. Actually Bateman just takes the logic popular anti-humanism to its logical conclusion. Only money and property matter so what's wrong with killing mere people (or at least the ones that the prevailing ideology tell you are useless)? Its not like he would ever dream of scratching the paint on a BMW or letting a bloodstain linger on his precious designer suits. I've met people like Bateman who blandly chat about trendy name brands and then throw in a little opinion about how the homeless should be allowed to die off, troublesome countries should be nuked and public services should be stripped down to Third World levels. Are they really serial killers? Probably not, but who knows.
Rating:
Summary: This will make you surprised
Review: I am going to write about the book version, not the movie; for I haven't seen it yet. According to my elder brother, however,who has seen both, the movie is a poor adaptation of the book and it has many lacks which makes the film one of those ordinary scary movies. I think that the intention of the book is to depict a corrupt group in the society,and to focus on a man whose life completely relies on this group. Perceiving this book as just a scary movie is wrong i think. For my part I can say that Bateman's way of life has impressed me in one way or another. In my opinion, his care for his appearance is very interesting and pleasurable aspect of Bateman. This gives a very unique taste about the novel, a way which Bret Easton Ellis conveys the reader to render the book as different from its genre. The novel has many peculiarities emphasizing this distinction. It is a well organized book, and it does not bore the reader. Every single detail contributes to understanding the psychology of Bateman. The book is a nice one, with the motives behind the meaning, it serves as a guide to scrunitize the world of a psychologically destroyed "yuppie".
Rating: 
Summary: American Psychos?
Review: "Abandon all hope ye who enter here" (Ellis). Brett Easton Ellis' novel is very well written, and thought provoking on many levels. Sure Patrick Bateman is an obvious psycho being that he enjoys not only killing people, but doing it in a tortorous way. But really, the people around him are also psychos in their own way. The obsession of Bateman's peers with wearing the right clothes, in the proper way, or being in the right places with the right people make them psychotic in their own different and less obvious way. These people have become so much alike because of their obsession, that they cannot even tell each other apart. Patrick Bateman gets confused as being someone else by a large number of people he meets. All of the people he knows and associates with dress the exact same, have almost identical haircuts, fake tans, and go to the same restaurants and bars. With this lack of individuality, it is no suprise that no one suspects Bateman of his alternative life. As long as Patrick can keep up his outward appearance, he simply blends in to the mess of society. Obviously killing is worse than materialism and social status, but the wasteful spending and horrible treatment of other people in this book are still quite bad on their own. Instead of feeling any kind of compassion, or sympathy, the people in this book are disgusted by those who are less fortunate than they are. Many of Bateman's friends play games with the homeless by pretending to give them money, only to take right back. Also there is the way Bateman and his business buddies treat women as merely nothing more than sex objects. Aids has become an epidemic by this time in the eighties, but they have convinced themselves that they just about cannot get it. The morals of the society that Bateman lives in are in some ways just as bad as his own, only they do their killing without actual physically being involved. "THIS IS NOT AN EXIT" (Ellis).
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Book...But Not For Everyone!
Review: Some novels simply grab you by the throat and refuse to let go. "American Psycho" was the first novel to do that to me. It is more crude, violent, and offensive than anything else that I have read, heard, or seen...yet I could not stop turning the pages!The story is told from the perspective of Patrick Bateman, a Wall Street yuppie in the 1980's. During the day, he mingles at parties, judges people by their wardrobe, and breaks into spontaneous psychological ramblings. When the sun sets, though, he lives in a world filled with blood and sex. This is one of the most original books that I have read. It is an interesting examination of the primal obsessions of the modern man, set in a confusing, awkward era. Mr. Ellis spits ideas out at his audience like a machine gun shooting bullets. Keeping up with Patrick's mind is an exhausting journey and is ultimately without reward. After reading the last word of the last page, you did not just finish a gripping novel: you completed a marathon that you simply could not stop. A couple of words of warning, though. Like I mentioned, the book is remarkably violent. Only the truly open-minded should spend their money (and even they should check the book out at the library before committing). Still, if you're in the mood for a disturbing yet interesting read (or if you saw the film and want to know more about this fascinating character), then step up to the mark and wait for the gunshot.
Rating: 
Summary: Um...
Review: This book is like certain pieces of modern art: I was mildly intrigued but unsure what to make of the whole thing. Actually, the book did make me the greed of American Society in a new light but some parts of the book just struck me as pointless. Or maybe they just went over my head. I was a little kid during the 80's. Maybe if I'd been older during this era or had experienced the transition from the 60's/70's to the 80's, this book would have had a greter impact on me.
Rating:
Summary: Seen the film?- forget it right now and read the book!
Review: The start of the book is very very slow - i almost stopped reading it in-fact but decided to carry on reading... and i'm SO glad i did! This book is madness. It is one of the best books that i have ever had the pleasure of reading and allows you to get so deeply involved with Patrick Bateman (The main chararacter) that i almost felt sorry for him. Most scenes are quick and filled with adrenaline, but allow the situation to show its true colours with the deep descriptions of what is happening. Nearly all in first person perspective, it allows you to know Patric inside out - and i liked the way that the third person perpective came into action when Patric was being chased by the police - almost telling us that Patrick's soul was coming out of his body and analyzing the very dangerous and scary scenario he was in. This book is discusting and very very sexual to say the least, yet still has that mysterious twist of humour throughout. I would rate it 18 if books had age limits on them yet its a great read for anyone who thinks that reading is boring (or has just got into reading/not read a book for a while)so i urge you to get it! If you've seen 'American psycho' the film - you'll wish you hadn't when you've read the book - unfortunately the film is a let down of the book and could put you off reading the story. I read the book before i saw the film so i could see what a discrase the film was copared to the book itself. Thanks for reading my thoughts on this fabulous classic, happy reading and don't have nightmares!
Rating:
Summary: American Psycho is not just a dulling of the senses
Review: When American Psycho arrived on the scene it was insanely contraversial for its graphic depictions of sex and violence. However, when the book is actually picked apart it is an amazing literary work. It is funny and brilliant and a wonderful look at our materialistic society. The absurdity of the characters still makes me laugh when I pick it up, but perhaps it's even more absurd that the characters are so true to life in that afluent 1980's life style. Patrick Bateman is an amazing character, so two sided even though he tells us that he's "just not there."
Rating:
Summary: american classic
Review: To sum up this book in one word is insane. Almost as insane as the main character in American Pyscho. This book crosses many boundaries and can be considered controversial, violent, and disturbing. I applaud these characteristics for Ellis brings out more than just a person, but what could be inside other people's minds. Being different is an understatement, this is a new age classic.
Rating:
Summary: Very good, definitely a different read
Review: The reader that previously gave this book 1 star complained about how Ellis describes in excruciating detail the clothing worn by every character that is introduced. The clothing is described detail by agonizing detail for a reason! Ellis is trying to show us how Patrick Bateman's mind works, what he thinks. Bateman is a very materialistic and image obssessed man, and we are being shown how much attention and value he pays to superficial things, such as clothing. That is the point (or I should say A point) of the book: to describe the excess and materialism with which the character lives. This novel would not have been as poignant if the details weren't included the way they were
Rating:
Summary: Catcher In The Rye, Part 2?
Review: Did you ever wonder what happen to Holden Caulfield from Salinger's, "Catcher In The Rye"? He grew up and became Patrick Bateman. The book is a little tedious in its detail of 80s GQ fashion but overall it is a good read. The story is not so much a "story" but a character study of a sociopathic killer of Henry Lee Lee Lucas proportion. The story of Patrick's night life was truly a guilty indulgence to me...I enjoyed the book. Ellis' attention to detail and macabre descriptiveness is great. The book NEVER drags! To me, it is only the subject matter which limits the book from being a modern classic.
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