The Haunting of Hill House

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Summary: A CLASSIC GHOST STORY,TASTEFULLY CHILLING.
Review: I FIRST READ THIS BOOK WHEN I WAS ABOUT EIGHT YEARS OLD (IN A READER'S DIGEST CONDENSED BOOK). I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN FASCINATED WITH GHOST STORIES AND I STILL FEEL THIS IS ONE THE VERY BEST EVER WRITTEN.,

SHIRLEY JACKSON HAD SUCH AN UNUSUAL IMAGINATION AND A GIFT FOR DETAIL THAT KEPT THE READER MYSTIFIED. I FELT THAT THE REMAKE OF THE 1963 CLASSIC WAS AWFUL, THE SET WAS OVERLY DONE THE SPECIAL EFFECTS WERE'NT IN KEEPING WITH THE SUBTLENESS OF THE BOOK WHICH IS JUST WHY THE ORIGINAL WORKS. I THOUGHT ONLY THEO WAS RIGHT IN THE NEW VERSION. THE CHILDREN AND HER GREAT GRANDMOTHER AND OTHER 'IMPROVEMENTS' WERE TOTALLY STUPID.

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Summary: The Robert Wise film (B&W) is faithful to the novel
Review: Just saw the first movie version of "The Haunting" this weekend, and I must comment that that one IS faithful to this book. It does what a movie adaptation should do: render what was on the page as closely as possible onto the screen.

If you saw this summer's version, whether you loved it or loathed it, do yourself a favor, and read the novel and watch the first film. And compare for yourself which of this three is the real deal in haunted houses.

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Summary: THE BEST
Review: i READ THIS FOR ENGLISH AND AT FIRST IT SOUNDIND BORING BUT AS I STARTED TO READ I FELL IN LOVE WITH IT

READ IT

I GOT 100% ON THE TEST ON THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE

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Summary: Why all the hype?
Review: The book was ok to read. It was not what I would consider scary, but more like a psychological horror.

I finished the book right before I saw the new movie. I'd say the movie had a scarier story than the book, but the movie didn't stay faithful to the book, (except for the caretaker's wife's warnings.)

Maybe the book would have been scarier if I read it up in my room at night, instead of pool-side this summer! :)

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Summary: HO HUM...Tiring to read, not much punch.
Review: Maybe I'm too tied up in the mainstream horror genre, but this book did nothing for me. Reading it was a chore, and it didn't scare me at all. I kept waiting for something scary to happen, but it never did. After reading the ending, I was glad it was over.

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Summary: Good book but i like the remake movie better.
Review: I just saw the remake of The Haunting of Hill House and i loved it. The special effets were great and u really got into it. I decided to read the book since i liked the movie so much. There was a good plotline, but the scary parts just weren't suspenseful enough to get u going as much as the movie did. Well my point is it's a good book to read just to compare it to the movies but i don't think i'll be reading it again soon in my spare time.

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Summary: a book about one person's disappearance from humanity
Review: This book was very good, in my opinion. Eleanor was probably never quite "normal" and being in this house around whatever being it was inhabiting it, she just went over the edge. By the end of the book, she no longer identified with humans, but with the house. As I suspected, Shirley Jackson wrote a great book that is disturbing at a deep, personal level--like "The Lottery."

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Summary: A classic horror tale.
Review: I read "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson when I was about 13. After 30+ years, I sometimes can't remember the full text of the book I read last week, but I STIll remember the visual image conjured up by the knocking and rapping at each door, searching for the people, and when they were found, the bulging of the massive oak door to get to them. And when Eleanor thought the other guest was holding so tightly to her hand in fear, but looked over and no one was there, well, that was nicely done! The original movie was very good and true to the book. The remake was just a vehicle for visual affects. Read the original story, see the original movie. Both are Classic Horror!

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Summary: Subtle and Scary
Review: I won't bother to see the recent movie version about this book, because the moving furniture and stuff mentioned by the reviews prove that the makers of the movie did not get the point of the book at all. The book is Scary with a capital "S," and it does not need any spectacular special effect to achieve that. The supernatural is only glimpsed at, but it is enough to generate an atmosphere, not of hair-raising terror, but of the deepest unease, which is considerably more difficult and demands a far subtler technique. In fact, Jackson's technique is so subtle, that the fans of grosser kinds of horror story may be disappointed by it, but for those who can appreciate it, the experience is absolutely unforgettable. This book does not merely scare you, it haunts you, for years to come.

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Summary: Excellent reading, especially if you saw the original movie.
Review: If you saw the new "Haunting" movie, you were probably disappointed. Though it started out promising in the first half, the second half fell apart.

The book and the original movie are very close in story. I found it very interesting to see what was in the book that was not in the original movie. I was pleased to note some subtle differences between the two.

If you have not seen the original movie, go see it! Then read the book!