Rating: 
Summary: completely anticlimactic!
Review: For so many years, I have heard references to Rosemary's Baby. Not knowing exactly what the "baby" was, I finally decided to read the book. Needless to say, I was very disappointed. Not only was it poorly written, but it isn't very suspenseful. You know what's going to happen from the beginning. I won't ruin it for those of you who haven't read it, but don't expect much.
Rating: 
Summary: Storytelling couples political commentary with horror
Review: One thing that remains understated about this novel (possibly because it couldn't possibly be overstated) is how Levin manages to link the "real" world with the world of witches, witchcraft and devil worship so convincingly (for a great rundown on how Levin went about doing this, see Stephen King's Danse Macabre. Rosemary is a very real character and the forces she is up against have a frightening potential to be caricatures...but they are not. One thing that can really spoil this book for you is if you've either a) seen the movie already, or b) know it's about the Son of Satan and not perhaps a coven's plans to get hold of Rosemary's baby for their own fiendish purposes. Levin's novels are famous for their plot twists, many of which occur mid-narrative, and to me, even though the evidence builds up against the inherent unholiness of little "Andrew," the most breathtaking moment of the book remains, to me, the moment when she sees her child for what it really is. "Well duh!" we are tempted to tell her, "you sure had enough clues all along, didn't you?" True enough, and yet if you were trying to protect your child all along only to find you'd probably need protection from him in the end...well, the only term that comes closest to such a feeling is "culture shock." All the business about the pope's visit and Life Magazine's pronouncement of God's death adds to the surreality of the entire setting: here is a world where the devil already has a foot wedged in the door. How much more do we really need to bring him crashing through the barrier, anyway?
Rating: 
Summary: rosemary's baby now
Review: It struck me as I have been absorbing the mind-numbing events of the day, not the least of which has been the relentless decline of the dollar value of this great company, that rosemary's baby is alive and well, all grown up and reformed, and occasionally living in the White House! Isn't that as good as any explanation of what is now rippling across the globe from here? At least we understand now why we really can't see his eyes!
Rating:
Summary: A Spooky Shocker Classic
Review: Why am I giving this book 5 stars when the writing isn't especially great? Because Ira Levin hit every right note in "Rosemary's Baby" and made it into an instantaneous horror classic. On one level, it's a great horror story; on another, it's also a kind of morality play: God has a son; what happens when the devil gets jealous and wants one too? Enter Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, almost-newlyweds, new tenants in an old, luxury building called "The Bramford", famous for its high ceilings and working fireplaces, notorious for its unsavory happenings (dead baby wrapped in newspapers abandoned in the basement). They are warned off by Hutch, an old friend of Rosemary's who knows all about the building's sordid history, but disregard the omens. Rosemary is a housewife (yes, back in the day there actually were such things) who wants to be a mother. Guy is an actor and a rising star whose talent is overshadowed only by his unlimited ambition. Next door are the Castevets, Minnie and Roman, a delightfully ditzy old couple who just happen to head a coven of witches who have made a pact with the devil. Rosemary wants a baby; Guy wants a leading part in a hit play; the witches want... well, all the ingredients are there for a devil's brew that sets the pot boiling wonderfully for 260 pages. After a nightmarish impregnation, Rosemary goes through a hellacious pregnancy, presided over by Dr. Sapirstein, a famous "society" obstetrician who assures Rosemary that her pains will go away in a day or two. Hutch's death after a long, suspicious illness jolts Rosemary out of her cocoon of trusting ignorance, and here Levin builds the horror up ever so insidiously until it hits you like a sledgehammer. Rosemary discovers who her neighbors are; that they have drawn her husband into a diabolical plot, and when she runs to Dr. Sapirstein for protection, she finds out that he too is... well, if you can't trust your husband and your obstetrician, who can you trust? Rosemary is left alone to try to save her baby from what she fears is a plot against his life and safety, remembering that dead baby in the basement; there's a plot afoot, all right, but what it is, is something neither Rosemary or the reader could possibly imagine until they stare at it, literally and figuratively, in the eyes. Levin is one terrific storyteller and he manages to time the action to coincide perfectly with the story line; Rosemary conceives, ironically, on the night of the Pope's visit to New York in early October, and the baby is born, fittingly, right after midnight, "exactly half the year around from you-know". Some readers have complained that the ending is lame after all the shock and horror, and they have a point, but it's fun to wonder, how else could Levin have ended this story? It's a perfect psychological horror fantasy, no blood, no gore, no things that go bump in the night, but just the ordinary neighbors next door that can and do raise all kinds of hell. It's a classic that has stood the test of time; after 35 years, it's still a great read.
Rating:
Summary: Tight as a drum
Review: Like the many alibis given throughout this book, Rosemary's Baby's plot was airtight. I couldn't find a flaw in the suspenseful lead to the climax; not once did I come across something unconvincing, implausible, or contrary to an earlier mentioned event or detail. Levin gave this work just the right amount of foreshadowing to keep me guessing throughout its entirety, and to either pat myself on the back for figuring out a cleverly placed hint or chastise myself for missing one. In that sense, this book was a literal page-turner, as I backtracked an awful lot to see where I'd read a certain name or detail before. My anticipation was held throughout. I wasn't crazy about the end, which I won't give away, but suffice it to say that the revenge-loving reader won't be sated. Also, between this book and the Stepford Wives, Levin demonstrates a knack for casting us men as such awful villains, participating in nefarious schemes against the women who love us. Ouch.
Rating:
Summary: If you haven't read it....
Review: ...you've missed the number one page-turner of all time. This is the first book I ever read in one sitting and there's never been anything else quite like it. You will not be able to put it down, and, ultimately, that's what an entertaining book is supposed to accomplish, right? Tremendous fun!
Rating:
Summary: Extremely well-crafted thriller
Review: Even though the ending to this book is known by all, you are still likely to find yourself in suspense over whether or not the nice old neighbors are really just nice old neighbors or if they are going to sacrifice the baby. Ira Levin writes breezy thrillers, well-crafted from beginning to end with compelling characters, nicely woven plots and several surprises. It's not until you read several badly contrived thrillers and horror books that you realize how much skill it takes to write one that works on all levels. There aren't many insights into the human condition. This book will not make you look at your life in a whole new way and it probably won't make you suspicious if you are pregnant. Ira Levin even has an introduction to one edition complaining about people taking the book to the ridiculous levels of seriousness (you can read the "Left Behind" series if you want a 'serious' novel about Satanic conspiracies). What this book will give you is an enjoyable reading experience that will either be a relief from whatever deep and heavy book you've read or the bad thrillers. And by the way, this is one of those cases where the book and the movie are almost identical except I think that there is more about the Satanic cult's origins in the book.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the few cases where the movie is better.
Review: This book is very dissapointing. It is like reading the screen play to the movie. It seems the book was taken word for word and put on the screen. I read the book hopping to get more insight into the charcters, but I didn't get it. There is zero character development and very little suspense. This is a horror novel, I think the children's book Where the Wild Things are scared me more. Levin's writting is so flat it does not build any suspense. At least in the movie there is it some suspense.
Rating:
Summary: You will never look at your neighors the same way
Review: A hard-luck actor. An average, charming housewife. And neighbors that you love and trust, even though they are a tad nosey. These are the basic elements of a classic book that should be required reading for everyone who wants to be an author.The characters of "Rosemary's Baby" are so well written, so sincerly believable, that it's a shame the book ends. Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, a young couple looking for a place to stay, buy an apartment that seems to good to be true. Enter Roman and Minnie Castevet, an elderly couple that seem to be mothering Guy and smothering Rosemary. When she finds out she's pregnant, the Castevets couldn't be happier. They happen to be witches, wanting to find a young, loving woman to raise the son of Satan. What makes this book so good, so great, is that Minnie and Roman don't ride broomsticks or have large pointy hats on their heads - they're an average couple that just seem to need companionship. The horror isn't blood and guts, the type that you'll find in a cheap paperback - it's the horror of knowing much more than Rosemary does. It's not a plot spoiler to say that Guy joins the coven, because it's obvious. You just want to say "Rosemary, don't go in there!" or "Rosemary, don't drink that!"This is the way a book should be - entertaining, while all the same absorbing. It's a one sitting, white knuckle read that will make you say "I hope Ira Levin writes a sequel!" However, nothing could ever compare to this unbelievably timeless classic.
Rating:
Summary: a very good book-except the end
Review: While reading the book, I found it VERY good. When I reached about the half of part two I was just reading, reading, reading, turning over the pages and unable to stop. I really was eager for Rosemary to find out, why everything about her pregnancy was so strange, rooted for her to go and see another doctor and almost shoutet "well-done, hutch" when he gave her the book about witches. I grew more and more thrilled and had already made up my mind that this book was marvellous, when I reached the end. It disappointed me very much. I think that it's lousy and not done well. I mean, why on earth should Rosemary accept her baby, allthough it has claws, yellow split-up eyes and a tail and she knows it's the son of satan? She treats it, as if it was normal and insolent. The end somehow made me very angry, and I just kept on thinking "why did Ira Levin give this marvellous book such a bad end?" I came to the conclusion that he must have had his reasons, although I can't understand them. I settled on this and despite of its lousy end, I would recommend the book to everyone who is interested in overnatural things.
|
