House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

[hippywife]

So, I've checked this out of the library based on the plot of the story. Having brought it home and flipped through it, it is a strange conglomeration of fonts and page layouts. Very strange. Looks like it might be a lot of work to even read it.

I almost just took it back to the library unread. I haven't started it yet and wanted to see if anyone here had any opinions about whether or not it is worth the effort.

:hi:

[azmouse]

1. Definitely worth the effort.

I read it last year. A very unusual book but it's not difficult to read at all. You'll have a hard time putting it down once you start.
The story will stick with you long after you've finished reading.
I know several others here have read it because I got interested in it after reading their reviews.

[hippywife]

2. Thanx for your input.

I'll give it a shot. Any tips you can share on how best to go about reading some of the busier pages? Or should I just go with it?

[azmouse]

3. Just go with it.

The story itself will dictate how to read the really odd pages. Enjoy!

[BlueIris]

4. One of the most disturbing books I have ever read. And I highly recommend the CD

by the author's sister, Po, which complements the book. (The CD can stand on its own, but I think you'll get more out of it if you read HoL.)

[hippywife]

5. Okay, so I've read the intro and the first chapter.

I'm assuming that the introduction, as well as the summary on the inside cover, and the footnotes are all fictional parts of the book. Also the weird page formatting in places were a result of Zampano's editing? Am I correct?

I tend to be highly effected by things that I read. They can really affect my mood for a long time if they are really that intense. Do I need to worry about that with this book?

[BlueIris]

6. Uh, do you need to worry? Well, let me put it this way...

I had to stop reading it for a while, because it was freaking me out too bad. The CD has some parts of it that had a similar effect on me. As for whether or not you "get" what the author was trying to do, well, you're obviously a critical reader, so I'm sure you'll "get" it--but what I like to mention about this text is my anecdote about a tenured lit professor who told me it was the most complex modern novel she'd read, and that she didn't think she would ever truly "get" all of it. (Side note for those lit crit geeks like me--the criticism available on HoL is actually pretty good.)

[hippywife]

7. I read some of the crit this morning,

and I think I'm not going to attempt it and farther. I really do read for relaxation and I can be easily influenced emotionally by what I read, so I don't think this is the book for me. I'm already having problems with sleep issues and disturbing dreams. I should keep a pen and paper next to my bed, I could probably make big bucks in the sci-fi genre. :eyes:

Thanx for your opinion and direction on this. :hi:

[Orrex]

8. Haven't read it, but I've been reading commentary about it and critiques of it.

Everything I've found makes the book sound like unreadable, gimmicky, postmodernist bullshit.


But YMMV, of course...

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

9. Great book.

On one level, it's a satire of literary criticism. On another it's a great horror novel, a romance on another.

It's an homage to some of the great writers of the twentieth century- Eco, Lovecraft, Borges, Hunter Thompson, and others.

It's really not that hard to read. I read half in an airport and the rest when I got home. It's much easier than it looks.

[pitohui]

10. i thought it was a fun book

to be honest if this book gives you bad dreams i don't know what you could safely read, basically there wouldn't be anything you could read in the suspense/thriller/horror genres at all that i can think of -- how could you even watch tv? an episode of csi or the old x-files has a lot more just blunt force horror

i consider myself a sensitive person, for instance, i don't know why anyone would subject themselves to "the road" but "house of leaves"? i don't see it causing a trip to the sleep lab or the psychiatrist, honestly...