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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Sconvolta…l’ascesa e il declino di un uomo, una vita che ci porta fino all’incubo.
What a way to start my 2022 year of reading: with the brilliant novel, NIGHTMARE ALLEY, by William Lindsay Gresham. The noir tale of the rise and fall of Stan Carlisle - a small time carny who has the gifts of intellect, good looks, great timing, and outsized ambition, only offset by his flaws of greed, grifting, and bottomless thirst for booze - may be the best book I read all year.
Yes, I heard about the book because of the movie adaptation by Guillermo del Toro, which I’m sure is very good, but don’t opt to see the movie without reading the original work.
This New York Review of Books edition includes a nice introduction by Nick Tosches who makes it clear how Stan Carlisle is more than just a character to Gresham, it’s an alter ego.
I will remember this read for a long time. My only regret is that I wish I knew how Stan made that precision balance move. I think it had something to do with the cat with fleas, but I’m not sure.
Yes, I heard about the book because of the movie adaptation by Guillermo del Toro, which I’m sure is very good, but don’t opt to see the movie without reading the original work.
This New York Review of Books edition includes a nice introduction by Nick Tosches who makes it clear how Stan Carlisle is more than just a character to Gresham, it’s an alter ego.
I will remember this read for a long time. My only regret is that I wish I knew how Stan made that precision balance move. I think it had something to do with the cat with fleas, but I’m not sure.
This is a pretty incredible book — a synthesis of the author's life experiences in carnivals, as a journalist and writer and researcher, of the things he went through trying to treat his lifelong depression through spiritualism, psychiatric treatment, mesmerism, Protestant and Eastern religion, and more. It's full of clever grifts and swindles, big philosophical speeches, pulpit-pounding sermons, and hallucinatory rambles. But under it all is an indelible character, a man constantly on the make, never satisfied and perpetually hunting for something to fill the holes left by his upbringing. It's a real classic, a portrait of an era that goes far beyond either the 1947 film version or the 2021 Guillermo del Toro movie, both of which capture different key aspects of it while leaving a great deal out. It's a real ride to read, lyrical and gritty at the same time.
I wasn't hooked. I might try a movie adaptation before considering coming back to this.
A little technical and slow paced with some outdated racial language and portrayals. But the story was captivating with complex characters.
Stanton Carlisle comes from a broken and complex family and starts a job with a carnival. At the beginning of the story he is fascinated by the show’s geek – a man turned monster, who is so addicted he will do anything to get a fix, including biting the heads off snakes and chickens. One of the other members of the carnival explains how geeks are “made” by finding a man down and out on their luck who will temporarily perform the role if given a steady supply of alcohol. After a few weeks the owner begins to threaten to end the role and all that comes with it, psychologically torturing and manipulating him until he becomes a real geek. Stan becomes fascinated with the workings of the carnival and the tricks of the trade. He assists the carnival’s clairvoyant/mentalist Zeena and her husband, learning their code act which allows them to appear to miraculously know the answers to people’s questions. Stan eventually leaves the carnival, forming a successful mentalist act of his own with his wife, Molly.
Over time, Stan reinvents himself as the Reverend Carlisle – a spiritualist preacher who holds successful seances with Molly which allows him to contact the dead. Of course, this double act is also a scam, but potentially worth big money. Unlike carnivals, clubs, and sideshows, the bored and wealthy are willing to invest a lot of time and money into spiritualism. All fraudsters usually come undone in time, and when Stan’s behaviour begins to cause him mental anguish, he seeks the help of a beautiful and formidable psychologist, Lilith Ritter. Despite her apparent desire to help Stan, this encounter will eventually result in Stan’s comeuppance.
This novel is a powerful examination of the human condition. Using elements of noir thrillers, it is a harrowing look into the minds of the vulnerable and gullible, and those who exploit them. Stan is clever and ambitious, but his own uncertainty and self-doubt propel him to continue to search for the satisfaction he gains from the fix. The success of his scams rest on him learning what people really desire, then tapping into their fears and insecurities to manipulate them into believing him. As is reflected early on, “The geek was made by fear. He was afraid of sobering up and getting the horrors. But what made him a drunk? Fear. Find out what they are afraid of and sell it back to them. That’s the key.” There is much comment here about the basest desires of humans and their greed and ruthlessness in achieving what they want.
The novel’s language took some getting used to, being set in America in the 1930s and 1940s, Gresham authentically uses the dialect and slang of the time to create both dialogue and interior monologue that is natural and evocative. Combined with the descriptive language, it was easy to immerse oneself into the spectacle and voyeurism of the carnival or a séance in a large, dark mansion. The novel is structured into chapters using Tarot cards, briefly introducing each one at the start, which offers an eerie and ominous hint as to what will come. The themes explored relate to that of faith and belief; addiction and alcoholism; the randomness of fate; and fear itself as a motivator for everything.
I imagine this novel to be very shocking for the time in which it was published. In lots of ways, it’s ugly and brutal, but Stan remains a fascinating character. Despite him being a dreadful, immoral charlatan, one can’t help but feel for him as he continually grapples with his own fear – that of the “nightmare alley”; “Ever since he was a kid Stan had had the dream. He was running down a dark alley, the buildings vacant and menacing on either side. Far down at the end of it a light burned, but these was something behind him, close behind him, getting closer until he woke up trembling and never reached the light.” This understanding of the nightmare alley is what makes Stan so capable as he understands this is the key to human nature. Without giving anything away, this also alludes to the lack of hope for any sense of redemption for Stan, and thus the ending packs a strong punch. Very satisfying indeed.
Over time, Stan reinvents himself as the Reverend Carlisle – a spiritualist preacher who holds successful seances with Molly which allows him to contact the dead. Of course, this double act is also a scam, but potentially worth big money. Unlike carnivals, clubs, and sideshows, the bored and wealthy are willing to invest a lot of time and money into spiritualism. All fraudsters usually come undone in time, and when Stan’s behaviour begins to cause him mental anguish, he seeks the help of a beautiful and formidable psychologist, Lilith Ritter. Despite her apparent desire to help Stan, this encounter will eventually result in Stan’s comeuppance.
This novel is a powerful examination of the human condition. Using elements of noir thrillers, it is a harrowing look into the minds of the vulnerable and gullible, and those who exploit them. Stan is clever and ambitious, but his own uncertainty and self-doubt propel him to continue to search for the satisfaction he gains from the fix. The success of his scams rest on him learning what people really desire, then tapping into their fears and insecurities to manipulate them into believing him. As is reflected early on, “The geek was made by fear. He was afraid of sobering up and getting the horrors. But what made him a drunk? Fear. Find out what they are afraid of and sell it back to them. That’s the key.” There is much comment here about the basest desires of humans and their greed and ruthlessness in achieving what they want.
The novel’s language took some getting used to, being set in America in the 1930s and 1940s, Gresham authentically uses the dialect and slang of the time to create both dialogue and interior monologue that is natural and evocative. Combined with the descriptive language, it was easy to immerse oneself into the spectacle and voyeurism of the carnival or a séance in a large, dark mansion. The novel is structured into chapters using Tarot cards, briefly introducing each one at the start, which offers an eerie and ominous hint as to what will come. The themes explored relate to that of faith and belief; addiction and alcoholism; the randomness of fate; and fear itself as a motivator for everything.
I imagine this novel to be very shocking for the time in which it was published. In lots of ways, it’s ugly and brutal, but Stan remains a fascinating character. Despite him being a dreadful, immoral charlatan, one can’t help but feel for him as he continually grapples with his own fear – that of the “nightmare alley”; “Ever since he was a kid Stan had had the dream. He was running down a dark alley, the buildings vacant and menacing on either side. Far down at the end of it a light burned, but these was something behind him, close behind him, getting closer until he woke up trembling and never reached the light.” This understanding of the nightmare alley is what makes Stan so capable as he understands this is the key to human nature. Without giving anything away, this also alludes to the lack of hope for any sense of redemption for Stan, and thus the ending packs a strong punch. Very satisfying indeed.
The novel’s afterlife is just as colorful, spawning two films (with Guillermo del Toro’s lushly imagined but ultimately disappointing version from last year), inspiring at least one person’s career path (Anton Szandor LaVey of the Church of Satan), introducing the word “geek” to American popular culture (even the Nat “King” Cole Trio came out with a tune), and using the phrase “cold reading” in print for the first time. (Gresham's own journey from Freud, Marx, and yoga to the Tarot, Ouspensky, and Christianity (via C.S. Lewis, for whom his wife, the poet Joy Davidman, eventually left him) is fascinating in and of itself.)
It’s not noir in the typical sense, at least in the way I typically conceive it. Nightmare Alley isn't a lean and cutting piece of work like The Grifters or The Postman Always Rings Twice. It feels more expansive and lived-in, where the reader is immersed in different worlds, following Stanton Carlisle's transformation from traveling circus magician to "the Great Stanton" to Reverend Carlisle, Pastor of the Church of the Heavenly Message. The setup is long, and so is the con.
Nightmare Alley situates the characters in a grander, wider milieu than del Toro’s movie could portray--in particular, amidst pre-World War II preoccupations with spiritualism and hypnotism. These mediums and mentalists are depicted as part of the same spectrum as the fake carnival attractions that fill the first half of the book. And so is psychoanalysis, which in Nightmare Alley is portrayed as the most malevolent grift of all.
It’s not noir in the typical sense, at least in the way I typically conceive it. Nightmare Alley isn't a lean and cutting piece of work like The Grifters or The Postman Always Rings Twice. It feels more expansive and lived-in, where the reader is immersed in different worlds, following Stanton Carlisle's transformation from traveling circus magician to "the Great Stanton" to Reverend Carlisle, Pastor of the Church of the Heavenly Message. The setup is long, and so is the con.
Nightmare Alley situates the characters in a grander, wider milieu than del Toro’s movie could portray--in particular, amidst pre-World War II preoccupations with spiritualism and hypnotism. These mediums and mentalists are depicted as part of the same spectrum as the fake carnival attractions that fill the first half of the book. And so is psychoanalysis, which in Nightmare Alley is portrayed as the most malevolent grift of all.
If I had not been listening to this, I don't know that I would have finished it. Strange but interesting.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So unrelenting, cruel, and nihilistic that I found myself needing to take several days’ break on more than one occasion. Haven’t felt this way about a novel since Mcteague. Fascinating that prose like this was ever published in the 40s, not surprised at all that it was promptly censored for nearly 80 years after the fact.
Necessary read for fans of horror and noir in general. Tosches’ introduction was awesome. Like, can you believe that Gresham’s ex-wife later married C.S. Lewis? Insane! Very interesting throughout the novel as well to see Gresham’s trouble with finding a belief system to cling to parsed out, one by one. The general thesis presented on the train is obviously pretty indicative of where he landed, considering…
I’m personally a Nightmare Alley (2021) apologist, even if it is overlong—and that’s without all of the drawn-out clergyman stuff goin on here! Keep meaning to watch the original adaptation. Hope it’s a bummer!
Necessary read for fans of horror and noir in general. Tosches’ introduction was awesome. Like, can you believe that Gresham’s ex-wife later married C.S. Lewis? Insane! Very interesting throughout the novel as well to see Gresham’s trouble with finding a belief system to cling to parsed out, one by one. The general thesis presented on the train is obviously pretty indicative of where he landed, considering…
I’m personally a Nightmare Alley (2021) apologist, even if it is overlong—and that’s without all of the drawn-out clergyman stuff goin on here! Keep meaning to watch the original adaptation. Hope it’s a bummer!