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ellipsiscool's review against another edition
4.0
The Norman of Robert Bloch's book is the same yet different when compared to the Norman of the Hitchcock classic and of Bates Motel. Reading this after watching both was really very interesting. There are tidbits in the TV series that clearly came from the book and those were fun to find.
Norman in the book is more similar to Ed Gein (the real life serial killer whom he is based upon) than to Anthony Perkins or Freddie Highmore which really makes it even more scary. It's a quick read that's hard to put down due to it's intensely weird tone.
Norman in the book is more similar to Ed Gein (the real life serial killer whom he is based upon) than to Anthony Perkins or Freddie Highmore which really makes it even more scary. It's a quick read that's hard to put down due to it's intensely weird tone.
tycliffy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I liked how this book highlighted women’s intuition about odd behaviors (even if that wasn’t the original intent that was how it read for me). The ways in which psychological phenomena were described were also very interesting given the time period the novel was written in. Seeing the justifications and inner workings of Norman’s warped perspective was really intriguing. I hadn’t known it would be written from multiple perspectives but that also added a lot to the story (there’s always a chance that style of writing will take away from the story). It was a very short, concise, but suspenseful and exciting story with a pretty clear cut ending which is nice sometimes (sometimes ambiguous endings can be fun but other times you just want things to be open and shut lol). Overall I really enjoyed this book and its take on unhealthy mother-son relationships and how that can negatively impact a person – makes sense as it was based on Ed Gein’s life.
ifcupid's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dunnadam's review against another edition
5.0
I easily read this pulp in 24 hours. To me this is what pulp can be, the reason it was invented.
I was surprised how closely the movie stuck to the book, with a couple things actually making more sense in the book. Mary was changed to Marion for the movie. In the book Mary lives hours away from Sam and leaves town to drive to him. He has debts that need paying off and she takes the money to help him. In the book they live in the same town, and it's really unknown where she's going when she takes the money, she appears to be leaving Sam and her sister and her life for no reason that's ever explained. So I preferred the book explanation which actually made sense. I guess it would have been harder to show the relationship as flashbacks in the movie.
Even little things in the movie that I never realized didn't make sense are explained in the book. For example, Sam and Lila are outside the church talking to the Sheriff and his wife about Bates and their suspicions. In the book they were up all night worrying and there was a robbery in town taking much of the police out of commission. In the movie they're at a church for no reason.
The only thing that wasn't great about the book of course was Norman's appearance. I much preferred Anthony Perkins and put him in the lead role when I read the book.
A quick, enjoyable supplement to the movie. Recommended.
I was surprised how closely the movie stuck to the book, with a couple things actually making more sense in the book. Mary was changed to Marion for the movie. In the book Mary lives hours away from Sam and leaves town to drive to him. He has debts that need paying off and she takes the money to help him. In the book they live in the same town, and it's really unknown where she's going when she takes the money, she appears to be leaving Sam and her sister and her life for no reason that's ever explained. So I preferred the book explanation which actually made sense. I guess it would have been harder to show the relationship as flashbacks in the movie.
Even little things in the movie that I never realized didn't make sense are explained in the book. For example, Sam and Lila are outside the church talking to the Sheriff and his wife about Bates and their suspicions. In the book they were up all night worrying and there was a robbery in town taking much of the police out of commission. In the movie they're at a church for no reason.
The only thing that wasn't great about the book of course was Norman's appearance. I much preferred Anthony Perkins and put him in the lead role when I read the book.
A quick, enjoyable supplement to the movie. Recommended.
ald1981's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
roxnn2000's review against another edition
4.0
Much better than the movie in my opinion. It give better insight into the characters and what really is going on in thier heads. All in all a good read for a creepy story.
grvhppr's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
njdarkish's review against another edition
5.0
Since Hitchcock's adaptation of this book is very faithful to the source material, it kind of goes without saying that this book is really good. I loved it. A definite must-read for any horror fan.
brooks_books02's review against another edition
2.0
I had read this book for my college literature class. I personally didn’t like it too much. This is not my genre so this book wasn’t for me.