Mary is entrusted with $40k to deposit in the bank - but decides to run away with it instead. On her way to the small town where her fiance, Sam Loomis, lives, she decides to stop at a motel for the night, freshen up with a shower and some sleep, and be ready to surprise Sam in the morning to start their new life together. But this is the Bates Motel run by the very odd Norman Bates and his “mother” - and Mary will never see Sam again…Robert Bloch may not be a great writer but he struck literary gold when he created Norman Bates, an insane serial killer based on Ed Gein, the infamous murderer who made furniture out of his victims. Bloch writes the chapters from the different points of view of his characters, and the chapters where we get to see the world through Norman’s eyes are really something. Generally, the story is pretty pedestrian. Mary’s journey isn’t very exciting as she just drives until she reaches the Bates Motel. But when she stops there - and even though I’d never read the book before, I’d seen the Hitchcock and Van Sant movies so I knew what was what - the scenes with Norman come together so well. This formula runs through the whole novel. None of the other characters are at all interesting - Sam is a bland, down-home, good guy who sells hardware and goes to church. Mary’s worried sister Lila is similar but slightly more headstrong and daring leading to the best scene in the book, when it’s revealed who “mother” really is. The private detective and the sheriff are equally dull, two-dimensional stereotypes. But put these dull characters in a scene with Norman and the book comes to life because you’re waiting to see what insane old Norman’s going to do to them. The infamous shower scene and the scenes in the house behind the motel - especially when Lila’s going through the house, looking at the extent of Norman’s madness, culminating in the horrors of the basement - still manage to chill, 55 years down the line. I understand why the boring scenes where Sam, Lila, the sheriff, and the private investigator are talking and puttering about, are there - they’re to provide a contrast to the Norman chapters which are just nuts because he’s just nuts. The banal normality of smalltown Americana is there to heighten the insanity of Norman’s existence and build tension for the scenes when “mother” appears. But they’re still boring scenes and a chore to get through. Psycho is worth a look if you’re in the mood for a short, easy horror novel. You’ll fly through it no problem and some of the material is still terrifying and truly gripping. And while it was made into a classic movie, I don’t think it’s a classic horror novel on the same level as other great horror novels from this time like Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend or Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. But Norman Bates is a brilliant character and Pyscho is worth picking up to visit the Bates Motel and meet him yourself.Enjoy your stay in Room 6...
Hitchcock's adaptation of this book is a horror classic, and is one that is so iconic that it's part of common knowledge, regardless of whether the movie has actually been seen by the person holding an imaginary knife and screeching "Ree! Ree! Ree! Ree!" (You know what sound I mean. Don't look at me like that.)I have seen the movie, though it was years ago. And so, going into the book with the foreknowledge of the plot and the twist, I was able to focus on the writing and the technique along with the story. That's not usually something that I am consciously aware of unless the technique and writing are so atrociously bad that they practically scream at me to look how bad they are. Bloch's writing is not atrociously bad, but it really only shines in one area: Norman's sections. There, the reader is expertly led along, from one small detail to the next, from one tiny, inconsequential aside to the next, until the truth is laid out in all its horror. Not necessarily for what was done, but for how it could happen. You never really know someone, you know?Excellent stuff right there. Unfortunately, the stuff outside of Norman's head is just not up to the same levels. Aside from the matter of perspective regarding the investigation, which keeps the reader (who already knows what happened to Mary) on their toes out of sheer angst at how wrong they are doing it, it was pretty standard fare. And, it's a bit dated, especially when it comes to Lila, who is ever so annoying. I get that she was supposed to be worried and afraid for her sister, but if so, she should have DONE SOMETHING ABOUT IT and quit letting herself be railroaded by Men Who Know Better just to turn around and nag them about it. Gah! There's also a distinct and awkward lack of emotional depth. True, Lila's frantic nagging is nigh constant, but I never really FELT her concern about her sister's well-being... she just wanted to know what happened. Not "I need to know she's OK" but "I need to know what happened." From the girl who had extravagant earrings custom made as a gift, it just seemed... odd. And the same is true of Sam, Mary's fiance. He could have lost his pet turtle for all the concern he showed regarding his soon-to-be-wife who was missing for an entire week. Lila's parting thoughts are not that she's going to grieve for her murdered sister, but that she feels sorry for Norman in a way, and that she's just going to forget the whole thing. Honestly, the lack of any emotion at all is very disappointing. For me, it's not enough to have a plot with cardboard characters to act it out - there needs to be something to bring the story to life. Norman went a good ways toward that, but he wasn't enough.
What do You think about Psycho (1999)?
Horror is my "go to" genre, my bread and butter. Although more than 50 years have passed since the movie was made, Psycho remains at the top of the tree on my list of best horror flicks. It's dated, certainly. Filmed in black and white, complete with melodramatic music and exaggerated close-ups, but it works beautifully by leaving something to the imagination. The book, written in 1959, stands the proverbial test of time, as well. 'You do not want Mother using her keys.' Quite right. The pounding comes, then the roaring, followed by blessed silence. For a little while, at least. What a trip it would have been to have read the book before seeing the movie. But even with that ship having sailed decades ago, reading the novel was pure pleasure.
—Zoeytron
First the movie: Hitchcock did an amazing job ramping up the scary/creepy factor of this story. The shower scene in the book, just does not compare. It was an amazing movie for it's time. I daresay, it still is. The movie (as many do) fell flat at the end if we are doing a direct comparison. Now the book: It is a really short quick read. And like most books that are made into movies, we get inside the characters head. It is always powerful. I enjoyed that, getting inside the heads of all the characters, even if they were kinda one dimensional. I think Norman had the most depth. But then...we all know about Norman. The shower scene in the book surprised me, not in what happened, it wasn't a very descriptive scene, bam Mary's head is cut off. (This is where Hitchcock's genius shines.) But it was written just so , matter of fact and in the first 2 chapters.All mixed together:I don't remember Mary's sister(in the movie) being the kind of character portrayed in the book, But we know what happens and how things unfold in the cellar. I loved the description of the house, especially the bedrooms. I do not remember that in the movie either, I think the house is more creepy in the book.Was there smoking and drinking in the movie? Its so 50's. But the ending of the book. Hitchcock just couldn't touch it. Just amazing. Now I need to watch the movie for a refresher. Happy to have visited the Bates universe.
—Jennifer
Yo soy de esas personas que parecen vivir en una cueva y tardan un millón de años en por fin ver algo que "todo el mundo ya vio" y ese fue el caso de la legendaria película Psicosis de Alfred Hitchcock. No fue sino hasta el año pasado que por fin la vi, gracias a la recomendación de una amiga que adora ésta película, y luego comencé a ver Bates Motel (sólo un par de capítulos) y cuando me enteré que provenía de un libro supe al instante que tenía que leerlo. Moví cielo mar y tierra para conseguir el libro, pero no encontraba nada más que el segundo y el tercero, así que otra amiga que sí lo tenía me lo prestó (y yo fui mucho muy feliz).Me lo devoré en el transcurso de 24 horas (no son muchas páginas) pero no sólo por las pocas páginas, también es un libro que te cautiva. Yo intentaba imaginar lo que hubiera sentido al leer el libro sin saber ya todo lo que sucede gracias a que vi la película, y hubiera sido un magnífico efecto sorpresa. Pero como ya había visto la película, nada me sorprendió. Pero me encantaba estar dentro de la mente de Norman Bates, nuestro protagonista principal, que junto a su madre Norma, llevaba un motel de paso junto a una carretera abandonada. La historia comienza con Mary Craine, que la desesperación por poder estar junto al hombre que ama, la lleva a abusar de la confianza de su jefe y huye con 40 mil dólares. En el camino se pierde y termina hospedándose en el Bates Motel. Un hombre regordete con anteojos y bastante tímido la atiende. Ni él, y mucho menos ellas, se imaginaba que iba a terminar siendo asesinada en la ducha.La hermana y el novio de Mary, comienzan a buscar a la chica desaparecida, al mismo tiempo que un detective la busca por los 40 mil dólares que se robó. Y Norman no sabe cómo ayudar a la culpable de todo ésto.Como ya dije, el leer el libro me hizo entender muchos detalles sobre los personajes que ya conocía. Saber lo que pasa por la mente del tímido y raro Norman Bates me hizo adorar la lectura. Siento respeto y fascinación por los trastornos mentales de cualquier tipo (por algo quise estudiar psicología... aunque no lo haya hecho). La mente es tan complicada, que no puedo hacer otra cosa que admirarla. Y los libros basados o que giran al rededor de trastornos mentales (se llama Psicosis, hello!) simplemente ¡ME ENCANTAN!Se lee de un tirón, es bastante rápido, si no has visto la película te mantendrá preguntándote qué pasará a continuación. La relación de Norman con su madre es bastante interesante, aunque desespera por momentos, pero es una desesperación agradable. Me hizo sentir muchas cosas, claustrofobia, frustración y a veces hasta enojo. Un excelente libro y lo recomiendo ampliamente junto a su película.
—Chester Dean
