The Manchurian Candidate is a novel about conditioning, control and manipulation - and brilliantly explores all these topics. It's concise, well written and one of those brilliant books that you have to read with a straight face because you can't decide whether to laugh or grimace.Sergeant Raymond Shaw and his fellow G.I.'s have been captured in Korea, where they have been brainwashed by the mysterious chinese doctor Yen Lo. Chinese and Russian scientists select Raymond to be a "sleeper" agent, make him kill two other troops and brainwash them all to believe that Raymond is responsible for rescuing the rest from an ambush, for which he receives the utmost reward in American military - The Medal of Honor.After the group returns to the States major Marco starts having nightmares where he stands in front of chinese and soviet officials, while Raymond picks up the telephone and listens to the voice which suggests passing time by playing a little solitaire...Despite being written over half a century ago The Manchurian Candidate is as entertaining as it was in the fifties. Richard Condon's eccentric style is exquisite - his eccentric use of irony is perfect for the paranoid story he is telling. None of the characters can be described as likeable - each of them has some traits that wouldn't propably make you spend time with their company...especially with mr. Iselin, a commie-hating senator obviously modeled after Joseph McCarthy. But the real gem is his wife who also happens to be Raymond's mother - Mrs. Iselin. She's quite possibly one of the most loathsome villains in fiction - and at the same time one of the most desirable. Condon doesn't spend much space describing her looks - the reader gets to know Ms. Iselin as perfection embodied. The paragraph where he describes her legs is almost nauseatingly arousing - you loathe and despise that woman but you can't help yourself and want her at the same time, because of her allure and devilish mind, helpless like moths flying into the fire, blind to knowledge that the encounter will ultimately lead into your demise, willing to any sacrifice in exchange for only a brief taste of the flame. Brilliant, brilliant absolutely brilliant. The ultimate Femme Fatale.Richard Condon doesn't try to hide his cynism, but he was that guy who knew that the everything was essentialy shit but the fact didn't stop him from making fun of it. The Manchurian Candidate is, to quote the introduction, "a banana overriped to the point of blackness". It was described as "pulp" if it's pulp, it's Great Pulp. The fact that it's considered as not literary allowed Condon to brilliantly balance between thriller and camp in weird, drunk prose. Practically unfilmable, The Manchurian Candidate is a great, satysfying read. Go get it.
There were quite a few surprises in this book. I enjoyed the first movie made out of it, and I'd seen (but not enjoyed) the remake. Neither movie captured the intent of the author. For example, Raymond's mother is the impetus of a lot of things that happen in this book, and now we have a good reason for her to be doing this (which wasn't present in either movie). Early in the book, we learn that she had a very loving, yet incestuous, relationship with her father. Arguably, he is the only man she has ever loved. His death screws her up so badly that she becomes a control freak with an insatiable lust for power. In fact, sex is the main thing that doesn't get through to the adaptations. Condon doesn't give us the Hollywood version of soldiers in Korea; he gives us the real version. They didn't just drink and play cards, you know. They also went to whorehouses. There is even a character who tries to have sex with an Eskimo at one point.So from that aspect, Condon's honesty is very endearing to me. However, he does something else pretty early in the book that kind of soured me on it. He starts off strong with a very unlikable protagonist (whose first order of business, by the way, is getting laid with a reporter trying to interview him (not counting the lies he tells to the father of a dead soldier Raymond not only served with, but also wound up killing)), but then Condon goes off on a series of tangents. Back story and flashbacks practically run over each other until it reached the point where I didn't even know where I was on the timeline. I have no problem with flashbacks or back story, but so much of it in a row? It killed all forward momentum and nearly killed my interest in the book, especially since it happened so early.The journey is worth it, though, considering the awesome ending. I can't say if I would recommend this book or not. It's an unusual read, but at least it pays off in the end.
What do You think about The Manchurian Candidate (2004)?
When I read Oedipus Rex by Sophocles in college, I laughed because for me it was comedy, not tragedy. I felt nobody spoke that way. In many respects, I responded to The Manchurian Candidate the same way. It is too far-fetched to be real. It is extremely exaggerated. It is political satire at its finest and I laughed. Writing in the 1950's in the middle of the cold war and during the era of Joe McCarthy, Condon lambasts the extreme right and corrupt politicians. The book has been made into a movie twice, but I have seen neither of them so I don't know if Hollywood created a serious political thriller or if they created a satirical film. Most of the satire has survived the 50+ years since it was published and is still as relevant today as it was when it was published.If you choose to read this book, read it as political satire, not as a political thriller.
—Harley
I always loved the movie, and finally found a copy of the book. This is one of the few instances where the movie can add details to make a version just as interesting as the book. Parts of the chapters laggged as Condon added exposition to give commentary to the contemporary situation.Soldiers are captured in Korea and brainwashed, convinced that Shaw saved them from an ambush. He is awarded the Medal of Honor and comes home a hero, only to have been programmed to be an unthinking, uncaring assassin. Marco, one of his fellow soldiers, has been suffering nightmares (along with a fellow soldier) and uncovers the plot.As stated, I think the movie does a fine job in dealing with most of the book and adds some decent visual to the brainwashing scenes. However, the book delves deeper into the twisted life of Shaw, which the movie would never have been able to handle (incest happens, for one). But, a definate read for anyone who enjoyed the movie or who likes 'conspiracy' thrillers.
—Don Murphy
I just found this book to be a fun read. I probably did not take it as seriously as the author had meant for it to be taken when he wrote it in the late 1950s. That was almost 56 years ago -- so yes the book is dated but that was part of what I enjoyed including the sometimes corny conversations and overblown descriptions the author used which would make me flinch if found today in a book written in 2015. Bottom line, it kept me reading well into the night. I will also admit I let out a solo "yeah" and a hi-five at the ending....I may never forget Raymond's mother.
—Jeanne
