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American Psycho Paperback – 1 Jan. 2015
Bret Easton Ellis (Author) See search results for this author |
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A cult classic, adapted into a film starring Christian Bale.
Is evil something you are? Or is it something you do?
Patrick Bateman has it all: good looks, youth, charm, a job on Wall Street, reservations at every new restaurant in town and a line of girls around the block. He is also a psychopath. A man addicted to his superficial, perfect life, he pulls us into a dark underworld where the American Dream becomes a nightmare . . .
With an introduction by Irvine Welsh, Bret Easton Ellis's American Psycho is one of the most controversial and talked-about novels of all time. A multi-million-copy bestseller hailed as a modern classic, it is a violent black comedy about the darkest side of human nature.
- ISBN-109781447277705
- ISBN-13978-1447277705
- EditionMain Market
- PublisherPicador
- Publication date1 Jan. 2015
- LanguageEnglish
- Dimensions13 x 2.6 x 19.8 cm
- Print length416 pages
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Product description
Review
Serious, clever and shatteringly effective, Sunday Times
For its savagely coherent picture of a society lethally addicted to blandness, it should be judged by the highest standards -- John Walsh, Sunday Times
That the book's contents are shocking is downright undeniable, but just as Bonfire of the Vanities exposed the corruption and greed engendered in eighties politics and high living, American Psycho examines the mindless preoccupations of the nineties preppy generation, Time Out
Our killer nonchalantly takes his blood-splattered clothes to the dry cleaners and gives them attitude when they complain about the stains . . . You'd think at least one of these witnesses would get suspicious or complain, but they don't -- Bob Mack, Spin
The first novel to come along in years that takes on deep and Dostoyevskian themes . . . Ellis is showing older authors where the hands have come to on the clock, Vanity Fair
From the Back Cover
Is evil something you are? Or is it something you do?
Patrick Bateman has it all: good looks, youth, charm, a job on Wall Street, reservations at every new restaurant in town and a line of girls around the block. He is also a psychopath. A man addicted to his superficial, perfect life, he pulls us into a dark underworld where the American Dream becomes a nightmare . . .
American Psycho is one of the most controversial and talked-about novels of all time. A multimillion-copy bestseller hailed as a modern classic, it is a violent black comedy about the darkest side of human nature.
'A seminal book'
Fay Weldon, Washington Post
'Serious, clever and shatteringly effective . . . For its savagely coherent picture of a society lethally addicted to blandness, it should be judged by the highest standards'
Sunday Times
'The first novel to come along in years that takes on deep and Dostoyevskian themes . . . Ellis is showing older authors where the hands have come to on the clock'
Norman Mailer, Vanity Fair
About the Author
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Product details
- ASIN : 1447277708
- Publisher : Picador; Main Market edition (1 Jan. 2015)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 416 pages
- ISBN-10 : 9781447277705
- ISBN-13 : 978-1447277705
- Reading age : 18 years and up
- Dimensions : 13 x 2.6 x 19.8 cm
- Best Sellers Rank: 1,373 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 3 in Horror Parodies & Satires
- 6 in Classic Horror
- 11 in Parodies (Books)
- Customer reviews:
About the author

Bret Easton Ellis is the author of five novels and a collection of short stories; his work has been translated into twenty-seven languages. He lives in Los Angeles.
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Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 September 2021
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The soullessly pornographic play-by-play commentary of the sex scenes, and the unflinchingly matter-of-fact descriptions of torture and mutilation; these passages become harder and harder to read, until finally I could only skim them as lightly as possible, and yet they’re so necessary to give you a frank representation of Patrick Bateman’s mind, and his unblinking detachment from these acts.
Even in his more mundane day-to-day dealings, his compulsion to break down the components of outfits, the catalogue-like descriptions of home furnishings and technology, and especially the whole chapters dedicated to his reviews of music artists – these also wear thin over time, but are just as important to show that in which he consistently places value, and on which he relies to maintain his mask of human sanity.
Although Patrick makes for a difficult narrator, Ellis’ skilful writing comes into play outside of this narrative too, in giving a fuller sense of the world he moves in: the repetitive, shallow conversation topics; the interchangeability of Bateman and his peers; how he can give blunt warnings and even admissions of guilt without ever being heard. It’s these touches, as well as Bateman’s increasingly frantic and futile attempts to retain control of himself, that make this book compelling in spite of Patrick’s narrative.
The first half of the book demonstrates, in great tedious detail, the superficial lifestyle of the wealthy. Every character in every scene is described by their designer clothes, from their sunglasses to their underwear and socks; grooming and television rituals; where and what they eat in expensive trendy restaurants and hotels; their crass and vacuous conversations about other rich people and how to match handkerchiefs and socks.
However, underneath this frivolity is a very dark and disturbing theme. There is plenty of wealth but no value. Racism is cruelly obvious as the homeless and low-paid workers are not part of the Yuppie elite and are ridiculed, mutilated and murdered for no other reason than that. The grotesque objectification of women is taken to the level where they are literally bought and treated as things to be used and discarded in obscene scenes of depravity and horror.
The protagonist talks about how he would like to murder, or has murdered or tortured people, but none of his peers listens or takes him seriously. There are frequent cases of mistaken identity or name confusion. Characters swap partners as there are no emotional bonds. None of this matters because everyone is the same and therefore interchangeable.
As the story develops, the violence, obscenity and murder increase. Sometimes the protagonist feels as if he is a film, another superficial and fake version of reality, and he refers to himself in the third person with exciting action scenes typical of Hollywood. He is not sure what has taken place is in his head or not and tests his peers about missing persons he believes he has murdered. He obviously thinks the ramifications would be more satisfying or at least acknowledged.
This is very much an anti-materialistic tale. These characters have everything money can buy, but they are empty and hollow inside, devoid of love, compassion and fulfilment. Perhaps torture and murder is a way to connect with the living and life because the designer clothes and gadgets don't fill the hole. What is missing is a heart, something the American Psycho, the consumerist capitalist, does not have.
Only once have I ever given up on a book, and this was almost a second time.
The painful monotony and repetition makes this a very frustrating read. Only because I'd seen the film did I understand why we were subjected to paragraph after paragraph describing every item of clothing, furniture, drink and everything else - I don't think this was clear from the writing alone. From the readers point of view this was a tedious waste of time. On top of this, 20 plus mentions of Les Misérables. For a book based in New York City, I'd expect the author to be able to name at least one other Broadway show, for crying out loud. If I missed the point of this repetition, I'm way past caring.
There were 3 chapters that served absolutely zero purpose, and they were describing the songs and albums of Genesis, Whitney Houston and Huey Lewis and the News. My goodness, that was boring, and again, no explanation as to why the reader was subjected to it. The film definitely does this better and it doesn't feel quite so random.
The violence portrayed is certainly shocking, but that is what the author wants as far as I can tell. He wants to shock, to offend, to revolt - in this, he is successful. I am no stranger to crime, horror and thriller novels but the degree of violence in this book is excessive. The animal abuse, the defilement of women, all makes for very uncomfortable reading. How any of it related to his point made in the afterword, I'm afraid I really didn't understand.
In summary, I despised this book, I wouldn't recommend it to my worst enemy. Quite frankly a very poor execution of what should have been a great story.