House of Leaves

[woodpryan]

Has anyone read this book by Danielewski? I have talked to a few people about it who tell me it's the most frightening thing they've ever read. In some places, the lines are upside down. Sometimes, the passages occupy only the top half or bottom half or middle of the page. Sometimes there only a few lines or a single word to a page. Sometimes, the letters are backward so you have to get a mirror to read them. Sometimes, they are upside down and backward. Some of the words are in color, some in black. Some of the words are in Coriour New type and some are in Times New Roman. Most of the time the words run like a normal novel, but sometimes they run in columns or sideways, or only occupy a corner of the page. Has anyone heard about this thing? I bought it yesterday at work.

[Brice]

Great book! I loved it.

[Sickrose]

Oh my god this sounds amazing i have to buy this i have never heard of it!

[Brice]

It is indeed amazing. Only Revolutions by Danielewski is really good too.

[woodpryan]

Oh my god this sounds amazing i have to buy this i have never heard of it!

Amazon.com: House of Leaves (9780375703768): Mark Z. Danielewski: Books
I haven't started reading it yet because there are some things on my list ahead of it, but I can't wait to start. I'm excited about it.

[biomieg]

Trust me, the typesetting et cetera are not the most important features of this book but they do greatly enhance the way the storylines unfold (and yes, there are multiple, convoluted storylines...one of them entirely told in the footnotes that appear throughout the book).

You will enjoy it.

And if you like this type of books, you should surely read Dave Egger's first book A HEARTBREAKING WORK OF STAGGERING GENIUS :) a completely different animal, this one. But every bit as enthralling and experimental.

[woodpryan]

I was thinking about buying House of Leaves yesterday. I was merely entertaining the idea and probably wasn't going to. But then I spoke to a friend of mine about it and he told me it was the most frightening novel he'd ever read. This came from a huge Stephen King fan who has read many, many horror novels. That got me to buy it. I couldn't help myself. It was the final kicker for me.

[biomieg]

Oh it is frightening, yes. But in an entirely non-King (or non-horror, for that matter) way. Go forth and read :)

[Brice]

Trust me, the typesetting et cetera are not the most important features of this book but they do greatly enhance the way the storylines unfold (and yes, there are multiple, convoluted storylines...one of them entirely told in the footnotes that appear throughout the book).

You will enjoy it.

And if you like this type of books, you should surely read Dave Egger's first book A HEARTBREAKING WORK OF STAGGERING GENIUS :) a completely different animal, this one. But every bit as enthralling and experimental.


I may have to check that out myself. :)

[biomieg]

Dude, haven't you read it? It's absolutely brilliant!

[Brice]

I've never read a word by the guy. I'll have to check it out when I can let myself buy more books.

[biomieg]

Please do read his work Brice.

Back on topic: this is just a hint of what some of the pages in HOUSE OF LEAVES look like... but again, you shouldn't read it simply because the typesetting is weird, the books has a lot more to it.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/49/165251719_7973acc084.jpg

http://jennysbooks.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/holquick.jpg

[Brice]

I agree. The structure just supports the story. It's definitely not just to do it or anything like that.

[woodpryan]

I agree. The structure just supports the story. It's definitely not just to do it or anything like that.

That's what I've heard. That when things start getting weird and fucked up, so does the text. It's not just because it's cool. And that was another selling point for me. A story as fucked up as that text would suggest? Awesome. Right now I'm reading Hell House by Richard Matheson, next on the list is The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty, and then House of Leaves has been moved past a lot of other stuff to go right after that. I can't wait. I'm going to fly through Hell House and The Exorcist now. lol.

[Brice]

All are truly GREAT reads. You apparently have good taste. :)


And yes, it's a neat form for experimental writing, but it would seem pointless to me if there wasn't a reason for the structure other than to JUST play with form.

[woodpryan]

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4050/4254586654_80f98abe92.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/greghickman/4254597246/in/set-72157623036062409/

[woodpryan]

All are truly GREAT reads. You apparently have good taste. :)


And yes, it's a neat form for experimental writing, but it would seem pointless to me if there wasn't a reason for the structure other than to JUST play with form.

I'm reading as much of the great horror classics as I can this summer. I am actually learning a lot about writing this way. The novels and short stories I've read this summer have been very inspirational and instructional (can you believe that's a freakin' word?).

[Brice]

I try to read as much classic horror fiction as I can. I've been fanatical about horror since I was a kid.

[Sickrose]

Oh my god this sounds amazing i have to buy this i have never heard of it!

Amazon.com: House of Leaves (9780375703768): Mark Z. Danielewski: Books
I haven't started reading it yet because there are some things on my list ahead of it, but I can't wait to start. I'm excited about it.

Cheers for the link - I am going to purchase this i think. Pretty excited about it now.

[woodpryan]

Oh my god this sounds amazing i have to buy this i have never heard of it!

Amazon.com: House of Leaves (9780375703768): Mark Z. Danielewski: Books
I haven't started reading it yet because there are some things on my list ahead of it, but I can't wait to start. I'm excited about it.

Cheers for the link - I am going to purchase this i think. Pretty excited about it now.

Good deal. I hope you enjoy it. You might start reading it before I do. If so, let me know what you think. Who knows? Maybe we'll start reading it at the same time. If The Exorcist doesn't come in by the time I finish Hell House, I'm going to go ahead and start on it.

[Jean]

I try to read as much classic horror fiction as I can. I've been fanatical about horror since I was a kid.
someone was going to provide a list, cough, cough

[Brice]

Oh good! I hope I can see it too. :P


I know! I know! I am depending on your POV a legendarily horrible/great procrastinator. Someday bards will roam the countryside singing songs of my fantastic tardiness. :(

[Jean]

it's all right Brice, I'm still trying to get around to posting what I promised people in 2005 at .net...

/off topic

[woodpryan]

Well, so far pretty strange. But it has grabbed me by the balls. This is what it seems to be about to me so far. Please correct me if I'm mistaken.

Navidson and his family moved into a house which is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. A house where closets and hallways appear out of no where. Where the laws of physics don't seem to matter much. Navidson creates a documentary about this experience.
Zampano watched the documentary, "The Navidson Record," and wrote one hell of a lengthy essay on it, in which he did a whole lot of research outside of what he watched in order to gain the fullest possible understanding of it. I think that this information eventually, somehow, leads to his death.
Johnny Truant stumbles upon the essay (probably unfinished) of Zampano and as he reads it, his life begins to get very strange and somewhat dark.
These three stories are told at the same time throughout the novel.

So far, do I have that about right? Also, there are numerous footnotes from Zampano that seem to be completely usless, quotes from magazines that never existed, reference citing from books, some of which, never existed. Are these skipable or should I read them? Some of them are interesting, inciteful, and useful. But are the ones that seem completely pointless... completely pointless?
Our narrorator, Johnny Truant, tells us near the start of the book that he likes to make stuff up and that he is, basically, a pathological liar. For me, this calls into question whether or not Zampano's essay exists at all. Zampano states from the beginning that the documentary, "The Navidson Record," is probably, "an elaborate hoax," which calls into question the reality of the documentary, upon which this entire novel is based. This thing is a lot to wrap my head around.
Here is my favorite quote so far:


Quick note here: if this crush-slash-swooning stuff is hard for you to stomach; if you've never had a similar experience, then you should come to grips with the fact that you've got a TV dinner for a heart and might want to consider climbing inside a microwave and turning it on high for at least an hour, which if you do consider only goes to show what kind of idiot you truly are because microwaves are way too small for anyone, let alone you, to climb into.
Quick second note: if that last paragraph didn't apply to you, you may skip it and proceed to this next part.

[Sickrose]

My other half bought me this for my birthday. There is a companion book called The Whaltstoe Letters which I also have and which are an expanded part of the novel. Sounds interesting.

How yiu finding it Woodpryan?

[woodpryan]

Well, I'm not very far through it, but it's really excellent so far. A lot of what's in the Whalestone Letters is also in the Apendix II. But I'd still like to have that companion because it has more stuff in there. Lucky you for having it. The stuff from The Whalestone letters that was in the Apendix was really pretty awesome. Really trippy stuff. Have you started on this thing yet?

[woodpryan]

My friend and I decoded the Whalestone letter dated May, 8 1987. Here it is:


Dearest johnny,
They have found a way to break me, rape a fifty six year old bag of bones. There is no worse and don't believe otherwise. The attendants do it. Others do it. Not every day, not every week, maybe not even every month. But they do it. Someone I don't know always comes. When it's dark. Late. I've learned not to scream, screaming gave me hope and unanswered hope is shattered hope. Think of your Haitian. It is far saner to choose rape than shattered hope. So I submit and I drift. I let a price and a certain degree of free association take me away. Sometimes I'm still away long after it's done, after he's gone, the stranger, the attendant, the custodian, the janitor, cleaning man, waiting man, dirty man, the night tidying up after him. I'm in hell, giving in to heaven, where I sometimes think of your beautiful father with his dreamy wings, and only then do I allow myself to cry. Not because your mother was raped again, but because she loved so much what she could never have been allowed to keep. Such a silly girl. You must save me, Johnny. In the name of your father I must escape this place or I will die. I love you so much. You are all I have.

P.

[woodpryan]

We also figured out that there are random capital letters throughout the letter. When the capitals that aren't supposed to be capitalized are put together, they spell:


A FACE IN A CLOUD NO TRACE IN THE CROWD

[woodpryan]

Using long passages for -(dash) and short passages for . (dot), we discovered a code beginning on page 97, which says "SOS" from The Navidson Record, and from Johnny Truants footnotes, "FUCK", and "BUTTONS". Wikipedia has a few secret messages, including one from the whalestoe letters, appearing on page 615, apparently addressing Zampon, saying, "My dear Zampano, who did you lose?" And I think that is indeed a very good question. Anyone have any ideas? I'm still reading the novel. I'm on page 414, so if it's something I'll find out later, don't tell me. If it's something I have already missed and not noticed, by all means.

[Sickrose]

Well, I'm not very far through it, but it's really excellent so far. A lot of what's in the Whalestone Letters is also in the Apendix II. But I'd still like to have that companion because it has more stuff in there. Lucky you for having it. The stuff from The Whalestone letters that was in the Apendix was really pretty awesome. Really trippy stuff. Have you started on this thing yet?

Not started it yet. I have a tonnoe to read for uni but since I am a bit ahead of myself, I think I might start this week.

[woodpryan]

On page 502, Johnny Truant is talking about his mother and what she would say if she were there at that moment.

"Beware," she might have whispered. "Another holy other lessens your great hold on slowing time," as she would have described it...

The quote from his mother translates to "Beware, a holy ghost."