Highest Rated Review by the Community
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Jan 12 '02
Pros: innovative, experimental, decidedly creepy
Cons: this book is a victim of its own creativity.
Summary: Virginian House. 1/4 inch bigger on the inside than the outside. Transformative power. Moving staircases. House has regenerative power. (Note to self-- Great selling point) Pit of despair? (Ahh- we'll wow them with the spacious ... read more
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Apr 14 '07
Pros: The supernatural elements were interesting, and the insane way the book itself was structured.
Cons: It lagged a lot in the middle of the book, and that got me lost.
Summary: The book has two narratives, sort of. Some old fart dies, and his neighbor finds a report that the old guy wrote. It contains a detailed examination of a couple of videos of a supernatural house and the people who inhabit it. So, it follows that part ... read more
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Feb 14 '07
Pros: You can pretend you're snooty and artsy Cons: Pretentious for the sake of pretentiousness
Only 1/8th of the book is interesting
Summary: This book is one of those books that were made with college kids who like to pretend they're deep in mind. It's a story about a famous photographer by the name of Navidson who has recently moved into a possessed, evil house and is making a documentary ... read more
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Apr 27 '06
Pros: words cannot describe how amazing this book is
Cons: none at all, other than its impossible to put this book down
Summary: I did this review on ebay a long time ago, but decided to share it here on Epinions. Please note I have corrected some spelling, and have added some more thoughts. Amazing book. It changes the way you read novels, and does to closets what "psycho" ... read more
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Jan 10 '06
Pros: Original, geniunely haunting
Cons: uh...
Summary: Of all the novels I’ve read recently, HoL stands out as an amazing achievement, not only in plot, suspense and psychological manipulation, but in literary form. These elements are inseparable as the strange and original use of the text illustrates the ... read more
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Jan 26 '05
Pros: Extremely interesting read, blows convention out of the water.
Cons: Sometimes the clever layout and narration is too clever for it's own good.
Summary: Be warned, I give away a *LOT* of the plot in this review... To quote one of the great minds of Western thought, Keanu Reeves, "Whoa"(1). House of Leaves, written by Mark Z. Danielewski, is a novel that does it's level best to throw a monkey ... read more
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Jun 28 '04
Pros: captivating plot, original format, multiple story layers
Cons: ending, some slow parts
Summary: House of Leaves is an all around great novel. It has all the genre elements one could possibly hope for - suspense, romance, science fiction, drama, horror, character study, etc. All I could do for about 5 days was read this book. The writing ... read more
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Mar 02 '04
Pros: Frightening main story line, some interesting characters, fascinating format
Cons: Too ambitious, could have benefited from focusing more on how characters related to the house.
Summary: I enjoyed the experience of reading this book very much. There are sections of this book that are truly frightening and if you are willing to let your imagination run with the story and if you are able to push aside the numerous distracting story ... read more
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Sep 09 '03
Pros: beautifully developed plot
Cons: unravels at the end...and yet even that is appropriate
Summary: Premise: An old blind man (Zampano) mysteriously dies in his apartment and leaves behind a manuscript comprised of scraps of paper, passages written on napkins and pieces of used notebook paper, some of it scratched out or illegible, mostly in a s ... read more
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Aug 21 '03
Pros: Supporting; favoring
Cons: In opposition or disagreement; against: debated the issue pro and con. Short for contra.
Summary: This review is not for you. 4 am. Just a few hours from receiving this book, I have alr ... read more
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Apr 21 '03
Pros: Extremely emotional! No way could I put this book down!
Cons: Unfortunately, some people have jobs!
Summary: Mark Danielewski really has a genius side. This book is the only book that got me to read cover to cover, without being able to put the thing down! And it's over 400 pages long! It is based on a fictitious documentary called the Navidson Record, which ... read more
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Mar 16 '03
Pros: Creative, innovative, will likely stay with you long after you finish.
Cons: At times, it can get pretentious.
Summary: The set-up runs more or less as follows: A young man named Johnny Truant happens upon a blind, elderly shut-in known only as "Zampano". After Zampano's death, Johnny discovers a manuscript Zampano was working on up to his death. Having little else ... read more
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Aug 06 '02
Pros: Captivating, original, unexpected, interesting footnotes.
Cons: Average ending.
Summary: I read this novel because it was recommended to me by a friend, who had never exactly finished it. At first glance, after I scanned the pages of the book, I figured that the pages with whirlpool writing, square-formed writing, and upside down writing ... read more
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Aug 05 '02
Pros: Captivating, original, unexpected, interesting footnotes
Cons: average ending
Summary: I read this novel because it was recommended to me by a friend, who had never exactly finished it. At first glance, after I scanned the pages of the book, I figured that the pages with whirlpool writing, square-formed writing, and upside down writing ... read more
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May 25 '02
Pros: Everything but Johnny Truant's footnotes
Cons: Johnny Truant's footnotes
Summary: Where to begin?
House of Leaves is a novel, written by Mark Danielewski. House of Leaves is the title of the manuscript Johnny Truant finds when his friend Lude calls him in the middle of the night to help him with the belongings of Lude's ... read more
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Feb 02 '02
Pros: It challenges so many literary conventions it forces (gasp!) critical thinking and analysis.
Cons: If my home were bigger on the inside than outside, would my rent go up?
Summary: "It was enormous. We dropped a few flares down it but never heard them hit bottom. I mean in that place, it being so empty and cold and still and all, you really can hear a pin drop, but the darkness just swallowed the flares right up...It's so deep, ... read more
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