The Bad Seed (P.S.)
by William March
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| The Bad Seed by William March | 1 | 03/31/2008 07:09AM |
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 173)
Read in April, 2007
This was the basis for one of my all-time favourite movies, a delirious and delicious camp classic. The novel differs quite a bit from the film – especially the ending. While the film concentrates on the evil and murderous little girl and her mother, the book goes into considerable detail about the mother’s own childhood and her own mother, and the true significance of the title becomes much plainer. Both movie and novel are wonderful examples of 1950s American paranoia, but this is not p...more
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Read in January, 2004
recommended to Noran by:
my father, via the movierecommends it for: adults only
when i was growing up, my father referred to my older sister sister, as "the bad seed"--she was 10 years older than me. i did not understand the reference, until i was sat in front of the television one day, with father, and watch the movie, based on this novel. now, my sister did not kill anyone, but she did have many of the same mannerisms, and still does--to get her way. i went through a phase, where i read the books that my favorite classic films were based on. this book takes ...more
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Read in February, 2008
Besides looking like the movie actress (the old version, not the new), the doll on this book's cover looks very like a Kirsten American Girl. How scary.
It was fun to finally read this, and really it was quite remarkable how faithful the movie was to much of the book--with some key differences (the ending, for instance). Hard to assess the book on its own merits with the movie so embedded in my early memory.
March's depiction of Christine's depression felt true, his descriptions of her r...more
It was fun to finally read this, and really it was quite remarkable how faithful the movie was to much of the book--with some key differences (the ending, for instance). Hard to assess the book on its own merits with the movie so embedded in my early memory.
March's depiction of Christine's depression felt true, his descriptions of her r...more
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Read in January, 1986
I read this book after seeing the movie (which it totally creepy too!) It's one of those books that definitely stayed with me for a long time after reading it. It's the story of Rhoda, an eight year old girl who has murdered people when things don't go her way. It sounds ridiculous when it's written out but it's really good, nothing like the horror movies of today. The ending to the book is different than the movie-I don't want to give it away-but it's much more disturbing.
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Read in January, 1999
A breathless read. My fairy tales professor had a still shot from the movie, in which we see the girl's face as her mother hugs her: the smile on her face is just as frightening as, if not more than, the cover of this book. That little actress was a genius (or a monster).
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recommends it for:
Pregnant women.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
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Read in July, 2008
Had seen the movie a long time ago and thought I had read the book. Decided to read it 'again' and realized I had never read it. Good book! Scary little girl!! Think the book has a different ending than the movie did. Kind of predictable but still enjoyable. All in all, a good quick read.
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A chilling story of a little girl who is eight years old who has murdered not one person but three people!! The time is around 1930's- 1940's. It's a must read if you don't mind the mature parts of the story, and a little twist in the ending. ;]
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Very fun, quick read. Aside from In Cold Blood, one of the few books that has actually given me the chills (in the thriller sense). William March must've been a huge Hemmingway fan. Direct and blunt for most of the way through!
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a child in my class said i should read this. "it's creepy!" she said. kids never think anything in books is creepy so i read it. mrs. penmark reminds me of the parents of some of my students. it is creepy.
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Read in August, 2006
Wicked and fun to read. Forget the creepy kids that dominate scary movies today. They've got nothing on little Rhoda Penmark. I'm not ashamed to say that a book written in the '50s gave me chills.
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I had to read this is highschool, I remember liking it, but cannot really comment as to why. I will have to read it again to give it a fair review.
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Read in April, 2005
i wanted to strangle the girl. i loved her though. it pulled out the bad seed in me. the poor mom, kinda, just lost it though.
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Really excellent! I did predict the ending, but I had a lot of fun getting there. Creepy and delicious.
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Saw the movie, had to read the book. More Nabokov-esque than I ever imagined--very Lolita.
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A very creepy novel about a very little creepy girl. A parents nightmare of a story.
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Read in September, 2006
recommends it for:
Anyone with a dark, twisted sense of humor, and other fans of child murderers.
My mother and I used to watch this movie together a lot. What does that say about us?
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A chilling good read. If Patrick Bateman had a daughter it would be Rhoda Penmark.
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Read in December, 1982
Great psychological horror story of a murderous child.
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