Wil Wheaton's Reviews > House of Leaves
House of Leaves
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by

If you want a really good, insightful review of House of Leaves (that I didn't write), go read this one from Aerin.
If you want to read mine, here you go:
House of Leaves isn't one of those tidy little things that holds your hand and wipes your bottom and tells you that you're special. It makes you work, and what you get out of it depends largely on how much work you're willing to do. House of Leaves is difficult at times, incredibly complex, occasionally pretentious, and (view spoiler) .
When I finished it, I thought I was unsatisfied with (view spoiler) , but it lived in me long after I closed the book. I could not stop thinking about the characters, the puzzles, my various theories about the nature of the story and (view spoiler)
Here's the thing about House of Leaves: you can enjoy it simply as a horrifying story that could possibly be true. You could enjoy it as a love story on a number of different levels. You can enjoy it as a whole bunch of puzzles and codes and ciphers. You can enjoy it as a unique reading experience that will make you fall back in love with actual paper books.
But however you choose to enjoy it, you've got to just commit to it. Let the book's reality capture you, and ride it out until you finish the book. When you're done, you'll probably find that the House has taken up some space inside you, and you'll wonder if the nightmares will actually come, assuming they haven't already.
You'll go back to the beginning, and you'll reread sections large and small. You'll take a magnifying glass to the pictures and you'll spend a long time reading message boards that haven't been updated since 2004. You'll grab that copy of Poe's Haunted that you bought before you knew House of Leaves existed, and you'll listen to it again in an entirely new way.
You'll discover that you live at the end of a five and a half minute hallway.
...
Or maybe you won't. Maybe it won't live in you the way it lives in me... but it's worth your time to find out.
If you want to read mine, here you go:
House of Leaves isn't one of those tidy little things that holds your hand and wipes your bottom and tells you that you're special. It makes you work, and what you get out of it depends largely on how much work you're willing to do. House of Leaves is difficult at times, incredibly complex, occasionally pretentious, and (view spoiler) .
When I finished it, I thought I was unsatisfied with (view spoiler) , but it lived in me long after I closed the book. I could not stop thinking about the characters, the puzzles, my various theories about the nature of the story and (view spoiler)
Here's the thing about House of Leaves: you can enjoy it simply as a horrifying story that could possibly be true. You could enjoy it as a love story on a number of different levels. You can enjoy it as a whole bunch of puzzles and codes and ciphers. You can enjoy it as a unique reading experience that will make you fall back in love with actual paper books.
But however you choose to enjoy it, you've got to just commit to it. Let the book's reality capture you, and ride it out until you finish the book. When you're done, you'll probably find that the House has taken up some space inside you, and you'll wonder if the nightmares will actually come, assuming they haven't already.
You'll go back to the beginning, and you'll reread sections large and small. You'll take a magnifying glass to the pictures and you'll spend a long time reading message boards that haven't been updated since 2004. You'll grab that copy of Poe's Haunted that you bought before you knew House of Leaves existed, and you'll listen to it again in an entirely new way.
You'll discover that you live at the end of a five and a half minute hallway.
...
Or maybe you won't. Maybe it won't live in you the way it lives in me... but it's worth your time to find out.
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Reading Progress
December 28, 2012
–
Started Reading
December 28, 2012
– Shelved
December 28, 2012
– Shelved as:
horror
December 28, 2012
–
7.05%
"I know I'm *way* late to the party on this, but it's worth the wait. I started it last night, and I can already tell it's going to be a book I pretty much read straight through until it's done."
page
50
December 28, 2012
–
9.73%
"Slowed down and got rambly for a good long while, but seems to have picked back up in the last few pages. This is doing very well on my "one hour or 50 pages" test."
page
69
December 30, 2012
–
20.17%
"I've spent over an hour reading the last dozen pages. I've felt dizzy, lost, disoriented. Occasionally, I've found my way, only to get lost again among the footnotes and appendices. \n \n It's glorious."
page
143
January 3, 2013
–
44.15%
"Johnny Truant is going insane, the house is killing people, and the next chapter is titled THE MINOTAUR."
page
313
January 4, 2013
–
49.22%
"While reading last night, I got scared. Like, look-under-the-bed-and-in-the-closet scared. I guess I've given myself over to the reality within this book."
page
349
January 6, 2013
–
55.57%
"A theory, which will likely be wrong: there is no Zampano. There is no house. Truant invented them, for reasons yet revealed."
page
394
January 6, 2013
–
Finished Reading
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Sasha, I haven't read The Road but I suspect it is scarier than Hyperion. i think it depends on what you find frightening. The Shrike in Hyperion didn't haunt me...whereas there's not a bad guy in House of Leaves. When you read HoL, it's like you're reading somebody's thoughts while they go insane. You see inside their head. And the house will haunt you long after you put the book down.




BUT, I was in a Dread game in which we played the Navidson clan, and that was insanely creepy. If you aren't familiar with the rpg, please do check it out!
Also, if you liked the way that House of Leaves played with the visual medium of text, you'd probably enjoy The Raw Shark Texts.


I LOVED Raw Shark Texts!!! I totally thought the same thing.

"Haunted" is my favorite album. i love the interconnectednessn(s?) of the two. I'm with you. I want to read it again.

Interesting! I had that experience randomly opening and perusing Blood Meridian (after reading rave reviews). Decided to start elsewhere in his catalog, so I read No Country For Old Men (liked it) then The Road (very much liked it). After those, I tried Blood Meridian again and loved it. As in, blew me away beautiful.

It stuck with me, too; still does, 11 years after I read it for the first time.

Now, over a decade later, I still don't know if I love or hate this book, but I'm often reminded of it and much of it is still vivid in my mind. Which, to me, is far better than it just being a book I "liked."


The only obvious collaboration is the remix version of "Hey Pretty." But the thematic elements and echoes within them are eerie.





Okay, I could not agree with this more.
In addition, I already have a scenario planned out for my next Dread game, but this is definitely going on the back burner.




Which makes me REALLY wonder about their childhood.


All in all, it's a good book, emulative but good, and it's not genius.

User Aerin seems to have disappeared. I loved your review but was hoping to read hers...
Wondering if you are creating footnotes like Mr. Danielewski?
Feeling the need to put aluminum foil on your windows lately? ;)

I was perusing the pages of reviews on different books when I thought of this book. Over a year ago I moved and haven't unpacked my 12/13 boxes of books.
I said to myself "ooh I'd love to read this again and brain fuck myself".
I looked at all the boxes and had no idea where it was. But I picked one box. I opened it and behind one other book, there it sat. Waiting. Unreal....I could've picked any box, but luck has it it wanted to be re-found.THAT is the house of leaves...it never leaves you.









Truth.

https://web.archive.org/web/201304270...

please excuse my brother who rated some childrens books
Hope you enjoy the book!