I’m still reading American Psycho.  At this point in the book, I can safely say that it is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time.  Not only is it intelligent, ironic, and satirical all at once, but it’s just really entertaining and absorbing.  Patrick Bateman is a character that you love to hate (or maybe the other way around, I’m not exactly sure) and whose behavior is so utterly depraved that it honestly is downright disturbing.  Not only is he a killer, he’s a pervert, a narcissist, a chauvinist, and basically an all-around @$$hole.  And yet, despite all that, Ellis writes him in such a fluid way that his huge charisma is carried off the page right at us, drawing us into Patrick’s web.  And while the book is dark and sadistic, it is punctuated by some genuinely funny moments, like when Patrick has an awkward run-in with Tom Cruise in a penthouse elevator.  These moments never seem out of place, however, as they are described through Patrick’s twisted perspective.  One of my favorite things that Ellis does with Bateman’s character is his frequent runaway trains of thought.  As Bateman is a truly uncaring individual, when someone will be speaking to him, Ellis will begin writing about something completely unrelated to show how Bateman’s attention has drifted elsewhere, be it cars, luxury suits, beautiful women, high-end restaurants, etc.  I’m not sure what more I can say about this book that I haven’t touched on already, but to clarify what really makes this book for me is the satirical, black-comedy-esque look at American 80s excess.  I’m a huge fan and supporter of the counter-culture movement, and this book reminds me of something from that movement.  It almost seems reminiscent of the works of Hunter S. Thompson (author of such renowned works as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas).  American Psycho is a book that doesn’t necessarily hate America, but it’s a book that sees America for what it is, and is not afraid to paint the picture of what it sees.  And let me tell you, this vision of America is not pretty.  And while the book is extremely graphic and explicit in all manner of ways, never once does it try to capitalize on it or sensationalize it, it is there for a reason rather than gratuitous fluff.  So often these days books, and in turn, authors, have so little to say, and so it’s extremely refreshing to find someone who has so much to say, perhaps too much to fit into one book. After I finish this novel, I will have to check out Ellis’s other work, as he is definitely a brilliant writer.  His understanding of character creation and establishment is unparalleled, as well as his understanding of how to connect with and absorb a reader and his overall knowledge and understanding of American culture.  If you dig great writing, counter-culture satire and aren’t easily offended or disturbed, I would highly recommend this book, it’s great.

I’ve finished the last book I was reading, Picnic at Hanging Rock, and just picked up a new one, namely American Psycho, by Bret Easton Ellis. It is by no means related to my author study, but it’s a book I’d been meaning to check out for a long while, so why not? The book is a tale about 80s excess taken to the extreme, and the hypocrisy and irony of the general lifestyle and society of the time.  On a deeper note, it’s a book about our secret vices, and how they play a role in shaping our society.  We follow Patrick Bateman, a wall-street golden boy, as he goes about his business while secretly indulging in his own “hobby” of sorts.  To put it simply, mass murder.  Bateman is a textbook psychopath who gets off on causing harm to others, whether out of greed, jealousy, or just for kicks. Ellis introduces us to the mind of this character brilliantly.  The story is told from a first-person perspective which Ellis does, I think, to put us into Patrick’s mind, to really understand his thought process.  He handles this with an expert hand. Throughout the first five or so pages of the book, there is only Bateman’s descriptions of what goes on around him. We get no sense of internal feelings or emotion, and not once does Ellis use the word “I” outside of dialogue.  There is one simple reason for this. Bateman has no emotions, save for the seven deadly sins.  This is an ingeniously simple way to put us in the shoes of an emotional blank slate. However, as a book centered around a completely flat protagonist is no fun, Ellis instead prefers to shape Bateman’s character through his actions and the occasional thought. So then, with such a cold character, why would Ellis decide to write the book using a first person perspective?  My theory: yes to get inside his head, but also to show us Bateman’s selfish, detached nature.  We feel distant from all the goings on in the book, as if we, like Patrick, are merely cold observers. And it works.  In addition to Ellis’s top-notch craft of his characters, what I really love about the book is the small metaphorical details he throws in. For instance, at one point they see a cop car cruising the wrong way down a one way street. I took that as a metaphor for how during the 80s in New York, those with power thought themselves above the establishment, and also how the society was sort of regressing, or going the wrong way, if you will.  In the same chapter, a sign on a bus for Les Miserables, the great operatic musical, a brilliant work of art is defaced with an offensive sexual slur, juxtaposing the beauty and high society with the ugly and awful truth of the excessive lifestyle, a theme that constantly repeats itself.  The book may be called American Psycho, but it is very much an anti-American piece about the downward state of affairs in our country and lost social values, a theme which I am also incorporating into a pretty big piece I’m planning, so it’s great to have another source of inspiration. Also, the book is just fantastically well-written, so I would definitely say check it out if you are not easily disturbed.