BookWyrm

mattmerk rated The stories of John Cheever.: 5 stars

John Cheever: The stories of John Cheever. (1978, Knopf)

The stories of John Cheever. by John Cheever

The complete collection of John Cheever’s published short stories.

mattmerk rated The Metamorphosis: 5 stars

Franz Kafka: The Metamorphosis (1972, Bantam Books)

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

The Metamorphosis (German: Die Verwandlung) is a novella written by Franz Kafka which was first published in 1915. One of …

mattmerk rated The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner: 4 stars

James Hogg, James Hogg: The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner (1999, Oxford University Press)

The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner by James Hogg, James Hogg (Oxford world's classics)

The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner: Written by Himself: With a detail of curious traditionary facts and …

mattmerk reviewed Feminine Mystique by Gail Collins

No cover — Betty Friedan, Anna Quindlen, Gail Collins: Feminine Mystique (2013, Norton & Company, Incorporated, W. W.)

Review of 'Feminine Mystique' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

If I had read this in 1963, it would be worthy of a five star review for revealing the issues of societal patriarchy. Reading it in 2020, it makes for a good look into the history of feminism, but it becomes clear where Friedan was way off, specifically in the subject of gay sexuality. It’s a three star book from that perspective. In my rating, I split the difference.

mattmerk rated The Last Colony: 3 stars

The Last Colony by John Scalzi (Old Man's War, #3)

Retired from his fighting days, John Perry is now village ombudsman for a human colony on distant Huckleberry. With his …

mattmerk rated Scientology: 1 star

L. Ron Hubbard: Scientology (1990, Bridge Publications)

Scientology by L. Ron Hubbard

Explains the nature of scientology, discusses its basic tenents and goals, and tells how to use scientology to improve one's …

mattmerk rated Handmaid's Tale: 4 stars

Margaret Atwood: Handmaid's Tale (Paperback, 1998, Anchor Books)

Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid's Tale, #1)

It is the world of the near future, and Offred is a Handmaid in the home of the Commander and …

mattmerk reviewed Son of Rosemary by Ira Levin (Rosemary's Baby, #2)

Ira Levin: Son of Rosemary (Paperback, 1998, Onyx)

Rosemary's Baby chilled readers with its darkly brilliant story of modern-day witchcraft--a masterpiece of suspense, …

Review of 'Son of Rosemary' on 'Goodreads'

1 star

“I feel guilty that 'Rosemary's Baby' led to The Exorcist, The Omen. A whole generation has been exposed, has more belief in Satan. I don't believe in Satan. And I feel that the strong fundamentalism we have would not be as strong if there hadn't been so many of these books [...] Of course, I didn't send back any of the royalty checks."

Ira Levin, author of ROSEMARY'S BABY

Knowing that quote going in, I thought I’d like this book in the same way I loved Robert Bloch’s sequel to PSYCHO. The movie studio not involving Bloch in the writing of PSYCHO’s sequel sent him into such a fervor that his book became a scathing satire of Hollywood. Ira Levin, on the other hand, wrote a dud of a book when he wrote this dreck. SON OF ROSEMARY doesn’t even feel like he wrote it. It’s an awful book by …

“I feel guilty that 'Rosemary's Baby' led to The Exorcist, The Omen. A whole generation has been exposed, has more belief in Satan. I don't believe in Satan. And I feel that the strong fundamentalism we have would not be as strong if there hadn't been so many of these books [...] Of course, I didn't send back any of the royalty checks."

Ira Levin, author of ROSEMARY'S BABY

Knowing that quote going in, I thought I’d like this book in the same way I loved Robert Bloch’s sequel to PSYCHO. The movie studio not involving Bloch in the writing of PSYCHO’s sequel sent him into such a fervor that his book became a scathing satire of Hollywood. Ira Levin, on the other hand, wrote a dud of a book when he wrote this dreck. SON OF ROSEMARY doesn’t even feel like he wrote it. It’s an awful book by an otherwise great writer.

mattmerk rated The Ghost Brigades: 3 stars

The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi

The Ghost Brigades is a science fiction novel by American writer John Scalzi, the second book set in his Old …

mattmerk rated Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents: 4 stars

Lindsay C. Gibson: Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents (Paperback, 2016, ReadHowYouWant)

Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by Lindsay C. Gibson

mattmerk rated Rosemary's Baby: 5 stars

Ira Levin: Rosemary's Baby (1967, Signet)

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin

She is a housewife—young, healthy, blissfully happy. He is an actor—charismatic and ambitious. The spacious, sun-filled apartment on Manhattan's Upper …