Lunar Park by Bret Easton Ellis

The new book by Bret Easton Ellis. Is it good or is it crap? Most people either love him or hate him. I wouldn't say that everyone does, because I don't feel either of those for his writing. I mean, American Psycho was a great book and damn anyone who says otherwise, but Glamorama or the Rules of Attraction were incoherent messes. Not that they didn't have their good points, but stream of consciousness is one thing and diarrhea of the mouth another. It's like Ellis doesn't know that sometimes less is more. For him, more is more. That's not an incredible deficiency, but it can certainly detract from an otherwise interesting story.

In case you're not familiar with the story, basically there's a character loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis himself, named (surprise) Bret Easton Ellis. He's an author who's trying to get into something like a normal life by marrying the mother of his son and moving in with her and her two kids. From there, things get weird. The little girl's doll starts acting alive, the house's interior changes mysteriously and the paint starts peeling on the outside of the house. It's not random, as Brett comes to realize that the house is turning into his father's house that he remembers from California. And there's where the key elements of the story arises: his relationship with his father, and his relationship with his son. It's one story that's two parallel themes, and I think quite clever. It does have some things thrown in that you later find are irrelevant and, if you're like me, get quite disgusted with for having wasted time on. However, the father/son themes are actually moving. Bret was never able to connect with his father, and discovers that he might have one last chance. Bret is at a loss for how to relate to his son who appears to have nothing but contempt for him, but the strange occurences might just show him a way to do it. In short, for only the second time, Bret Easton Ellis has written a book that actually has characters and a story, and both are actually worth reading.

That's not to say that there aren't problems with the book, but compared to his previous efforts which made Hunter S. Thompson look sober in comparison, it's quite a surprise to find something so coherent and so good. I always knew Ellis had the potential to write something good again (besides American Psycho).