The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin, Peter Straub
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Book Reviews of The Stepford Wives
Book Review: Horror-fied
Summary: 5 Stars
I was dying-haha-to know what happened to the main character after seeing all those commercials with Nichole Kidman leaping back from that robot of herself. "Did that really happen? Is that really a story?" Coming from the man who wrote, "Rosemary's Baby" anything is possible. Its quite short and quite disturbing. After finishing the story, I didn't want to turn out the light. But nothing was going to get me! It wasn't the same horror as a classic horror movie, slash and trash the girl... It was almost like a "threatening" horror. What would happen if women lost everything---what if it were all taken away and replaced with what your husband and children want as a wife and mother? It makes me think about how central a womans role is in her household....the whole story makes me think---totally! Disturbing, very disturbing. I can't help but wonder what a man would feel and say about this, or a woman who has grown children and a lifelong relationship with her husband. Would these people feel powerless, unsettled? Or just creeped out with a smile on their face? Whatever the feeling, the marvelous and unusual feeling, this story evokes these strongly in me. It was published the year I was born....
Book Review: One of Ira Levin's best
Summary: 5 Stars
Ira Levin is my all time favorite author and he has written some incredible books. I feel this one is one of his best (second only to This Perfect Day, my all time favorite book)
The Stepford Wives is short and incredibly easy to read, with such an original chilling idea that has become a cult classic, had two movies made out of it (the first one is pretty close to the original story, the second one is pretty far off but worth watching because it is funny).
The book starts off intriguing right at the beginning. The Eberhart family has just moved to Stepford and Joanna Eberhart, a budding photographer, wife and mother, is looking to meet new friends. She is suprised to find that many of the women she meets are dull and all they want to do all day is cook and clean. Suspense builds well in this story as clues show up to why women are so odd in Stepford, and what is really going on at the men's association, a big mansion with a club for men only. Things really get chilling when Joanna's friend Bobbie who is a normal, messy woman with a personality goes away on a weekend with her husband and returns as a woman who loves cleaning all day. I won't say more but do read the book!
Book Review: A wonderful read!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Stepford Wives is a masterpiece, a brilliant and chilling satire on the feminist movement, that not only manages to entertain, but provides enough material for deep discussion. It's a quick, effortless read, marvelously plotted, and full of page-turning, as opposed to nail-biting, suspense. Ira Levin has created a pop-culture phenomenon, and the title has etched its way into our vocabulary, and for good reason. The Stepford Wives is truly a memorable book; shocking and original. This book is at times hilarious, and at times extremely disturbing, especially the ending. Levin leaves a lot of the secrets unsolved, allowing our imagination to run wild trying to interpret what has actually happened and is actually happening. He never goes into detail, making everything seem all the scarier. This book is a must-read for anyone. It is truly one of the best books ever written and highly recommended.
My only complaint is that it was too short. I would have loved to spend more time with these 'perfect' women. Give the women of Stepford a chance, you might thank yourself later.
Book Review: "They never stop, these Stepford wives...They work like robots all their lives."
Summary: 5 Stars
After moving with her husband and two young children to the small, rural, picture perfect town of Stepford, thirty-two-year-old Joanna Eberhart soon realizes that something isn't right. Although able to befriend another newcomer, Bobbie Markowe, she is perplexed by the seemingly unfriendly behavior of the majority of the less recent inhabitants, especially the overwhelmingly buxom, beautiful women who complete their hausfrauian duties so contentedly. Their cheerful smiles and polite but distant greetings appear to hide something a bit more sinister. The actions of the men are equally suspicious. Upon taking up residence in Stepford, they immediately join the local men's organization and start acting strangely secretive. Both Joanna and Bobbie notice a transformation in appearance and behavior of the townswomen over time. As the women get closer to the truth, the men take action. The Stepford Wives is a short, spectacular sci fi look at conformity, ingenuity, and the quest for perfection. Also good: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.
Book Review: Suspenseful and engaging
Summary: 5 Stars
This book tells the story of a family that moves out of the city and relocates to the picture-perfect town of Stepford. Joanna, the main character, makes a few "normal" friends in her new neighborhood, but she soon realizes that most of the women in town seem to exist for the sole purpose of pleasing their husbands, lacking any personal ambitions of their own. She begins to suspect that all the men in town are involved in an evil conspiracy, and that even her own husband is out to get her.
The story is suspenseful and entertaining. My only two complaints are that it's too short (I finished the book in just under two hours) and it leaves a lot of questions unanswered. We know what happens to Joanna at the end of the story, but I would have liked a little more information about how the men's club was able to orchestrate everything. The flip side of that, though, is that a lot is left up to your own imagination, which makes it even more terrifying.