The Man Who Collected Psychos: Critical Essays on Robert Bloch by Benjamin Szumskyj


The Man Who Collected Psychos: Critical Essays on Robert Bloch
Title : The Man Who Collected Psychos: Critical Essays on Robert Bloch
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 0786442085
ISBN-10 : 9780786442089
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 254
Publication : First published August 6, 2009

The author best known for his fictional cross-dressing serial killer Norman Bates in Psycho has seen little critical review of his work. These 12 essays examine Robert Bloch's novels, short stories and life, as well as the themes and issues explored in his influential canon. Bloch's fascination with killers, man's inhumanity to man, the dichotomy of tragedy and comedy, and his contributions to screen adaptations of his work are here covered by leading scholars of fantastic literature. The volume charts the growth of Robert Bloch from a writer of amateur pastiches to an acclaimed author bridging the gap between H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King.

The Man Who Collected Psychos: Critical Essays on Robert Bloch Reviews

  • Steven Shinder

    This book describes Robert Bloch as a bridge between H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King, and that is quite a description. Though I have read Psycho, Midnight Pleasures, and American Gothic, I was able to learn more about some of his other works. You can skip the spoilers if you would like, but there is some very insightful stuff, such as Bloch's fascination with Jack the Ripper. I definitely do not feel motivated to read Psycho II or Psycho House. It is mentioned throughout this book that people credit Alfred Hitchcock more than Robert Bloch for Psycho. Though I believe it, I cannot help but feel that there should be some textual evidence to support this. Throughout the book, there are references to some stories feeling dated, but I do not really see the dating of a story as a problem. Giving a story an ambiguous time period is not what makes it timeless; making the story incredible and unforgettable makes it timeless. One thing that really bothers me is the mistake in Leigh Blackmore's essay, which states that Red Dragon's Hannibal Lecter, like Norman Bates and Ed Gein, was abused by his mother. This is simply erroneous. At no point in any of Thomas Harris' novels is it even suggested that Lecter was abused by his mother, or any other family members for that matter. In Red Dragon, Francis Dolarhyde is the serial killer who was abused by his GRANDmother. This error makes one question the credibility of the essay, and perhaps even the rest of the book. The last essay by Matthew R. Bradley is a rather long and tedious résumé of Bloch's television credits. Though I love Bloch's contribution to pop culture, I did not find that essay as interesting as the others. It feels more like supplemental reading after the meat of the material. In either case, fans of Bloch and Psycho alike will love the majority of this book.

  • Tony

    Interesting insights on one of the great genre writers of the 20th century.