“I know House of Leaves can be very "gimmicky," but the thing is....I liked the gimmicks! I thought they worked well with the two storylines. The writing style matches your feelings about particular situations and amplifies them. There were moments where it ended up creeping the Hell out of me.
For awhile, I enjoyed the various footnotes because I took them to be a sort of parody of the academic world. However, once I hit around the p.400 mark, I felt like the author was using so many references that it ended up being overkill. I thought to myself "Okay Danielewski. We get it. We get what you're doing. Quit showing off by needlessly quoting your idol, Derrida, and Hollander and everyone else under the Sun..."
Oh yea, and I do believe Truant's part to the story holds a certain level of importance. His feelings, his experiences all relate back to the idea of the house in the main story and the letters from his mother are essential in understanding his character.
Overall, I'd say this book is worth the mindfuck.”
McBonzai wrote this review Monday, April 29, 2013.
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