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Available
Call number
Library's review
Stepford, ca 1970
Joanna Eberhart, hendes mand Walter på 39 år og deres børn Pete på 7 år og Kim flytter til byen Stepford. Da Joanna prøver at snakke med de andre koner i byen er de fleste af dem fuldt optaget af deres mand og af at passe huset. Yvonne Weisgalt, Jill Burke, Mary Ann Stavrism,
Hun prøver at flygte, men bliver indhentet af nogle af mændene, der overbeviser hende om at hun må have taget fejl.
I bogens sidste scene ser vi en tomhjernet og robotagtig Joanna, men det er jo nok tilfældigt. Fortælleren skifter også fra Joannas synspunkt til en af de mere nytilflyttede Ruthanne, gift med Royal Hendry og måske næste offer?
Ganske effektiv gyser, lidt i stil med Rosemary's baby.
Ok gyser.
Joanna Eberhart, hendes mand Walter på 39 år og deres børn Pete på 7 år og Kim flytter til byen Stepford. Da Joanna prøver at snakke med de andre koner i byen er de fleste af dem fuldt optaget af deres mand og af at passe huset. Yvonne Weisgalt, Jill Burke, Mary Ann Stavrism,
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Marge McCormick, allesammen tomhjernede og robotagtige. Et par andre nytilflyttede her iblandt Bobbie Markowe er anderledes livlige og aktive, men det går pludseligt over og Joanna føler sig næsten vis på at Mændenes Klub faktisk udskifter koner med robotter. Walter har også meldt sig ind i Mændenes Klub, hvor formanden Dale Coba har arbejdet for Disney, og de andre Claude Axhelm, Herb Sunderson, Vic Stavros, Bill McCormick arbejder med avanceret teknologi. Joanna går på biblioteket og opdager at der også var en Kvindeklub engang med engagerede rødstrømper, der nu allesammen er docile hjemmegående husmødre. Det passer med ca 4 måneder efter at man er flyttet til byen og Joanna kan heller ikke lide at en af mændene, Ike Mazzard, er professionel tegner og har tegnet masser af skitser af hende.Hun prøver at flygte, men bliver indhentet af nogle af mændene, der overbeviser hende om at hun må have taget fejl.
I bogens sidste scene ser vi en tomhjernet og robotagtig Joanna, men det er jo nok tilfældigt. Fortælleren skifter også fra Joannas synspunkt til en af de mere nytilflyttede Ruthanne, gift med Royal Hendry og måske næste offer?
Ganske effektiv gyser, lidt i stil med Rosemary's baby.
Ok gyser.
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Publication
Kbh Schønberg 1973 143 s. Schønbergs lommeelefanter
Description
The internationally bestselling novel by the author of A Kiss Before Dying, The Boys from Brazil, and Rosemary's Baby With an Introduction by Peter Straub For Joanna, her husband, Walter, and their children, the move to beautiful Stepford seems almost too good to be true. It is. For behind the town's idyllic facade lies a terrible secret -- a secret so shattering that no one who encounters it will ever be the same. At once a masterpiece of psychological suspense and a savage commentary on a media-driven society that values the pursuit of youth and beauty at all costs, The Stepford Wives is a novel so frightening in its final implications that the title itself has earned a place in the American lexicon.
User reviews
LibraryThing member Bramwolf
I was extremely pleased with this book, it was so concise and meticulously well timed. Though it was fairly short, you didn't feel as though you were missing something. Nothing was left out, no fluff was added, it was about as precise as a novel could get. It was written during a time when tensions
Along with that, the book touched on racial tensions as well. In one scene it described how pleased she was with a photo she'd managed to take before leaving the city of a black male venomously glaring at a empty on-duty Taxi cab as it sped pass, noting to herself that racial pictures were popular right then and she'd probably be able to sell it. It goes into further detail about it when a black family moves into Stepford, though the citizens of Stepford are too serene to be 'bothered' by it. Over all everything is brought out in very subtle ways and you aren't beat over the head or preached to about anything. Even the climaxes are subdued, a gently rising that builds in plateaus towards the final thrust. Over all, in the words of Peter Straub, this was a deceptively 'easy' read with many underlying layers, wit, and commentary.
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were highly felt between men and women. Women's lib was going full swing and there was a bit of a two edged sword with a lot of women who were married and simultaneously feeling a great resentment and suspicion towards many men.Along with that, the book touched on racial tensions as well. In one scene it described how pleased she was with a photo she'd managed to take before leaving the city of a black male venomously glaring at a empty on-duty Taxi cab as it sped pass, noting to herself that racial pictures were popular right then and she'd probably be able to sell it. It goes into further detail about it when a black family moves into Stepford, though the citizens of Stepford are too serene to be 'bothered' by it. Over all everything is brought out in very subtle ways and you aren't beat over the head or preached to about anything. Even the climaxes are subdued, a gently rising that builds in plateaus towards the final thrust. Over all, in the words of Peter Straub, this was a deceptively 'easy' read with many underlying layers, wit, and commentary.
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LibraryThing member Bricker
Having viewed the movie numerous times when I was younger, the book certainly lived up to "WASPy Invasion of the Body Snatchers" I remembered. Descriptive and fast-paced, it was a fun, disturbing read.
LibraryThing member the_hag
Loved this book. I’ve seen both versions of the movie…but the book was GREAT! Clean writing, accessible and thought provoking while still being thoroughly entertaining!! A+, I’m certainly glad I finally took the time to read this. My only grip…I hate movie tie in covers.
LibraryThing member VintageReader
The idea of entering a star rating for a book that came out when I was in kindergarten is pretty funny to me. But here we are.
Anyway.
The other night I was listening to the "You're Wrong About" podcast, and it was about The Stepford Wives. I read this book when I was probably about 19, and I've
I appreciate it much more now than I did at 19. I probably read it originally with at least a little of the "weren't our parents hilarious" take that older teenagers have on the past. I'm sure the technological ridiculousness of the concept was a big part of that. But now I understand that the technology isn't the scary part; it's the betrayal. It's the idea that someone you thought knew and loved you actually wants you to LITERALLY be someone else.
I really wish I could ask my mother if she read it at the time (she probably didn't; she didn't like to read). It would have been popular just at the time that my father moved to California, leaving us stranded in another state, her having not worked outside the house in 20 years, lucky to get a part-time job as a church secretary, relying on my teenage sister for childcare. I'm betting that given the option, she would have chosen to be a Stepford Wife over that. I'm betting that there were many, many other women in her situation who would have chosen that too. I'm also betting that Ira Levin knew this. I mean, even now I have to admit that I would *love* to have a mental subroutine that sees a spot on the carpet and immediately pulls out the vinegar and cleans it up before it becomes a vast, mysterious dark patch that a whole can of Resolve won't touch.
And that's part of the horror too, and what makes the book relevant, even now. That we are still so socialized to accept that these things--housekeeping and husband-keeping (mothering doesn't seem as important to the Stepford Wives)--are important enough that the idea of doing them automatically, without thinking about them, is still appealing, nearly 50 years later.
Anyway.
The other night I was listening to the "You're Wrong About" podcast, and it was about The Stepford Wives. I read this book when I was probably about 19, and I've
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seen both movie adaptations, so I was pretty familiar with the basic concept, and even remembered details about the ending (which, considering that I can't remember the ending of a book I read a couple of months ago, is saying something). But YWA talked about things like the presence of Lithium in the water in El Paso, and how Miltown became popular in the days before Valium, and both of those things are actually part of my family history (specifically, my mother's history). I immediately went to Scribd and found the book, and ripped right through it. I appreciate it much more now than I did at 19. I probably read it originally with at least a little of the "weren't our parents hilarious" take that older teenagers have on the past. I'm sure the technological ridiculousness of the concept was a big part of that. But now I understand that the technology isn't the scary part; it's the betrayal. It's the idea that someone you thought knew and loved you actually wants you to LITERALLY be someone else.
I really wish I could ask my mother if she read it at the time (she probably didn't; she didn't like to read). It would have been popular just at the time that my father moved to California, leaving us stranded in another state, her having not worked outside the house in 20 years, lucky to get a part-time job as a church secretary, relying on my teenage sister for childcare. I'm betting that given the option, she would have chosen to be a Stepford Wife over that. I'm betting that there were many, many other women in her situation who would have chosen that too. I'm also betting that Ira Levin knew this. I mean, even now I have to admit that I would *love* to have a mental subroutine that sees a spot on the carpet and immediately pulls out the vinegar and cleans it up before it becomes a vast, mysterious dark patch that a whole can of Resolve won't touch.
And that's part of the horror too, and what makes the book relevant, even now. That we are still so socialized to accept that these things--housekeeping and husband-keeping (mothering doesn't seem as important to the Stepford Wives)--are important enough that the idea of doing them automatically, without thinking about them, is still appealing, nearly 50 years later.
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LibraryThing member PZR
This isn't the sort of thing that I usually read. I'd seen the film, of course, and scant books often make good films. I picked up a copy in a remaindered bookshop for 50 pence and now I'm glad that I did.
An idea that I come back to time and again in my reading is that the perfect novel cannot
And then there's the prose. It's written in that 1970s, post-Hemingway, pared-down style that became so ubiquitous. It reminded me of Luke Rhinehart. It's not remotely poetic but it moves the story forward in an efficient manner.
Is this a warning about the alienation that feminism might induce? Is it a satire on the infantile nature of modern masculinity? Is it an indictment of suburban existence? Who can say. Whatever else it might be, though, it's also a couple of hours well spent.
An idea that I come back to time and again in my reading is that the perfect novel cannot
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exist. A book like 'The Stepford Wives', which uses the architecture of a suspense novel, is unlikely also to be strong on description or character. If it were, the suspense would probably be lost. But what it lacks in these aspects, it more than compensates for in the strength of the idea, its general air of creepiness and the skill with which Levin unfolds its plot. And then there's the prose. It's written in that 1970s, post-Hemingway, pared-down style that became so ubiquitous. It reminded me of Luke Rhinehart. It's not remotely poetic but it moves the story forward in an efficient manner.
Is this a warning about the alienation that feminism might induce? Is it a satire on the infantile nature of modern masculinity? Is it an indictment of suburban existence? Who can say. Whatever else it might be, though, it's also a couple of hours well spent.
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LibraryThing member ryvre
The Stepford Wives manages to be both simple and complex. Even if you know the ending (and I think everybody does by now), there are still surprises and twists.
LibraryThing member kwohlrob
Further proof of Levin's greatness at crafting simple and yet compelling stories that tweak your nerves with their eeriness. And for introducing the book's title into the lexicon of the American culture, it deserves to be read.
LibraryThing member gwendolyndawson
In Stepford, the wives are perfect robots. An interesting idea, but poorly executed. Clunky prose and dialog.
LibraryThing member andyray
The singular plot doesnt leave you caring about any of the characters, which is probably why I didn't care if Johanna was replaced by a robot. Couple the shallowness of the writing with a premise that is unbelievable and Levin is lucky to get a 3 star rating from me. An adequate read if you have
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some time to kill. Show Less
LibraryThing member twig_tea
I like the idea, and the execution was vaguely creepy, but the ending made it very blah.
LibraryThing member ConnieJo
It was pretty short and to the point. The end was pretty hard to swallow, even after so many years have passed since it was written. I had to laugh when the pieces started to fit together, because there's just no way.
I did like the slow progression of things, though, and I liked how the alliances
I read it in a couple hours, and I liked it all right, but it's not something that I'd give to all my friends, nor will it stay with me for very long. It is an odd little story, though.
I did like the slow progression of things, though, and I liked how the alliances
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held between the three women at the beginning started dropping off one by one. The constant cleaning endeavors of the other housewives was pretty funny, too, and I wasn't entirely sure if it was supposed to be.I read it in a couple hours, and I liked it all right, but it's not something that I'd give to all my friends, nor will it stay with me for very long. It is an odd little story, though.
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LibraryThing member cfink
Well, it has been many years since I first saw the movie. This book has been lying around my library, and I thought I'd pick it up and read it on a slow day.
Two interesting things strike me. First, the book is very dated. The very notion of the interaction between the lead couple seems to be
Second, as great as the story is, it has lost its power to shock. In this era of doom and gloom, it seems as if the ending is anti-climatic.
Maybe I just saw the original movie too long ago to really appreciate the story.
Two interesting things strike me. First, the book is very dated. The very notion of the interaction between the lead couple seems to be
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time-worn. Perhaps my interpretation is jaded a bit by what I view to be our current gender environment.Second, as great as the story is, it has lost its power to shock. In this era of doom and gloom, it seems as if the ending is anti-climatic.
Maybe I just saw the original movie too long ago to really appreciate the story.
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LibraryThing member meyben
Creepy Book! But it was great.
LibraryThing member lesleydawn
Much better than the movie.
LibraryThing member Stahl-Ricco
Though short, this is a very good read! Right amount of everything - character development, storyline, and tension! I thought I knew how it would end, but I didn't. Levin ends it perfectly. Almost 'Stepford' like! :-)
LibraryThing member john257hopper
A very short but tightly crafted novel. I found this suspenseful and shocking even though I knew the plot and finale from the classic film version (not the absurd 2004 remake). Of course, there are plot holes and surely at least one husband would have objected to the plan, and/or at least one wife
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would have managed to escape and tell all to, if not the disbelieving authorities then at least the sensation-hungry newspapers. But this does not really matter: the story is a superb creepy suspense story. Show Less
LibraryThing member veshbrochill
I have to give this book 5 stars because in the collective hour or so it took to read, it some how managed to play on my insecurities and leave me feeling completely awful. I don't know if "scary" is exactly the word I would use, but I have to admit I was nervous and anxious by the end... basically
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scared, yeah. I guess that is the word I would use.I've never read a book that used such simple language and was able to make me feel so strongly. It reminds me of reading chapter books like the Fudge series in elementary school ...except for how this book made me panicky and upset. I don't know if anybody else would react this strongly. It probably helps that I've never seen the movie, or even heard many cultural references, and that I generally have a lot of irrational anxieties to begin with. But it's a very quick read so I'd definitely recommend giving it a shot. Show Less
LibraryThing member satyridae
I read this a million years ago but I remember it so clearly. It was a sticky Ohio summer day and I was curled up in my grandmother's living room. My grandmother kept suggesting that I go outside instead of wearing my eyes out, but I was mesmerized by the Stepford Wives. I think it had a profound
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effect on my budding feminist self. I also remember accusing my mother of wanting nothing more than to be one of the Stepford wives. I was a rotten kid, for the record. Show Less
LibraryThing member nicola26
I didn't really like this at all! Mostly I just couldn't stand the writing. I don't think it flowed well at all. Despite the book being really, really short, I took a while to get through it because the sentences just didn't flow into each other well for me. I liked the actual idea behind the story
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and I thought the characters were really interested. A few parts were amusing and some were creepy. Overall though I didn't find it every entertaining and certainly not memorable. Show Less
LibraryThing member foolplustime
First thing: Chuck Palahniuk needs to read books before he gives out about them - there are many complaints to be made about the Shopaholic books, that they are about a woman trying to get a man is not one of them.
Second thing, this was really good and I'm mainly annoyed that was too familiar with
I'll certainly be looking out other Ira Levin books.
Second thing, this was really good and I'm mainly annoyed that was too familiar with
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the book before reading to have enjoyed it properly. I may revise the score upwards on a re-read some time in the future.I'll certainly be looking out other Ira Levin books.
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LibraryThing member melydia
When Joanna and her family move to Stepford, she quickly discovers that the women of the neighborhood are all quite boring: obsessed with housework and uninterested in pretty much anything else. I came into this already knowing the Big Secret, and could predict basically every single step in the
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plot, but it was still kind of fun. It was written in the 1970s, so the influence of the feminist movement of the time adds an extra dimension to the story. I found Joanna - as a woman, wife, and mother - to be written pretty believably, which is a refreshing change of pace for most male-penned science fiction. It's not the most original premise, and could have easily been a short story, but as a novella it doesn't overstay its welcome. It kept me entertained during a long plane ride, and that's really all I expected of it. Show Less
LibraryThing member elliepotten
"That's what she was, Joanna felt suddenly. That's what they all were, all the Stepford wives: actresses in commercials, pleased with detergents and floor wax, with cleansers, shampoos, and deodorants. Pretty actresses, big in the bosom but small in the talent, playing suburban housewives
I wasn't THAT impressed by this book, I have to say. I mean, I enjoyed it and all, but I imagine I'd have enjoyed it a lot more if I didn't already know the plot and the twist and everything else that makes it so interesting. And unlike Psycho, which I read recently, I really DID know the plot, because I already shamelessly adore the Nicole Kidman movie. Of course, the movie is very different - the ending has been changed, the oddness of the women is far more evident, it's funnier, and the whole thing has been brought right up to date - but the basic plot and characters are still the same...
Sooooo, it's about a fiercely independent feminist and photographer called Joanna Eberhart, who moves to idyllic Stepford with her husband Walter and their two children. Unfortunately for Joanna, most of the beautiful local women seem to be interested in nothing but waxing their floors and cleaning their windows, while their husbands spend their evenings up at the imposing Men's Association. It's quite a relief when she meets earthy, wisecracking fellow newbie Bobbie. As the pair try to stir some kind of interest in women's affairs amongst their bland neighbours, and Joanna delves deeper into the town's past, they begin to suspect that there's something very wrong with the Stepford wives...
The novel definitely raises big questions about feminism, male backlash, the role of a wife and mother and even pokes itself into the issue of scientific ethics - but it didn't really feel as powerful as I expected. It didn't help that it was so short - flattening the characters somewhat - and that I was actually quite irritated by Joanna a fair amount of the time. What WAS a delight was finding that Bobbie was just as smirk-inducingly funny in the book as in the new movie, even if her sharp wit is slightly less rude in the original! I'm glad I finally read it, just because it's another one of those books that has ingratiated itself into popular culture and vocabulary so completely, but I don't think I'd read it again. I want to watch the movie again now though, and the original film too!
Bonus points: for the introduction by Chuck Palahniuk, in which he points out that while feminism was at its height in the 70s when this book was written, these days voluntary Stepford Wives are everywhere - painted and crimped on magazine pages, exulting their inner domestic goddess on cookery programmes, and harbouring ambitions to marry a rich footballer. These days women are more likely to read about how to please men and dress well in Cosmo than they are to read news and politics. He discusses the way older women are now more of a threat to young women than men, citing The Devil Wears Prada and the remake of The Stepford Wives as examples in popular culture. His conclusion probably said more to me as a modern woman than the rest of the book:
"Now everyplace is Stepford, but it's okay. It's fine. This is what the modern politically aware, fully awake, enlightened, assertive woman really, really, really wants: a manicure. We can't say Ira Levin didn't warn us."
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unconvincingly, too nicey-nice to be real."I wasn't THAT impressed by this book, I have to say. I mean, I enjoyed it and all, but I imagine I'd have enjoyed it a lot more if I didn't already know the plot and the twist and everything else that makes it so interesting. And unlike Psycho, which I read recently, I really DID know the plot, because I already shamelessly adore the Nicole Kidman movie. Of course, the movie is very different - the ending has been changed, the oddness of the women is far more evident, it's funnier, and the whole thing has been brought right up to date - but the basic plot and characters are still the same...
Sooooo, it's about a fiercely independent feminist and photographer called Joanna Eberhart, who moves to idyllic Stepford with her husband Walter and their two children. Unfortunately for Joanna, most of the beautiful local women seem to be interested in nothing but waxing their floors and cleaning their windows, while their husbands spend their evenings up at the imposing Men's Association. It's quite a relief when she meets earthy, wisecracking fellow newbie Bobbie. As the pair try to stir some kind of interest in women's affairs amongst their bland neighbours, and Joanna delves deeper into the town's past, they begin to suspect that there's something very wrong with the Stepford wives...
The novel definitely raises big questions about feminism, male backlash, the role of a wife and mother and even pokes itself into the issue of scientific ethics - but it didn't really feel as powerful as I expected. It didn't help that it was so short - flattening the characters somewhat - and that I was actually quite irritated by Joanna a fair amount of the time. What WAS a delight was finding that Bobbie was just as smirk-inducingly funny in the book as in the new movie, even if her sharp wit is slightly less rude in the original! I'm glad I finally read it, just because it's another one of those books that has ingratiated itself into popular culture and vocabulary so completely, but I don't think I'd read it again. I want to watch the movie again now though, and the original film too!
Bonus points: for the introduction by Chuck Palahniuk, in which he points out that while feminism was at its height in the 70s when this book was written, these days voluntary Stepford Wives are everywhere - painted and crimped on magazine pages, exulting their inner domestic goddess on cookery programmes, and harbouring ambitions to marry a rich footballer. These days women are more likely to read about how to please men and dress well in Cosmo than they are to read news and politics. He discusses the way older women are now more of a threat to young women than men, citing The Devil Wears Prada and the remake of The Stepford Wives as examples in popular culture. His conclusion probably said more to me as a modern woman than the rest of the book:
"Now everyplace is Stepford, but it's okay. It's fine. This is what the modern politically aware, fully awake, enlightened, assertive woman really, really, really wants: a manicure. We can't say Ira Levin didn't warn us."
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LibraryThing member Nataliec7
I really enjoyed this book. I read it in 2 sittings in one afternoon. Its nice and short so only took me just over 2 hours. The introduction by Chuck Palahniuk is good, gives a lot of information and actually told me pretty much what was gonna happen in the book.
I like the way its written, the way
I like the way its written, the way
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the characters change, the setting, the plot and the ending. A good first read of Ira Levin for me. Show Less
LibraryThing member HotWolfie
This was a short, but thought provoking book. It's a comedy, a thriller, a horror story, and a satire. Some argue that it's dated. but I think "The Stepford Wives" still makes a strong comment on present day issues (as sexism and prejudice still exist). I thought Ira Levin did an excellent job
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writing all of the characters (male and female). The plot flowed well, the dialog was sharp, and I enjoyed the characters. Show Less
LibraryThing member zenhead
It's been a long time since I saw the movie of this book, but as I remember it, the movie was better than the book. A creepy tale either way, and these days all too possible. The well-insulated town of Stepford has found a way to transform it's women from vital, quirky real people into
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one-dimensional hausfraus. I found the writing a bit dated and simple, and it was hard to get the images from the movie out of my head as i read. Still, a fun (and quick) read. Show Less
Awards
501 Must-Read Books (Emma Beare, 2006) (Science Fiction)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1972-09-01
Physical description
143 p.; 18.5 cm
ISBN
8757010064 / 9788757010060
Local notes
Omslag: John Evans
Omslaget viser nogle brudstykker af ansigter
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Oversat fra engelsk "The Stepford Wives" af Michael Tejn
Omslaget viser nogle brudstykker af ansigter
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Oversat fra engelsk "The Stepford Wives" af Michael Tejn
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Pages
143
DDC/MDS
| 813.54 |