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Elephant Man (Mass Market Paperback)

~ Christine Sparks (Author) "A WICKED birth ... monstrous... evil....." (more)
Key Phrases: dressing bag, Elephant Man, Isolation Ward, John Merrick (more...)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)

Price: $7.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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  Hardcover, October 31, 1986 $12.21 $10.98 $10.73
  Paperback, Import -- -- $1.57
  Mass Market Paperback, November 11, 1986 $7.99 $3.85 $0.33

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

John Merrick had lived for more than twenty years imprisoned in a body that condemned him to a miserable life in the workhouse and to humiliation as a circus sideshow freak. But beneath that tragic exterior, within that enormous and deformed head, thrived the soul of a poet, the heart of a dreamer, the longings of a man. Based on the extraordinary motion picture that captured the heart of America.


From the Inside Flap

John Merrick had lived for more than twenty years imprisoned in a body that condemned him to a miserable life in the workhouse and to humiliation as a circus sideshow freak. But beneath that tragic exterior, within that enormous and deformed head, thrived the soul of a poet, the heart of a dreamer, the longings of a man. Based on the extraordinary motion picture that captured the heart of America.

Product Details

  • Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Ballantine Books (November 12, 1986)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0345345134
  • ISBN-13: 978-0345345134
  • Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #503,685 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

18 Reviews
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 (13)
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Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Not the kind of book you'll ever forget, January 20, 2002
By A Customer
This is not the kind of book that you read, put down, and forget about. It's the kind of book that has you so engrossed that you forget the time and just read and read and read-and cry. This is really one of the most moving books I've ever read. It's the story of a man who is hideously deformed, so everyone treats him like he's just an animal. Only he's treated worse than an animal- he's a circus sideshow freak who is stared at, made fun of, kicked and beaten. His life has been horrible but he is at heart an ordinary man. What makes this book so moving is that it is true. You'll cry because he's beaten and cry when he's rescued. You'll cry basically through the whole book, because it is awful to think of a person being treated the way John Merrick was. And it will change the way you look at people, and the way you think about them, if they happen to be a little different from how you are.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Touching in the most intense manner. Joseph DID feel!, September 2, 1998
By A Customer
I was interested in this book the day it was assigned to me for a book report and I loved it. I expected it to start out slow, not reaching interesting boundaries until nearly the end but I was WRONG! This book gives us a detailed look into the life of a tragedy ridden man who had friends who were willing to work with him. A very touching book. It eats me up inside that at one time this man who felt more in his life than most "ordinary" humans do had to sell himself at a circus and be laughed at and gawked at. Merrick was no freak. Merrick was a human being. The "Elephant Man" label doesn't do this man justice. Such innocence for such an angst ridden soul. Only true stories can capture this much emotion.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Not meaning to detract from movie, but as for the book..., January 22, 2002
By GLT "GLT" (Warrenton, VA United States) - See all my reviews
It's been about 20 years since I read the book, but as I recall it attempts to flesh out a movie whose creators had already gone to some lengths themselves to embellish upon what's known about the last years of the life of Mr. Merrick.

Since only a few primary sources, and brief ones at that, are available on the subject, a good deal of embellishment would have been needed to create the movie. A certain degree of sensationalization (is that a word?) is probably unavoidable as well, in order to sell the movie to a larger audience. This is apparent in the way that Merrick's appearance is only gradually revealed, and then only after the suspense has been suitably built up by the depiction of various reactions of horror and/or sadness. Additional scenes were invented as well, to help transport the viewer into the world of late 19th century London and the hospital setting where most of the movie transpires.

I don't think that kind of fictionalization was wrong on the part of Lynch and the others who made the film. In fact, I'm both a big fan of the movie and an avid reader of nonfictional material on Merrick.

But the book, as I recall so many years later, carries the embellishments a bit too far. The male hospital worker who in the movie parades his compatriots through Merrick's quarters, is here shown sexually abusing some female hospital patients as well. It also failed to strike me as more than an average-quality novelization of a wonderfully made film which deserved better.

My critique is necessarily weakened by the lack of other details in my memory of the book. And I suppose that, to the extent the book interests more people in learning about the real Merrick, or even just in watching the movie, its writer achieved something positive.

As a real memorial to Merrick I find the book sadly lacking. Better to turn to Dr. Treves's "The Elephant Man" or Ashley Montagu's similarly titled book. (I refrain from comment on Howell and Ford's "True History of the Elephant Man," though I own a copy, as it fails to document its sources.)

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Elephant Man
This was required for my granddaughter for sophomore English. Could not find the book anywhere but found it on Amazon.
Published 3 months ago by Mary Sue Kelly

5.0 out of 5 stars Heart Moving
This is one of the books which lets u reflect on the injustices that this world sometimes presents. It shows the people who are moved by greed and others that are moved by... Read more
Published 3 months ago by A. Castillo

4.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful and insightful!
As a movie tie-in, this book almost stands on its own merit. It captures the gentle, sweet spirit of John Merrick (whose real name was Joseph). Read more
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5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Touching Story Ever
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5.0 out of 5 stars I Am Not An Animal!
It has been quite some time since I've last read this novel, but to anyone who may be considering reading it for the first time, I would like you to know that it is a deeply... Read more
Published on May 26, 2005 by Sorana Luna

4.0 out of 5 stars I'm looking grateful?
Before reading, I thought this story wasn’t true. The editor made this story and it made an elephant man. But read and read and then finished. Read more
Published on November 11, 2002 by sukyung,sohn

4.0 out of 5 stars This book is fantastic!...
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I agree with the reader from Pensacola. The reader is right about the fact that it is very difficult to put the book down. Read more
Published on October 31, 2002 by halfbaked

5.0 out of 5 stars A very good book
I found this book to be really good and touching as well. It also helps teach people that it is what is on the inside that counts, and not how they look. Read more
Published on December 31, 2001 by Rosella Ann Myles

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT-jmatos5@yahoo.com
This book is very important. It is not only important so that we can understand the negativity of prejudice, but important because it helps us understand the importance of love... Read more
Published on July 27, 2000 by Jessica Matos

5.0 out of 5 stars How in the world?
I would like to know how in the world people can be so cruel to such a wonderful human being? I read this book a total of three times in one year. Read more
Published on June 3, 2000 by Scot Schneider

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