The Mad Cook of Pymatuning: A Novel [Hardcover]

Christopher Lehmann-Haupt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2005

In this chilling novel about a 1950s boys' summer camp gone awry, the former New York Times literary critic has created a brilliant coming-of-age story with undertones reminiscent of Lord of the Flies. Christopher Lehmann-Haupt's novel is at once a fantasy, a barbed portrait of boyhood in the dawning of the Eisenhower era, and a no-holds-barred story of terror of the sort that won him praise for his previous novel, A Crooked Man. Jerry Muller has been a regular at Camp Seneca for years. Now that he's a teenager and counselor, things don't seem quite right at his traditional summer haunt. As Jerry plunges into the mysteries around him, he finds himself growing up fast -- maybe too fast. He's attracted to T.J., a pretty girl who might have a boyfriend but who flirts anyway, and he's shocked by the truth about his friend Oz, who's more interested in Jerry than in the likes of T.J. He sees something is strangely amiss with the husband and wife who own the camp. But above all, he's scared of the cruel game masterminded by Buck. Of Seneca ancestry, Buck is a sinister, bigger-than-life expert on Indian lore. He is also an organizer of scary games who may just possibly be a psychopath and a killer, and in whose hands the camp's make-believe, designed to scare the kids, becomes first a savage and brutal test of strength, then, by small steps, genuinely dangerous. As Jerry unravels the mysteries surrounding the ordinary-looking camp, he struggles to understand how "the Forbidden Woods," which have always been off-limits to campers as a kind of game and ??dare, have somehow become genuinely frightening -- all the more reason to discover the secrets that lie behind Camp Seneca's facade. The story reaches its climax in a shocking scene that neither Jerry nor the reader is likely to forget. Christopher Lehmann-Haupt's new novel is a wicked, suspenseful, and deeply original tale.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When 17-year-old Jerry Muller returns to Camp Seneca as a junior counselor in Lehmann-Haupt's entertaining new novel of summertime suspense, he finds he's in for more than the Pennsylvania camp's typical "controlled chaos." This year (the summer of 1952), Jerry has brought along his nine-year-old half-brother, Peter, and an excess of psychological baggage from his divorced parents, a single, alcoholic mother and his remarried father. Jerry hopes to show Peter a good time—and have a good time himself with a pretty new girl named T.J.—but camp owner Woody Wentworth's "character building exercises" take on a sinister tone. Woody's campfire tales leave children in tears; the annual Snipe Hunt (an armed bird-bagging contest) turns survivalist; and the atmosphere grows "savage, like they're preparing for war." More disturbing is the adult administrator, Buck Silverstone, aka Redclaw, who runs the Indian program and has some unorthodox activities planned. The question is not if Redclaw will go off the deep end, but when he does, how gory will it be and how many campers will he take with him? Lehmann-Haupt (A Crooked Man) builds suspense and delivers the expected cataclysmic conclusion to this scary campfire tale. (Sept.)
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From Booklist

The sophomore effort (following A Crooked Man, 1995) of the former daily book reviewer for the New York Times is set in 1952 at a summer boys' camp. Accompanied by his little half-brother, Peter, with whom he is determined to forge a closer relationship, teenage Jerry arrives at Camp Seneca with high expectations; however, he immediately senses that things have changed. Known for his wacky philosophy of surprising campers with unexpected challenges, the camp owner has put a sinister spin on routine activities. After Peter emerges from a "fun" boxing challenge bloodied and bruised, Jerry writes to his father and stepmother about his misgivings. Furthermore, the new man hired to teach Native American lore is downright creepy. Although this novel begs to be read as an allegory on the 1950s, it is so awkwardly done that it does not really work. Large amounts of exposition are shoveled into the dialogue, and passages meant to terrify readers do not. The author's name and critical acclaim for his debut may draw some readers, but they are likely to be disappointed. Buy cautiously. Joanne Wilkinson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (September 20, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684834278
• ISBN-13: 978-0684834276
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,514,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Thrilling Thriller for all Ages, September 25, 2005

By 

Karen Wilson (Burlington, VT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mad Cook of Pymatuning: A Novel (Hardcover)

I purchased this book immediately after reading a very positive review in The New York Times. I devoured it in one evening and was totally drawn into the summer camp, its rituals and games, and was fascinated by the charismatic Indian working there...what was he up to?! I could not have imagined the plot that Mr. Lehmann-Haupt develops. As a big fan of the genre, it's rare that I come across such a thrilling, evocative and intelligent--yes, intelligent--thriller! The author is an amazing storyteller and someone who clearly knows an awful lot about Native American myth and history, too...or at least he did his homework! This is an excellent choice.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SUSPENSEFUL AND UNFORGETTABLE, September 27, 2005

By 

Elisabeth Cade "Lisl Cade" (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mad Cook of Pymatuning: A Novel (Hardcover)

A moving portrayal of a young man coming to grips with his personal life and feelings and a dramatic illustration of ethnic fervor driven to excess. THE MAD COOK OF PYMATUNING is a gripping read, a book to savor and think about - I couldn't keep myself from re-reading it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Mixes suspense with disappointing plot, January 14, 2006

By 

D. McDiffett "iteachlit" (Salina, KS USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mad Cook of Pymatuning: A Novel (Hardcover)

Two stars for the fact the book kept me reading, kept me interested in what would happen to Jerry and his brother, kept me curious about Buck (Redclaw) and his motivations, about Win and Woody and TJ. But only two stars because so many questions are left unanswered. What becomes of Jerry and Peter after their summer? How does it change them? After all, this is written as a sort of memoir, with repetitive foreshadowing that bad things are going to happen because the narrator has already lived through them. Thus, little suspense in the conclusion--the adult narrator obviously survived the confrontation! Why is Buck doing as he does? Some clues are hinted at, but not satisfactorily explained. Like Jerry in his physical encounters with TJ, this book teases, but never really reaches a satisfactory climax.