The Red Snake (Hino Horror) [Paperback]

Hideshi Hino (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2004 | Series: Hino Horror (Book 1)

Something evil lurks within a house, manifesting in bloody mayhem when a red snake appears!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Hideshi Hino, Japan's master of horror manga, was born in China in 1946 and soon moved to Tokyo. The apocalyptic post-war landscape and grotesque, twisted characters recur throughout his work. Best known for his semi-autobiographical, Panorama of Hell, he has 200+ titles in print.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: DH Publishing (April 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974596108
• ISBN-13: 978-0974596105
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #979,069 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hideshi Hino, the True Master of Japanese Horror, May 13, 2004

By 

Eric Thomson (Montgomery, W.V. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Red Snake (Hino Horror) (Paperback)

I first learned about Hino through another talented artist who works in the field of horror manga, Junji Ito. In a short bio at the end of one of his books, Ito cited Hino, as well as the American writer H.P. Lovecraft, as two of his influences. Ito was also the recipient of an award which carries Hino's name which honors Japanese artists who have mastered tales of terror. I already knew about Lovecraft. If you're into horror and you don't know his name, you should. Ito . . . well, let's just say the guy continues to amaze me. "Uzumaki" was fantastic, as was "Gyo". So, long story short, I put 2 and 2 together (and for once I didn't come up with 22). I reasoned that it made sense--considering the logical connections--for me to learn more about Hideshi Hino. At the time, I could only find two of his books on Amazon: "Hell Baby" and "Panorama of Hell". Both were out of print. Far too lazy (and picky) to buy them used, I waited for the day when more of his works would be published in English. That day has come! DHP has recently published two of his books, "The Red Snake" and "The Bug Boy". Hino. How can I describe his work? His drawing style has a childlike quality about it. This does nothing to offset his horrific tales. In reality, it accentuates the disturbing atmosphere that hangs over each and every page of lush black and white illustrations. "The Red Snake" is a story told from a young boy's point of view. He lives in a house surrounded by an endless forest that he can't escape. To make things worse, he is surrounded by lunatics: his grandfather has a large growth hanging from his jaw, his grandmother believes she is a chicken and lives in a nest, his father, who raises chickens with sadistic affection, aids her dementia by giving her baskets of eggs that he claims she laid herself, his mother tends to grandfather's boil with far too much tender loving care, and his sister fondles insects with erotic glee. As if the poor kid doesn't have enough to worry about, his grandfather tells him that the large mirror in their house is, in reality, a barrier that blocks the gates to Hell. I'm not going to spoil the story for you, but it should come as no surprise that events unfold in a manner that is reminiscent of lingering nightmares. As for the format of the book, DHP has remained true to the original layout; the pages and panels are meant to be read from right to left. This has become a current trend, as many translated mangas are now printed like this. If, however, you are new to this sort of thing, have no fear, it's easy enough to adjust your reading habits. I ordered "The Red Snake" along with "The Bug Boy" (not quite as dark, but a worthwhile read, nonetheless). Both books are well worth the money. Considering each volume consists of roughly two hundred pages, the price of ten dollars is a steal. With more Hino books to be released in the future, I would strongly suggest you start your collection now. With over 400 Hino title in print, it could turn out to be a rather large collection.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Mirror Cracked, June 21, 2005

By 

Joshua Koppel (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Red Snake (Hino Horror) (Paperback)

Volume one of the Hino Horror series involves a strange tale of a bizarre family and a strange house.

The story opens with a frightened little boy telling us of the house he hates. It is huge and surrounded by a dark forest. He has never been able to leave the house, always running bach scared to a new section he did not know. One hallway is blocked by a large mirror. It is said by the boy's grandfather that the mirror prevents the demons on the other side from getting through. But even stranger than the house is the boy's family. Among them is a grandmother who thinks she is a chicken and lives in a big nest. The boy seems to be the only normal one in the house.

One day the boy sees a crack in the mirror. He is terrified that the demons can now come through. The first evidence is a large red snake loose in the house. From there things escalate at a frightening pace as the boy becomes witness to terrible horrors involving his family. In the end we return to a narrative similar to the opening.

This is a strange one. We never get any real idea of who these people are or what the house is. It sort of reminds me of The Sentinel but there is nothing to indicate that the family is watching or guarding anything. But despite all of that this still remains a very creepy story full of dark imagery and atmosphere. A pretty good choice to lead of this new series of Hino's work.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A MESSED UP FAMILY, January 17, 2005

By 

Sesho "www.sesho.libsyn.com" (Pasadena, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Red Snake (Hino Horror) (Paperback)

The Red Snake is the first volume in the Hino Horror series put out by Cocoro Books, celebrating the achievements of Hideshi Hino, the master of Japanese horror manga. I don't know if I would actually called this first volume horror or a disturbing meditation on suffering, death, and abnormality. Oh yeah, that's what horror is!

The narrator of this tale is a young boy desperately trying to escape his home that is surrounded by a dense forest. Everytime he tries to leave, the forest somehow always mysteriously makes him wind up back at his house. Why does he want to escape? If you only knew! For starters, his grandmother is insane and believes she is a chicken, even eating bugs and living in a nest she constructed from sticks. His grandfather has an enormous cyst or pus-filled growth on his chin the size of a bowling pin. The kid's father is psychotic who raises chickens. Innocent enough, but if the chickens don't produce eggs, the father decapitates them. The mother's main job in the house is to massage the grandfather's giant size abscess by rubbing it with an egg and even stepping on it with her foot to lance it.
And then we have the kid's sister, who has a perverse obsession with bugs. On top of this cheerful set-up, there is a hallway in the house blocked by a mirror, behind which the grandfather says lurks abominable horrors. Like the house isn't filled with horrors already! When the narrator ventures behind the mirror in a dream, he finds that things can always get worse!

Some of the images in this book made me almost not want to turn the page. But hey, that's what horror is for! To show you things you want to turn away from but feel compelled to look at. Hino does a good job of creating an alternate world somewhere in the depths of Hell akin to Dante's Inferno. If you're in the mood for a creepy story, check this out.