Editorial Content for A Head Full of Ghosts
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Love them or hate them, reality shows are an ubiquitous part of the cultural landscape. The most popular examples, and the most problematic, tend to bring viewers into the lives and homes of families who capitalize on their secrets or supposed singularity. Like the reality shows it critiques, Paul Tremblay's A HEAD FULL OF GHOSTS is fascinating and heartbreaking as it portrays a family that chooses to broadcast itself at its worst.
When 14-year-old Marjorie Barrett begins to exhibit signs of mental illness, her family first turns to doctors and medications. But when she doesn't stabilize quickly and continues to act in confusing and frightening ways, her father's latent Roman Catholicism becomes his source of strength. John Barrett shares his concerns for his daughter with his priest, Father Wanderly, and is soon skipping Marjorie's doctor appointments for time at church. John and Father Wanderly come to believe that Marjorie is possessed by a demon.
"Creepy, dark and often quite sad, Tremblay's latest is unique and unpredictable. The information readers have, in the end, proves unreliable, making A HEAD FULL OF GHOSTS haunting in a psychological, postmodern way."
Somehow they come into contact with a production company that wants the Barretts to star in a reality show and air the exorcism the priest plans to conduct. Marjorie's mother, Sarah, is skeptical, to say the least, but is swept up in the chaos and finds herself a just barely willing participant in the TV project and in the exorcism. The fourth member of the family is eight-year-old Merry. Often the object of Marjorie's frightening tales and threats of violence, but a fierce defender of her big sister, Merry is caught between the love she feels for Marjorie and terror, not to mention the pandemonium of the show.
The narrative moves between two related points of view. The first is of Merry 15 years after the show “The Possession”aired and all the subsequent events that affected her family. She has been contacted by the writer Rachel Neville, who hopes to write a book on the Barretts, the program and everything that happened. Rachel finds Merry to be a lonely young woman with a possible unhealthy interest in horror films and stories. Merry seems quite willing to share her memories of her sister and parents during the time of Marjorie's illness. The bulk of the novel is Merry sharing with Rachel those reminiscences and letting her story unfold.
The second perspective is that of Karen Brissette, who, in a series of smart and scathing blog posts, attempts to deconstruct “The Possession” and place it in the realm of both reality television and American horror. Merry's description of her family and the events that took place when she was eight are harrowing, to say the least. It was unclear to young Merry (and so remains unclear still) how much of Marjorie's actions were beyond her control and what she did in order to scare her family. It is clear in either case that she was quite intelligent and also disturbed. Karen's blog gives a more objective view of the family, but only what could be known from the show, which was clearly manufactured and edited.
Astonishingly referential, A HEAD FULL OF GHOSTS is a commentary on the phenomenon of reality television where reality has been scripted and also an ode to the horror genre. But, more than that, it is an exploration of the human condition, mental health, truth and perspective, and even religion, gender and exploitation.
Creepy, dark and often quite sad, Tremblay's latest is unique and unpredictable. The information readers have, in the end, proves unreliable, making A HEAD FULL OF GHOSTS haunting in a psychological, postmodern way. There is much to piece together and try to understand after the novel ends and much to enjoy while reading it.
Teaser
The lives of the Barretts are torn apart when 14-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism and contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barretts’ plight, resulting in what would become a hit reality TV show. Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry, at which point long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast begin to surface.
Promo
The lives of the Barretts are torn apart when 14-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism and contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barretts’ plight, resulting in what would become a hit reality TV show. Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry, at which point long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast begin to surface.
About the Book
A chilling thriller that brilliantly blends domestic drama, psychological suspense and a touch of modern horror, reminiscent of Mark Z. Danielewski’s HOUSE OF LEAVES, John Ajvide Lindqvist’s LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and Shirley Jackson’s THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE.
The lives of the Barretts, a normal suburban New England family, are torn apart when 14-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia.
To her parents’ despair, the doctors are unable to stop Marjorie’s descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism; he believes the vulnerable teenager is the victim of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barretts’ plight. With John, Marjorie’s father, out of work for more than a year and the medical bills looming, the family agrees to be filmed, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of "The Possession," a hit reality television show. When events in the Barrett household explode in tragedy, the show and the shocking incidents it captures become the stuff of urban legend.
Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry. As she recalls those long ago events that took place when she was just eight years old, long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast on television begin to surface --- and a mind-bending tale of psychological horror is unleashed, raising vexing questions about memory and reality, science and religion, and the very nature of evil.
