Most Popular Books by Mark Z. Danielewski

THE MIND-BENDING CULT CLASSIC ABOUT A HOUSE THAT’S LARGER ON THE INSIDE THAN ON THE OUTSIDE • A masterpiece of horror and an astonishingly immersive, maze-like reading experience that redefines the boundaries of a novel. ''''Simultaneously reads like a thriller and like a strange, dreamlike excursion into the subconscious." —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times "Thrillingly alive, sublimely creepy, distressingly scary, breathtakingly intelligent—it renders most other fiction meaningless." —Bret Easton Ellis, bestselling author of American Psycho “This demonically brilliant book is impossible to ignore.” —Jonathan Lethem, award-winning author of Motherless Brooklyn One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years Years ago, when House of Leaves was first being passed around, it was nothing more than a badly bundled heap of paper, parts of which would occasionally surface on the Internet. No one could have anticipated the small but devoted following this terrifying story would soon command. Starting with an odd assortment of marginalized youth—musicians, tattoo artists, programmers, strippers, environmentalists, and adrenaline junkies—the book eventually made its way into the hands of older generations, who not only found themselves in those strangely arranged pages but also discovered a way back into the lives of their estranged children. Now made available in book form, complete with the original colored words, vertical footnotes, and second and third appendices, the story remains unchanged. Similarly, the cultural fascination with House of Leaves remains as fervent and as imaginative as ever. The novel has gone on to inspire doctorate-level courses and masters theses, cultural phenomena like the online urban legend of “the backrooms,” and incredible works of art in entirely unrealted mediums from music to video games. Neither Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Will Navidson nor his companion Karen Green was prepared to face the consequences of the impossibility of their new home, until the day their two little children wandered off and their voices eerily began to return another story—of creature darkness, of an ever-growing abyss behind a closet door, and of that unholy growl which soon enough would tear through their walls and consume all their dreams.

Johnny Truant, wild and troubled sometime employee in an L.A. tattoo parlour, finds a notebook kept by Zampano, a recluse found dead in a flat. Herein is the heavily annotated story of the Navidson Record.

From the author of the international best seller House of Leaves and National Book Award–nominated Only Revolutions comes a monumental new novel as dazzling as it is riveting. The Familiar (Volume 1) ranges from Mexico to Southeast Asia, from Venice, Italy, to Venice, California, with nine lives hanging in the balance, each called upon to make a terrifying choice. They include a therapist-in-training grappling with daughters as demanding as her patients; an ambitious East L.A. gang member contracted for violence; two scientists in Marfa, Texas, on the run from an organization powerful beyond imagining; plus a recovering addict in Singapore summoned at midnight by a desperate billionaire; and a programmer near Silicon Beach whose game engine might unleash consequences far exceeding the entertainment he intends. At the very heart, though, is a twelve-year-old girl named Xanther who one rainy day in May sets out with her father to get a dog, only to end up trying to save a creature as fragile as it is dangerous . . . which will change not only her life and the lives of those she has yet to encounter, but this world, too—or at least the world we think we know and the future we take for granted. (With full-color illustrations throughout.) Like the print edition, this eBook contains a complex image-based layout. It is most readable on e-reading devices with larger screen sizes.

A local seamstress named Chintana finds herself responsible for five orpahns on her birthday. The children are captivated by the storyteller who arrives and tells a tale of vengeance - and produces a long black box he sets before them. As midnight approaches the box is opened, a fateful dare is made, and the children as well as Chintana come face to face with the consequences of a malice retold.

We all have fears, but if we can’t face the small ones how will we face the big ones? Kai is afraid to fly a little blue kite. But Kai is also very, very brave, and overcoming this small fear will lead him on a great adventure. Remember: all great adventures start with one little moment. You know the one. It’s like a gentle breeze whispering in your ear what you already know by heart: not even the sky is the limit . . . The only other thing you might want to know about this book is that there are at least three ways to read it. The first way takes only a few minutes. Just follow the rainbow-colored words. The second takes only a little bit longer. Just follow the words haloed with blue and red and the rainbow words too. For the third way, just start at the beginning.

The Familiar, Volume 1 Wherein the cat is found . . . The Familiar, Volume 2 Wherein the cat is hungry . . . From the universally acclaimed, genre-busting author of House of Leaves comes the second volume of The Familiar, a “novel [which] goes beyond the experimental into the visionary, creating a language and style that expands the horizon of meaning . . . hint[ing] at an evolved form of literature.”* In The Familiar, Volume 2: Into the Forest, the lives of the disparate and dynamic nine characters introduced in “One Rainy Day in May” begin to intersect in inexplicable ways, finding harmonies and echoes in each other. What once seemed remote and disconnected draws closer—slowly, steadily—toward something inevitable. . . . At the center of it all is Xanther, a twelve-year-old girl, for whom the world around her seems to be opening, exposing doors and windows, visions and sounds, questions and ideas previously unknown. With each passing day, she begins to glimpse something she does not understand but unequivocally craves—the only thing that will bring her relief and keep her new friend alive. (With full-color illustrations throughout.) *Library Journal, starred review THE FAMILIAR continues... The Familiar Volume 3 Wherein the cat is blind . . . The Familiar Volume 4 Wherein the cat is toothless . . . The Familiar Volume 5 Wherein the cat is named . . .

Moving back and forth in American history, a kaleidoscopic novel follows Hailey and Sam, two wayward teenagers, as they crash New Orleans parties, barrel up the Mississippi, head through the Badlands, and take on other adventures.

Mark Z. Danielewski''s The Familiar, Volume 4 brilliantly combines inventive visuals and a paradigm-shifting narrative to create a stunning multisensory reading experience. The Familiar Volume 1 Wherein the cat is found . . . The Familiar Volume 2 Wherein the cat is hungry . . . The Familiar Volume 3 Wherein the cat is blind . . . The Familiar Volume 4 Wherein the cat is toothless . . . When a viral video puts twelve-year-old Xanther under a spotlight of scrutiny at school, her little white cat—still slumbering, still unnamed—offers the only escape, though it comes at a price. Not even Xanther’s parents can deny the strange currents now shuddering around their eldest, touching off inexplicable happenings. Entities troubling the dreams of the twins seem to have singled out Freya. Despite invitations to a gala at The Met, Anwar fears the solution to their financial difficulties might expose more than just his family to dangerous consequences. Something greater is at hand, something terrible is at stake. And all the while, faces unfamiliar to the Ibrahims draw closer and closer: Jingjing, in Singapore, clutching charms, boards a plane for Los Angeles; Cas and Bobby, with visions of Xanther in Mefisto’s Orb, must elude attacks from the sky. Strangers collide . . . though will those intersections lead to alliances or war? And does the dance at the center of Volume 4 augur the liberation of our better angels or the release of a creature set to feast on the wings of hope? THE FAMILIAR continues The Familiar Volume 5 Wherein the cat is named . . .

The Familiar Volume 1 Wherein the cat is found . . . The Familiar Volume 2 Wherein the cat is hungry . . . The Familiar Volume 3 Wherein the cat is blind . . . Released for the summer from the perils of school, Xanther and her nameless cat are settling into a comfortable routine at home. However, the rest of the Ibrahim family is growing more and more unsettled. Astair fears their stretched finances are already at a breaking point. Not even a visit from an old friend can mitigate Anwar’s feeling that he’s failing to support those he loves and that even worse things are to come. The twins, Freya and Shasti, sense something too and blame their older sister. Honeysuckles haunt the air and smell of offerings . . . Meanwhile, Cas and Bobby’s survival may depend on facing the one person they fear most. And on the other side of the world, Jingjing and Tian Li set out to find what was lost: their missing cat. With spectacular visuals and the vibrant wordplay that are his trademark, The Familiar (Volume 3) is a beautiful and singular reading experience that could come only from the imagination of Mark Z. Danielewski. THE FAMILIAR continues The Familiar Volume 4 Wherein the cat is toothless . . . The Familiar Volume 5 Wherein the cat is named . . .

The Season One finale of this riveting multisensory masterpiece from the visionary author of House of Leaves. The Familiar Volume 1 Wherein the cat is found . . . The Familiar Volume 2 Wherein the cat is hungry . . . The Familiar Volume 3 Wherein the cat is blind . . . The Familiar Volume 4 Wherein the cat is toothless . . . The Familiar Volume 5 Wherein the cat is named . . . The astonishing series about a young girl who befriends a cat hunting humanity continues with Volume 5, and the Season One finale, in which the consequences of how we encounter one another come into poignant and terrifying relief—especially on one September night, when an unexpected phone call demanding the return of the little white cat challenges everything the Ibrahims hold dear. They are not alone. Jingjing must contend with a rival he could never have anticipated, while Xanther must relinquish all she thought she knew as a far greater responsibility is set before her. Light wavers and pomegranates reveal their price as the effects of a great transition start to reverberate around everyone, Shnorhk’s efforts to resume playing music cannot escape history’s ghosts. Cas, in upstate New York, comes face-to-face with her lifelong nemesis in a candlelit rendezvous that presages the international crisis soon to come. As more lines tangle, Özgür and Luther brawl with a future that may have chosen them long ago, and Isandòrno crosses a line that will force him over the border into a country he has until now steadfastly refused. All the while, a terrible power roaming the world continues to grow . . .

Between 1982 and 1989, Pelafina H. Lièvre sent her son, Johnny Truant, a series of letters from The Three Attic Whalestoe Institute, a psychiatric facility in Ohio where she spent the final years of her life. Beautiful, heartfelt, and tragic, this correspondence reveals the powerful and deeply moving relationship between a brilliant though mentally ill mother and the precocious, gifted young son she never ceases to love. Originally contained within the monumental House of Leaves, this collection stands alone as a stunning portrait of mother and child. It is presented here along with a foreword by Walden D. Wyhrta and eleven previously unavailable letters.

"Obra maestra de Mark Z. Danielewski, La casa de hojas, consta de dos historias paralelas. Uno de ellos es de Johnny Truant y su existencia frenética en Los Ángeles a principios de la década de 1990. La segunda comienza cuando Truant encuentra un manuscrito en la casa de un anciano que acaba de morir. Este manuscrito cuenta la historia de un matrimonio que se trasladan a una casa en el país. Esta familia norteamericana de clase media-alta pronto hace un descubrimiento aterrador: su nueva casa es más grande por dentro que por fuera. Este hallazgo desencadena una serie de eventos en los que la unidad familiar y la armonía son traídos bajo el hechizo de esta arquitectura pesadilla."--Amazon.

Als der Erfolgsschriftsteller Will Navidson mit seiner Frau und den beiden Kindern in das neue Haus zieht, ahnt er nicht, was für ein Alptraum ihm bevorsteht. Er bemerkt eines Tages, dass dieses Haus über Räume verfügt, die kein Grundriss verzeichnet. Bei einer ersten Erkundung dieser Räume kommt er mit dem Schrecken davon und findet gerade noch den Rückweg. Doch das Haus beginnt ein immer monströser werdendes Eigenleben zu führen. Und immer mehr der herbeigerufenen Spezialisten und Helfer fallen den unheimlichen Räumen zum Opfer

Two friends set out to rescue a pair of horses slated for slaughter.

" Je fais encore des cauchemars. D''ailleurs, j''en fais si souvent que je devrais y être habitué depuis le temps. Ce n''est pas le cas. Personne ne s''habitue vraiment aux cauchemars. " Ainsi parle Johnny Errand au seuil de cette Maison des feuilles, et de poursuivre sa mise en garde : " Ca ne se produit pas immédiatement, mais sans prévenir vous vous apercevrez que les choses ne sont pas telles que vous pensiez qu''elles étaient. " Livre subversif, livre défendu, le lecteur est prévenu... et bien entendu tenté. Dans son introduction, Johnny explique comment il a trouvé un mystérieux manuscrit à la mort d''un vieil homme aveugle, décidé de le mettre en forme et de l''annoter de façon très personnelle. Le texte se présente comme un essai sur un film, le Navidson Record, réalisé par Will Navidson, un photoreporter, lauréat du prix Pulitzer. Will, qui vient d''emménager avec sa famille dans une maison en Virginie, filme son installation, réalisant une sorte de " home movie ". Tout s''annonce bien jusqu''à ce qu''il découvre une pièce qui jusqu''alors n''existait pas. Passé l''étonnement, il se rend à une évidence troublante : la maison est plus grande à l''intérieur qu''à l''extérieur. Navidson tente d''explorer les lieux mais, après avoir manqué se perdre, il engage des explorateurs professionnels. L''horreur commence alors. Aussi bien pour les membres de l''expédition que pour le lecteur - lui-même égaré dans le dédale des notes qui envahissent les pages comme un lierre maléfique. Que cache la maison ? Quel est ce grondement qu''elle émet de temps en temps ? Pourquoi Johnny a-t-il ces cicatrices ? Pourquoi le manuscrit de Zampano semble-t-il le rendre fou ? A la fois jeu de piste, récit fantastique, dérive personnelle, essai faussement académique, La Maison des feuilles a pour effet de changer progressivement le lecteur en apprenti sorcier, monteur de salle obscure, détective amateur, spectateur. Une lecture littéralement habitée.

Sprookjesachtige speelse vertelling over vijf weeskinderen in Texas.

Als een medewerker van een tattooshop zich verdiept in de huiveringwekkende documentatie over het spookhuis van een fotojournalist, wordt hij langzaamaan paranoïde voor zijn eigen omgeving.

Moving back and forth in American history, a kaleidoscopic novel follows Hailey and Sam, two wayward teenagers, as they crash New Orleans parties, barrel up the Mississippi, head through the Badlands, and take on other adventures.

Ils étaient là avant Roméo et Juliette. Et bien après aussi. C''est en tout cas ce qu''ils revendiquent, carillonnant gaiement : On a toujours seize ans. Sam et Hailey, propulsés dans un ballet incessant de voitures, du modèle T à la Lincoln continental, tracent à toute blinde de la guerre de Sécession à la guerre froide, dévalent les Appalaches, remontent plein pot le Mississipi, traversent les Badlands, sillonnant de bout en bout toute une nation à la poursuite de l''Histoire. Tour à tour enchanteur, captivant, et finalement dévastateur, O Révolutions ne ressemble à aucun livre.. Véritable prouesse d''émotion et d''intelligence, le voyage de ces deux gamins, éternels adolescents baignés sous d''éternels cieux d''été, qui renoncent peu à peu à tout sauf à l''aimé, est proprement bouleversant.

L''Epée des Cinquante Ans est une histoire de fantômes pour adultes. Le soir d''Halloween, une couturière thaïlandaise, Chintana, se rend à une soirée où elle se retrouve nez à nez avec la femme pour laquelle son mari l''a quittée six mois plus tôt. Assistent à cette soirée cinq orphelins devant lesquels va se produire un mystérieux conteur aux allures maléfiques qui leur raconte une terrible aventure : celle de sa quête, à travers d''étranges contrées, de l''Epée des Cinquante Ans. Les blessures causées par cette dernière ne prennent effet que le jour fatidique où la victime atteint ses cinquante ans. Le sortilège va soudainement prendre sens et forme lors de cette inquiétante soirée, et Chintana sera à nouveau submergée par un désir de vengeance qu''elle croyait enfoui. Mark Z Danielewski poursuit son oeuvre, soucieux à chaque nouveau livre de réunir esthétique, prosodie, musicalité et scénographie. L''Epée des Cinquante Ans tisse, coud et découd les multiples points de vue dans le cadre d''une narration qui semble pourtant unique et linéaire. Le jeu sur la couleur des guillemets révèle une polyphonie de voix et creuse la question de la responsabilité du récit, pour celui qui parle comme pour celui qui écoute.

From the universally acclaimed, genre-busting author of House of Leaves comes a new book as dazzling as it is riveting ... A page-turner from start to finish, ranging from Southeast Asia to Mexico to Venice, Italy, and Venice, California, with characters as diverse as a therapist-in-training whose daughters prove far more complex than her patients, an ambitious East-L.A. gang member hired for violence, two scientists on the run in Marfa, Texas, a recovering addict in Singapore summoned by a powerful but desperate billionaire, a programmer near Silicon Beach whose game engine just might augur far more than he suspects, and at the very heart a 12-year-old girl who one rainy day in May sets out from Echo Park to get a dog only to find something else ... something that will not only alter her life but threaten the world we all think we know and the future we take for granted.