Previous Comments

[1] On Jan-24-2008, Nathan wrote:

It could be great or it could be an ill-conceived thing. But generally speaking, I trust Ellis to come up with something great. He has yet not to.

[2] On Jan-24-2008, James wrote:

The only thing I liked about Less Than Zero was the constancy of the narrator, Clay. I found that the book itself was far too bleak, and disturbed me more then any of Ellis's other novels.
A sequel, so long as Ellis uses his more developed literary form, could be excellent. Or maybe it will just be the bleakest book ever written. Either way I'm hoping that its hilarious.

[3] On Jan-27-2008, Jack wrote:

I think a sequel to Less Than Zero is an outstanding idea; considering its practically my bible, I don't think I would be even mildly upset if Imperial Bedrooms was exactly the same as his first, and as I personally believe, his best, novel.

[4] On Jan-27-2008, Jack wrote:

Wait hilarious? Let's first understand why Less Than Zero is an amazing novel. It only funny at very specific moments, but aside from that, Clay's emotional numbness and soulless nature, which by the way makes him more of an antagonist than a protagonist, are what make the book so amazing. Also, The way Bret wrote Less Than zero is what makes it credible. The short, blunt prose works so well because it reflects the attitudes of the characters themselves; I think using a more 'developed literary form', whatever that means, would ruin the book in its entirety (not that I think Bret would ever even consider doing that). Besides, its not like he has to prove anything- we've all read American Psycho so we know how versatile he is as a writer.

[5] On Jan-28-2008, James wrote:

Well, lets set one thing straight. Clay was the narrator, and thus was the protagonist, even if he seemed antagonizing in a sense. Clay's character was just incredibly indifferent to the evil of his friends, which for me as a reader, was far more disturbing then the serial killer/child rapist/cannibals/terrorists from Ellis's other novels. It is a book I need to re-read, I do however find that Ellis's writing style was the least developed in this book, with more simplisitic sentence structure (not necessarily a bad thing). An example of Ellis using very developed complex sentence structure would of course be American Psycho, Glamorama and to some extent Lunar Park. Even in his more "simplistically written" books like Informers and Less Than Zero, their is still a very pronounced feeling or attitude inherent to the characters that really are only people on the surface of reality.
Its interesting that this your favorite Ellis book...its my least favorite. The ambience of the book just leaves me feeling empty. This discussion has however, inspired me to re-read the book again soon!

[6] On Jan-28-2008, wrote:

I can not wait for this sequal. I AM SO EXCITED. LTZ is by far my favorite Ellis book and I'm very interested in where the characters will be and how Ellis writes the book (through who's point of view and what writing style- still short, to the point sentences?-)

[7] On Jan-30-2008, Robert wrote:

when people announce that Less Than Zero i their favorite book i wonder they've actually read glamorama. that's not necessarily a criticism, just disbelief on my part.

[8] On Feb-01-2008, Konstantin wrote:

I think it will be colse to the Less Than Zero plus more gore and violance and bizarre

[9] On Feb-01-2008, stephanie wrote:

robert, that was my comment. I actually read glamorama first and fell in love with it and BEE as a writer. I think LTZ was the third book I read of BEE´s and I was just blown away by its effectiveness. I don´t know- it really worked for me. I fell in love with the characters and the story was just so haunting (not that glamorama wasn't disturbing in MANY ways- a.k.a. chloe's 'bloody' accident). I have tended to like those of BEE's books that do not take on such intricite stories (I admit, I was sort of confused by some parts of Glamorama) so LTZ seemed so different and amazing than the books I had read from him prior. (after glamorama, american psycho)- maybe I could relate to them more (DISCLAIMER: I have never done drugs or been a prositute!!!!)

[10] On Feb-03-2008, mike wrote:

I dig the title.

Robert - I've read everything by Ellis, and LTZ remains my favorite.

[11] On Feb-04-2008, Holy Shit!!!!! wrote:

This is news......FUCK YEAH

[12] On Feb-05-2008, beatrice wrote:

I cant wait for it! Ive read every single thing he has done and will continue to do so!

[13] On Feb-06-2008, beatrice wrote:

also, is Bret planning to come to London for his book tour? if so when?

[14] On Feb-06-2008, James wrote:

The book tour was long long ago. If you have read Lunar Park you would understand how difficult it is to actualy see him at a book tour. :(

[15] On Feb-08-2008, John wrote:

This guy is one of my favorite artists.
Certainly, the best writer of my generation. His stuff is so great, his tone so unique, he is to be relished. Trying to parse his work is ridiculous - I just enjoy the power. Needless to say, I await his next work.

Who else do you guys and gals read? I appreciate this site, and your comments.

I really enjoy Cormac McCarthy. If you want to be disturbed, try Outer Dark by McCarthy.

[16] On Feb-15-2008, TrickAssP wrote:

Ok, to the post above mentioning the difficulty in actually seeing BEE at a book singing, I saw him in Toronto in Oct. 2005 for the release of Lunar park and rest assured he is a normal dude (relatively) who made it adamantly clear that the Ellis in Lunar Park was a character, nothing more. He signed my Lunar Park hard cover AND we had a brief discussion about the American Psycho poster I brought which he was thrilled to sign (now framed above my bar). I loved Less then Zero and although I have felt a steady, albeit very marginal decline in his efforts since I am very excited for a sequel. I love his re-occurring characters and although his plot lines have been getting murkier Ellis still knows how to captivate by making the absurd just real enough to be terrifying.

[17] On Feb-15-2008, Jody wrote:

Yes, I was there at the LA Joe McGinnis Jr's book tour just to see Bret... he was a very good talker and he is really good looking gay to me...lol.. so you all gay guys out there...wish you luck!!! man...he is gorgeous!! hahhahahhah

[18] On Feb-28-2008, Brandon wrote:

Yes. Yes yes yesyesyes. I'd love to see what Ellis will do with Clay.

[19] On Mar-05-2008, erika wrote:

in theory i am curious about a "sequel."
however i do not want the purity of the original "less then zero" to be contaminated.
maybe i am just being nostalgic.

[20] On Mar-19-2008, Jack Miner wrote:

James-
Just for sake of argument, the main character in a novel does not always mean he/she is the protagonist. Clay isn't only indifferent to the deeds of his friends, but also to his own actions. Protagonists are characters who a. are heroes, and b. who experience change throughout the book. The 'emptiness' you felt after reading less than zero was intentional by Bret- though I'm not saying I didn't feel the same way. I think the way he captures this period of time, youth, and human emotion within the novel is unparalleled, and it is that intense feeling of sadness we all feel after reading it that makes this novel amazing (and his best, in my opinion). I've heard different praise for Glamorama; I've read it twice and feel indifferent to it. Maybe because I'm 19, maybe because I can't relate to Victor, and maybe because I find the plot to be wandering, but with no intent (yes, the plot wanders in less than zero, but there's a reason for that). Anyways, just some thoughts I had; I'm certainly not trying to be offensive. Thanks

p.s. If you guys love Bret Easton Ellis so much, try embellishing on why instead of simply saying "I can't wait for his next novel".

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