The Secret History

A great read for those who love to explore the human psyche

Richard Papen grew up in Plano, CA; a small silicon village in the north. An only child, he was extremely unhappy there¿his father ran a gas station, and his mother had to join the work force to make ends meet. After high school, Richard went to a small college in his hometown¿against his parents wishes¿and studied ancient Greek on his way to a pre-med curriculum. <BR/><BR/>He excelled in Greek, not so in biology and science classes. One night during a long Thanksgiving Holiday, he finds in his room a brochure from Hampden College, Hampden, Vermont, established in 1895.<BR/><BR/>For the hell of it he applies and is accepted after getting a huge package of financial aid. <BR/><BR/>So he gets on a bus and arrives in Vermont. <BR/><BR/>As he tries to pursue his Greek studies, he encountered a roadblock¿the Greek professor: Julian Morrow, who only takes a few students.<BR/><BR/>He out of curiosity decided to find and study these particular students. Two of the boys wore glasses, curiously enough the same kind: tiny, old fashioned, with round steel rims. The larger of the two, well over six feet, was dark haired, wore English suits and carried an umbrella¿unusual for Hampden¿his name was Henry Winter. The smaller of the two, was a sloppy blond boy, rosy cheeked and gum chewing. He was Bunny Corcoran¿short for Edmund¿and he wore the same jacket everyday and had a voice that was loud and honking.<BR/><BR/>The third boy was the most exotic of them all. Angular and elegant, precariously thin, with nervous hands and a shrewd albino face with a short fiery mop reddish hair. Francis Abernathy was his name.<BR/><BR/>The last two turned to be twins¿they looked much alike, with heavy dark blond hair and epicene faces as clear, as cheerful and grave, as a couple of Flemish Angels. Their names were Charles and Camilla Macaulay.<BR/><BR/>Richard, overhearing an assignment by the group in the library, is able to solve a Greek problem, so he is invited to join the group.<BR/><BR/>As it turns out, Julian Morrow is, like Aristotle, a complete education teacher. Richard is forced to quit all his classes, except French and Julian will teach him all of his curriculum for the year.<BR/><BR/>The book is short on plot¿as a matter of fact, the plot is given away in the two page introduction. The group kills Bunny Corcoran.<BR/><BR/>But what it lacks in plot, is overwhelmed by character development. Donna Tartt is able to get inside these people¿s heads to a point where we feel we are there with them. We know what they do, what they think, why they drink; what they like and dislike about each one of them¿and how they interact as a group, which will explain why they did what they did.<BR/><BR/>These are confessions, years afterwards of a young man who found at a small Vermont college the life of privilege and intellect he¿d long coveted¿and rarely has the glorious experience of youth infatuated with knowledge and with itself so achingly realized. <BR/><BR/>Hugely ambitious and compulsive readable, this is a chronicle of deception and complicity, of Dionysian abandon, of innocence corrupted by self love and moral arrogance; and finally this is a story of guilt and responsibility.<BR/><BR/>A great read for those who love to explore the human psyche.

4 out of 9 people found this review helpful.

Standout Fiction

THE SECRET HISTORY is that rarity published in recent years, a mainstream novel that deals with murder but not the usual ho-hum mystery formula. I was drawn into Richard Papen's slide into the small clique of classics students majoring in Greek, improbably taking no other courses but French in a small Vermont private college. Never fitting in other settings, Richard seems a perfect fit here, though his blue-collar background contrasts to the wealthy background of the other five. The coin is fluency in Greek, and the group considers themselves set apart by their intellectual superiority. Though one member is far from an intellectual, and his position becomes increasingly precarious after a mysterious killing of a local farmer prods him to blackmail and snipe at the others he is sure killed the man. Richard is the observer, who becomes an accessory to murder, under the spell of the group's leader, who is determined to conceal their crimes at all costs. Mesmerized by the leader's rationalization that the first killing was an accident--or was it?-- Richard goes along with the plan for a second murder, drifting with the others from the first in a haze of constant heavy drinking combined with drugs taken as a matter of course. While college students --at least some of them--certainly did drugs in the Eighties and probably still do, every character major or minor in the book is stoned and recklessly drunk on top of that. No one dies of this, a miracle; and such bright students in the Greek major seem to be drunk or on their way much of the time--not terribly intellectual, though bright people often drink to excess at times. Not even Richard can work up actual horror at news of the first killing, or resistance to the plan to cover up by killing the second victim, chiefly because said victim's needling gets more and more annoying. Yet this reader, usually repelled by conscienceless characters, was unable to put the book down, wanting to know if they will get away with it, wanting to know what Richard--who hasn't actually committed either murder--will do in the end or if he will end up in prison for his complicity in abetting and concealing the crimes. The alarmingly plausible leader's essential evil is slowly and skillfully revealed by the author, who turned out a literate and vivid work of prose in THE SECRET HISTORY. The end had one small flaw, hard to understand the leader's action in the climax. It didn't seem in character. But the book was haunting and involving, and I'll look for more of Donna Tartt's work.

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.

A Reader from Minneapolis

Much ado about nothing. Competent writer but this book doesn't imho live up to the hype.

4 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

Awesome!

Donna Tartt is a very gifted story teller. This book will amuse you, shock you, stimey you, and anger you. A real page turner. I highly reccommend it.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

An Outstanding Literary Work

What makes 'The Secret History' such a compelling book is its daring to examine the consequences of the arrogance of intellectual superiority, something I struggled with in my youth, something which I sometimes find myself struggling with today. Those of us who were products of accelerated academic programs, who fell under the auspicious acronmym AP (for Advanced Placement) often felt removed from our peers and masked our underlying feelings of inferiority as erudite superiority. It is a defence mechanism many of us used when young,and sometimes continue to use as a means we tell ourselves of making us feel better about who we are. The students in TSH, even the sympathetic narrator Richard Papen, exemplify these ideas and the impulses these feelings cause them to act out are shown as having the direst of moral consequences to which they as a group and individually must answer for. The pleasures of intellectual stimulation coupled with the psychological underpinings of the deed done and how it is played out give TSH its literary resonance. In addition the book provides a builti in mystery of its own--namely the literary future, or if there is to be one, of its author, Donna Tartt. Upon a first reading nearly ten years ago, I embraced TSH and Donna Tartt as a voice I wanted to hear more of--a voice which has been noticeably and mysteriously silent, which has only served to build up the legend, and rumors of an impending second novel sometime next year. This remains to be seen but TSH continues to remain a book I turn to time and again for its exploration of moral arrogance and the destruction such attitudes can incur.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

What a disappointment

This book had such buzz, frankly I thought it was just awful.
Not one character did I like, the story was dull, the writing was stifling.

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Very well written. Wortth reading.

This is one of the best books I have read in quite some time. The characters were interesting and complex. The book starts out slow then unfolds into an interesting page turner.

An enigmatic, entrancing read

The Secret History is an enigmatic blend of psychological thrills, an astoundingly complex, but realistic plot, and a rich vocabulary not often found in this day and age, wrapped in the wonder of Greek poetry and language. Upon my arrival of Julian's study room, I was instantly transported into a world shrouded in mystery. One characterized by dimly-lit lamps and persian rugs. By whispered betrayals behind callous-free hands and the eloquent discussions of one well-versed in the philosophies of the ancient world. Reading Tartt's work of literature was a quite enjoyable experience as she merged a world long gone with the one presently existing. She showed us beauty by kissing death. Showed us horror through fascination. She took all the elements of loathing, passion, revenge, morality, enlightenment, and unthinkable acts and mixed them around and around until you can no longer discern one from the other. Until you see that beauty and terror are one and the same. Not only does Tartt expertley portray this, but she does so with her uncanny ability to bring her characters to life, so that they might walk off the page at any given moment. If I was to summarize the plot right at this very moment, you would wonder at the sanity of the characters. However, should you read this literature in its entirety, you should find yourself just as confused and scared as the murderers themselves. I should like to reiterate one last time the beauty of the language used. I feel that much of our language today has been greatly reduced and watered down from, say, Shakespeare's age. A time when the crafting of words was regarded as an art form. With this novel, I believe Tartt was able to recapture some of that beauty that so many of our more recent novels have been missing. I truly loved this novel and find it completley worthy of the accolades it has recieved. This is not a light read, but if you're willing to endure a few late nights and a few hours lost sleep, I promise this is a book you won't want to put down.

One of the best novels that I have ever shared!

When in college my dear friend, Amy, moved home to California. We all know that long-distance never works. So, we came up with the plan of a "book club"... granted it was only the two of us, but we beat Oprah to the idea Anyhow, Ms. Tartt's novels cast a bewitching spell upon the reader... I swear, I did not think that my hand could turn so many pages in an evening. Looking forward to your next book; please keep them coming! BTW I have read the latest and greatest I was able to find. You have a true passion for the written word and your words create vivid images in my mind. Thank you, Joel W Carson

For those who want to root for the heroine but hope they get hit in the end!

Sex, Murder, and Mystery, rich spoiled college kids take life for granted and ends up screwing it all up. Everyone has had that loathing at some point when you just wish that reality will slap someone in the face that really deserved it. Well here's your chance! Donna Tartt shows us the lives of Henry, Francis, Richard, Charles, Camilla, and Bunny and with such finesse describes the life in a Vermont college for these spoiled snobs. But wait...the characters tend to come to life thanks to Tartt's writing and we really hope that things work out for them in the end, but part of us just wants to drop an anvil on their heads! The descriptions that Tartt provides are incredible to say the least and the period of winter helplessness that Richard experiences chills you to the bone. "This was, I should say, about the third week in January. The thermometer was droping; my life, which before had been only solitary and miserable, became unbearable. Every day, in a daze, I walked to and from work, sometimes during weather that was ten or twenty below, sometimes during storms so heavy that all I could see was white, and the only way I made it home at all was by keeping close to the guard rail on the side if the road. Once home, I wrapped myself in my dirty blankets and fell on the floor like a dead man. All my moments were not consumed with efforts to escape the cold were absorbed with morbid Poe-like fancies. One night, in a dream, I saw my own corpse, hair stiff with ice and eyes wide open." I actually had to dress warmer while reading his experience in a cold dark apartment. Throughout the book you know Richard will witness some shocking discovery of what is really happening, and thanks to Tartt again this isn't just dropped on us suddenly. She rather slowly reveals each secret such subtleness that it builds to the climax in a way that you feel for these characters even though they are such selfish snobs. This is one of my favorite reads this year and will reside on my shelf for years to come.

Quite literally one of my favorite novels ever

I read it 3 years ago and im back looking it up hoping to find some clues to another, similar book. I have found some people seem to not like it and that baffles me. Great mystery, suspense. I was genuinely sad it was finished when it was over.

Mediocre---don't recommend

I really wanted to like this book. It started off with good potential but about a quarter of the way through, I wanted to stop reading. The plot was so static and only made me feel frustrated.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

An Homage To The Tension Between Beauty and Reality

If I were ever to write a novel, I would want it to make the impact on the reader that 'The Secret History' did on me. From the first sentence, the book captured me and would not let go. On the surface it is the unconventional story of a murder, starting first with the murder, then unravelling more about why the murder was committed and what happens to the killers rather than who or how. It is psychological drama at its best. But that's just the surface. 'The Secret History' is actually about the tension between the beauty of the literary ideal and the reality it is trying to convey. There are numerous descriptions rain, snow, darkness, light all providing context to the motives of the six students who populate the story. I took more notes from this book than I have on any since I read 'Bleak House'. One particularly compelling passage was on when the narrator, Richard, lies on his bed ruminating as if he had committed suicide, the description of which included both bleary sunshine and wet pavement covered in night crawlers. (p489) Even the central event of the story, the murder of Bunny, which takes place on page 1, rivets the reader to the contrast between the horrible act and the beauty used to describe it. As one character in the novel says, "it is an aching for the picturesque". "The Secret History" is a picture no one will soon forget. It is a book I will read again. (As a side note. the story takes place in a small college in Vermont (clearly Bennington College), and the narrator comes from a middle class family in California, in the 80's. The contrasts described by Richard closely paralleled by personal experience of leaving San Diego in 1986 to go to college in Middlebury VT. For that reason alone, the book was worth reading.)

Less profound than I had hoped.

Just finished this book, one of several that I found based on a search for philosophical or intellectual thrillers. Given the book's title, its setting of classics students at a rural liberal arts college and the plot of the students' involvement and reaction to their serious crimes, I was hoping for a weighty story to enlighten morally, academically, or psychologically. Well, I was very disappointed. Although the book is original and interesting from beginning to end, it lacked any significant development of the characters or moral insight. Promising tidbits of greek philosophy early in the story, while necessary for the subsequent events, were not supplemented throughout the book as I had hoped. The students have an honestly profound mystical/philosophical experience early in the book, but all it portends is a descent into mundane immorality. With the learned professor Julian relegated to a minor role in the story, I feel as though a great opportunity for an enlightenment tale was lost. I love crime stories, psychological thrillers, and novels about the development of young adults. This novel fills those categories just OK, and it could have been so much more!

Read It As If Puzo Had Written It...

The preponderance of the negative criticism of Donna's _The Secret History_ has been based on the argument that the novel's scholarly tone is not sustained by the level of actual scholarship it contains. But if we allow ourselves a bit of creative postmodernism in our reading of the story, and pretend that _The Secret History_ was not hailed as an instant literary classic when it came out, but rather disregarded as a paperback crime thriller, the experience is different. The perception that since Donna herself attended an elite liberal arts college on which the novel's Hampden is based should not enforce any necessity that the author have equaled her creations in study habits or achievement. What Donna has done, as no one ever has before, is point out the real recapitulation of pagan sacrificial beliefs in the social lives of American young people, those beliefs with which the characters in the book should be well acquainted and for which in the end the Hampden classicists open the creaking gate of return.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Lengthy yet worth it

This book was interesting to me. It was kind of long, (even though my hardcover was only 524 pages compared to the 576 page one), but it read pretty quickly. The events piled up and I felt like I was living life along with narrator, Richard Papen. The writing style makes you feel as if you are one of the characters, along with Richard and his fellow Greek-class peers, experiencing daily life and going through all of the twists and turns that the plot takes. Although lengthy, the plot never really runs into a lull, and you are for the most part kept interested in what the odd characters will do next. The fictional individuals are almost lifelike, and represent a sort of disturbed youth that one can become captivated in, seeing how seemingly normal lives can abruptly change with one simple accident. The novel is filled with drama, and continual suspense. I recommend this book for book clubs, boring days where you have nothing to do, or even for summer reading (which was my assignment).

Boring

I found this book to be very boring. I did read it all only because I always finish books knowing that if I don't I will wonder what happened.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The secret of The Secret History?--It's a really good read!

This book is an original blend of the themes of mystery, suspense, mythology, and coming of age. I purchased The Secret History from a Barnes and Noble bookstore several years ago. I remember reading through it rather quickly and enjoying it. Recently, this book popped up as a requirement in a course I'm taking for a Master's degree in English. Not only was I excited because I already had the text, but I was also excited to re-read this book because I remembered that it was good. The plot is original and keeps the reader interested. I also love the New England College setting. The characters are believable and complex.Tartt does a good job of making the reader wonder what will happen next--just when you think you've got it all figured out, she throws another plot related curveball into the mix.This would be an excellent text for a book club. I teach and threrefore enjoy books centered around academia, thus this book is a good fit. I highly recommend this book.

Sophisticated, smart, and suspenseful

This complex novel is slow-moving at times, but it is very rewarding. If you like this book, check out Carol Goodman's Lake of Dead Languages. Follow me on twitter!

great read. I was drawn in right from the beginning even though you kind of know what is going to happen, you want to know all the details.

I loved the book! I was drawn to all the characters and felt like I knew them or that I wanted to spend time getting to know them better. I was definately a little chilled by the story, but in a good way. Not usually the type of book I read but so glad I did! A hard book to put down!