Title: Psycho

Written By: Robert Bloch

Released: 1959, Re-released: 1998

A young woman who has just stolen $40,000. An old motel on the side of a lost highway. A lonely and psychologically damaged middle-aged man. An overprotective mother. Something has to give.

The novel Psycho, written in 1959 by Robert Bloch, was the story of a psychotic man whose name would one day be known world wide. Norman Bates seems quite normal and harmless. The reader quickly becomes sympathetic to his wants and needs and feelings. We even become angry towards his overprotective and controlling mother, who will not allow Norman the little pleasures, and larger pleasures, that life has to offer. And when those pleasures tempt Norman, Mother would always take care of the problem and rid her son of temptation.

Marion Crane knew none of this when she pulled into the old motel on a stormy night looking for a warm shower and some rest before the final leg of her trip. But the young Miss Crane was no saint herself, having stolen $40,000 from her boss, who had entrusted her to deposit the money in the bank earlier that day. All she wanted was a warm shower.

Written in such a masterful way, Psycho is a must read for any horror fan. Even if you know the story from having seen either of the film adaptations as I had, you will still enjoy the book a great deal and will understand subtle nuances that could not be fully developed within the motion picture medium.

A classic novel, Psycho belongs in every collection.

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