I heard this on Love + Radio and I had to find out more about this guy. He tells the story in such a way that it is believable, up to almost the very end. He feeds you small amounts of information to make it particularly scary. Good stuff!
Great story, we hear the evolution of the narrator, leaving us with just enough ambiguity, just enough "OMG!" and just enough understanding to really get the creeps!
This piece appears in an episode #3, Ghost Stories, of the show "Love and Radio". It is by far the best thing about that episode. I listen to radio shows at work all day, and this is the first thing in a few days that has caused me to stop working and just listen.
More specifically, "The Book" is a little like a House of Leaves acid flashback: vastly shorter, and only tangentially related, it has a lot of the same tension, and a similar structure.
What an amazing and mesmerizing story. I couldn't stop listening. It started innocuously but with every sentence became more and more suspenseful. Great ending where not much is revealed, and there are no drastic gruesome details but still one’s hair stands up.
Sometimes a single voice is enough to create a rich soundscape. A good writer knows how to use certain words over others in telling us a story. Notice how Hans creates tension in the piece as the story builds to a crescendo. The piece does not have a single SFX, but I bet you'll recall that you've heard all the creaks, squeaks, footsteps, echoes and telehone rings. My favorite line in the story "'Help Me' was back by supper". If building tension wasn't enough, Hans ends the story with a bang... or so I thought I heard.
The Book maintains a good, weird tone throughout, building off of the curious, genial foibles that all homeowners discover in their homes, then progressing toward a solid ending in the method of Poe or Lovecraft. This story fits well in the Urban Legend category!
Imagination is played to strongly in the piece. Mystery is maintained, and the descriptions are suitable. The end of The Book is refreshingly uncluttered -- the darkness of the peice is not handed over on a silver platter, which allowed my own shadowy side to fill in the blanks in a satisfying way.
The reader's quick, narrative-style pace of reading sabotages the work, but if the alternative is overcooked melodrama, then I prefer this. This was a very good story, and with a little touch-up in the read I would be happy to hear it broadcast.
I love this ! I like the way it creeps into what you know is WILDLY fictitious when what you began with seemed another innocuous meaningful first person story.
Hans I WILL AIR THIS. I think surprises on the radio are what keep radio breathing (that and prhases like: words beautifully spelled). This sort of piece should inspire programmers to garnish the day (although perhaps in this case, the night) with bits of gleaming stone like this.
My first thought of this is a kind of shaggy-dog story, but this is straight from Mr. Poe. Well-written and compelling. Anderson has a good crisp voice for this kind of thing. And for 11:38, there is nothing but that voice: no efx, no music.
The issue in our timeblock world is the length. Anderson, in some dark-humor corner of his mind, suggests this as a possible fundraiser. He might be right. Knowing the waywardness of the pledge clock, the piece could, without too much damage, be broken into three or four segments.
But do pledge arteests have the courage to say "help me" in a hingey sort of way? It would be great if they tried.
Comments for The Book
Produced by Hans Anderson
Other pieces by Hans Anderson
Rating Summary
11 comments
Jane Smith
Posted on April 23, 2013 at 04:00 PM | Permalink
!!
I heard this on Love + Radio and I had to find out more about this guy. He tells the story in such a way that it is believable, up to almost the very end. He feeds you small amounts of information to make it particularly scary. Good stuff!
Gary S
Posted on May 25, 2012 at 09:20 PM | Permalink
Excellent!
Great story, we hear the evolution of the narrator, leaving us with just enough ambiguity, just enough "OMG!" and just enough understanding to really get the creeps!
Todd Kime
Posted on May 25, 2012 at 02:24 PM | Permalink
Wicked cool; compelling!
loved it! simple, direct with enough ambiguity and thoughtful details left to ones own mind and ones vivid imagination to make it; well... creepy!
C T L
Posted on May 19, 2012 at 03:02 PM | Permalink
Review of The Book
I don't listen to scary things. This story hit the right tone, got me interested, got me hooked, then gave me goosebumps.
Perfect! If it'd started like it ended, I would've missed out on a terrific tale. Logged in to find more of his work...
Todd Johnson
Posted on December 07, 2005 at 09:56 AM | Permalink
Review of The Book
This piece appears in an episode #3, Ghost Stories, of the show "Love and Radio". It is by far the best thing about that episode. I listen to radio shows at work all day, and this is the first thing in a few days that has caused me to stop working and just listen.
More specifically, "The Book" is a little like a House of Leaves acid flashback: vastly shorter, and only tangentially related, it has a lot of the same tension, and a similar structure.
lola potapowicz
Posted on June 09, 2005 at 12:44 PM | Permalink
Review of The Book
What an amazing and mesmerizing story. I couldn't stop listening. It started innocuously but with every sentence became more and more suspenseful. Great ending where not much is revealed, and there are no drastic gruesome details but still one’s hair stands up.
Emon Hassan
Posted on May 02, 2005 at 01:01 PM | Permalink
Review of The Book
Sometimes a single voice is enough to create a rich soundscape. A good writer knows how to use certain words over others in telling us a story. Notice how Hans creates tension in the piece as the story builds to a crescendo. The piece does not have a single SFX, but I bet you'll recall that you've heard all the creaks, squeaks, footsteps, echoes and telehone rings. My favorite line in the story "'Help Me' was back by supper". If building tension wasn't enough, Hans ends the story with a bang... or so I thought I heard.
Cameron Goble
Posted on June 14, 2004 at 01:08 PM | Permalink
Review of The Book
The Book maintains a good, weird tone throughout, building off of the curious, genial foibles that all homeowners discover in their homes, then progressing toward a solid ending in the method of Poe or Lovecraft. This story fits well in the Urban Legend category!
Imagination is played to strongly in the piece. Mystery is maintained, and the descriptions are suitable. The end of The Book is refreshingly uncluttered -- the darkness of the peice is not handed over on a silver platter, which allowed my own shadowy side to fill in the blanks in a satisfying way.
The reader's quick, narrative-style pace of reading sabotages the work, but if the alternative is overcooked melodrama, then I prefer this. This was a very good story, and with a little touch-up in the read I would be happy to hear it broadcast.
Mark Reisz-Hanson
Posted on June 14, 2004 at 11:42 AM | Permalink
Review of The Book
The story itself was good. I liked the voice of the person also. It made me want to listen to more by Hans.
[redacted]
Posted on June 08, 2004 at 06:32 AM | Permalink
Review of The Book
Hans I WILL AIR THIS. I think surprises on the radio are what keep radio breathing (that and prhases like: words beautifully spelled). This sort of piece should inspire programmers to garnish the day (although perhaps in this case, the night) with bits of gleaming stone like this.
Jackson Braider
Posted on June 08, 2004 at 05:58 AM | Permalink
Review of The Book
The issue in our timeblock world is the length. Anderson, in some dark-humor corner of his mind, suggests this as a possible fundraiser. He might be right. Knowing the waywardness of the pledge clock, the piece could, without too much damage, be broken into three or four segments.
But do pledge arteests have the courage to say "help me" in a hingey sort of way? It would be great if they tried.