Rating: 
Summary: three stars would give it too much credit
Review: Somebody I chatted with in a chat room recommended that I read this book, saying that the authors I normally read (Anne Rice, Dean koontz, V. C. Andrews) are all trash, and that I should read a good book like this one. From my prospective, this book wasn't complete garbage, I did read it in three days, but it didn't give me the satisfaction of know a good story that other authors that I read do. Heim just discusses the gay life style of Neil, and the weirdness of Brian, who thinks aliens abducted him. Also, this book depressed me, because it was so sad, the pathetic way these characters were wasting their lives away, Brian chasing after something not real, and Neil, hunting for and STD or something, I just hope there aren't too many real people like Neil and Brian in the world, all in all, I think Scott Heim has some real potential, but he should stop writing about gay people so much, maybe instead of having something that's twisted in a unnaturally weird way, to something that's just interesting and gives you that feeling of a satisfactory read and that you didn't waste all your time with a book. Don't get me wrong, I don't think I wasted my time with this book, I just thought three stars was too much for this book, I'm glad that I read it and broadened my view on literature, but I don't intend to read any of his other books. ~Tom Nordlum
Rating: 
Summary: I LOVE THIS BOOK
Review: Terrific! Why isn't this book a movie? I loved the ending and it was sad and important and I wished it could have gone on a little longer. But it's still a 5-star book. Great cover too!
Rating:
Summary: deserves 5,000 stars
Review: The film based on this book is great.
The book is even better.
Words don't do it justice.
Rating: 
Summary: You will cry.
Review: The honesty of this novel through its fierce imagery and changing narrative left me with a lump in the back of my throat. It has the effect of passing through a car accident: you are captivated and horrified at the same time as events unfold themselves to you. His juxtaposition of the disturbingly dangerous erotic encounters of one main character and the almost sterile sexlessness of the other provides a wonderful balance and an insight as to how two human minds are affected forever by a common childhood molestation. The almost polar obsessions that form as these two boys grow up don't pit one character as the moral superior of the other, but creates an empathy from the reader for these two souls as they drift through events from which they consciously or subconciously are looking for answers. The climax of the novel is almost anticlimactic in that their meeting again is inevitable but Heim's magic of language, metaphor, and imagery creates a powerful scene as these characters finally look to each other for the truth. For the author to weave a story around such daring subject matter was bold enough, but to create such dualing forces throughout the novel (desire vs. love; reality vs. fiction; Kansas vs. New York) without going to extremes or stereotypes drew me in.
Rating:
Summary: Patience Pays Off
Review: There were a number of times while reading this book that I set it down, thinking that it wasn't something that I wanted to finish. Some of the situations are fairly disturbing, and the two main characters are so anguished in their own way that I found it a complete downer. But the writing is so skilled and beautiful that I pressed on, and it paid off big time. The story has haunted me, something that only the best of books can do. I now recommend this book among my favorites.
Rating:
Summary: gude
Review: This a gude bok, recomemend to anuyone..the ended is sad..Neil getz aids..i likke litle boys wit them tight shorts
Rating:
Summary: heartbreaking, thought provoking, timely.
Review: This book is a painfully honest examination of the human condition -- Heim doesn't shy away from important questions. I normally have a very low tolerance for violence. This book disturbed me (there are several violent scenes), but I nonetheless read every word. I picked up Mysterious Skin on a friend's offhand recommendation and found it very timely. It caused me to think seriously about what has been going on lately in the American Catholic Church. These are important topics: how adults use power to get sex with kids - how those adults might rationalize their own actions - how their behavior is often tolerated in closed communities -- and most of all, how these events can affect the victims. Even though this book was in some spots quite difficult to read, I am very glad I did. As long as our society deems these topics remain "too taboo to discuss," we will never address them properly. This is exactly the kind of book that can introduce us to the dark and unthinkable while allowing us the freedom to examine it in the bright light of day. Heim does not judge his characters, but allows the reader to decide. All of this, and in a good literary package. It is a well crafted story. The journey may be fantastic, but the characters are amazingly real. My heart went out to every character in the book -- even the ones I hated. This is the mark of an excellent writer... If you are a broad-minded person who can handle having your assumptions challenged, READ IT!
Rating:
Summary: to fall in love with the beauty of prose
Review: This book is probably one of my favorite books of fiction in a long time. I find myself falling in love with it over again even on successive rereadings. Without referring to the plot, (read the other reviewers' reviews), Scott Heim is able to create an interesting narrative complemented by imagery of the highest storytelling rank. (The narrative position changes every chapter, keeping the reader on their toes). His descriptions simply make this reader fall in love with the beauty of words: how he describes an apple, or a sunset. My 'reduction' of it does not do his style justice. Hailed in the New York Times years ago as one of "30 under 30 to watch," it is easy to see his talent emerge across the pages, rightfully justifying his placement in that group and I eagerly anticipate each new leaf of writing.
Rating:
Summary: unlike anything I have ever read
Review: This book is so perfect, it is almost impossible to describe. The stroy of how two men deal with the sexual abuse they endured when they were children and how if affects them later in life is one of the best I have ever read. I recommend this book to anyone, and everyone
Rating:
Summary: A classic in my heart
Review: This is the only book I can read again and again. Sometimes, I even simply open the book wherever and read a page or two, just for the beauty of the words, the contrasts of the voices that comes from the novel, or the very strong and different atmospheres of it. You should buy it online since it's really hard to find it. Once, I found three books in a bookstore, bought all three to give it to friends. One of them told me that I shouldn't bought him "Mysterious Skin", because now all the books he read seems lacklustre and flat. If you were intelligent and open-minded, this book would probably suit you.
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