Simon's Soul

by Stanley Shapiro

READING CREASES ON SPINE. BOOKSTORE STAMP ON FIRST PAGE .NO OTHER MARKS OR WRITING ON PAGES.

219 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Stanley Shapiro was an American screenwriter and producer.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a curious and somewhat obscure old novel of scientific research resulting in supernatural horror. Whenever the mad scientists get together and try to figure out the life-after-death thing, Satan's always there to raise a rumpus, isn't he? The novel was published in Bantam's mainstream line rather than as a horror-genre title and I thought it was somewhat overwritten in a faux-literary manner. There are a few grisly scenes (animal-abuse trigger warning is in order), but it's a fairly representative title of its type and time. I remember enjoying the read well enough, but it wasn't especially memorable, and I never felt the urge to revisit it. The most surprising thing is that the author is best-remembered for romantic-comedy screenplays like Pillow Talk, That Touch of Mink, and other such, quite different from this one.

[Darrell Tessman · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is something to be said about the first horror book one reads,"Simon's Soul" was my first. Ahh the good ole days.

[Carol Waters · Rating 2 out of 5]

This painful little tale is the story of four doctors who decided to kill one of their group so they can finally learn whether there is a god. Never mind the bad science, that they are giving blood and oxygen to a rotting body that is decaying while they work..... or the repeated use of .... the ellipsis... or that a doctor in good health would offer to have this done to him....

But then we immediately go into classic Christian mythology. Isn't there a CHANCE that maybe we're not right-on with the heaven and hell mythos? The only slight nod to comparative religion is a character named Isis.

This book was so vastly over-written that I can just imagine the author wandering around for days searching for the right phrase-one I recall is about his teenaged leviathan son is "it doesn't matter if he adds like a horse if he is hung like a horse." The kid has a vanity license plate on his Thunderbird, "BIGGIE"

Characters are all profoundly stereotyped. The worried Jewish doc (Um, was he expecting his version of after-life opportunities because, well, um, oh never mind.)

I knew this was going to be bad when the cover blurb described the writer as a prolific screenwriter but didn't list anything he had screenwritten. I did feel this was written to be made visual. The maggots were a nice touch.

[Aaron Arkie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Usually I can read horror without keeping the light on at night but this book... wow. It not only scared the hell out of me but also made me question some things about life and death. Haha

[Esteban Sapaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I could find this book with a read aloud ... and hear somebody else telling it I can't f ind it

[James Keshenke · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's fascinating

[Travis Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the most interesting and one of my favorite books that i have read. Throughout the story there are many different scenes that make you think of what god really is, if he exists, how he came into existance, etc. In the beginning there is a team of scientists that to an experiment to see if there is really life after death and to do this one of them must be hooked to a machine and killed but by keeping their minds hooked to this machine it makes it impossible for one's soul to go to heaven or hell so it comes to them.

[Gypsykat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A picture. Because it wouldn't let me add it to the listing itself...