Strangers on a Train: Amazon.ca: Books

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First Sentence
The train tore along with an angry, irregular rhythm. Read the first page

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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars These people truly were strangers to me., Jul 10 2004

By	I. Sondel "I. Sondel - lover of the arts" (Tallahassee, FL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Strangers On A Train (Paperback)

I don't know why it surprises me to discover that Hollywood has tampered with a novel. Having only seen the Hitchcock film scripted by Raymond Chandler, I was blown away by this early classic from Highsmith. Pretty much the first third of the novel has ended up on screen, but it would seem that Hitch and his associates simply didn't read the rest. Almost everything about this story has been changed. I like the story as Highsmith wrote it. She is a master of suspence. The characters are well drawn and full of ambiguity. Like most everything else I've read by Highsmith, this is both gripping and unnerving. I loved it.

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4.0 out of 5 stars good read, Jun 22 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Strangers On A Train (Paperback)

"Stranger on a Train" is a really interesting book. It has a lot of crazy things in it and the main person is a real psychopath but I guess that's what makes the book so special. I like the idea that someone has an obsession and all he wants is to realize it. On the other hand I don't like the end of the novel too much since we don't know at all what will happen to Anne. But all in all it is a good novel and gives you some stuff to think about!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Very Thrilling!, Jun 15 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Strangers On A Train (Paperback)

The story begins very simple. Two people meet each other in a train and talk. But the end is not as simple as the beginning at all. Charles Bruno has killed Guy Haines' wife and Guy has killed Bruno's father. The basis for these two murders is established still on the train, but at that time no one imagines that it would go so far. Both have killed somebody at the end, but there is a difference between them: Bruno is an insane, and Guy is a victim.
Through the whole story a very complex relationship between these two men evolves just because of this accidental meeting on the train. Patricia Highsmith shows her ability to describe such relationships in a wonderful way. She tells a whole story with a relationship and has no need of any kind of big surprise effects to turn around the whole story. The reader is always up-to-date concerning the main action. Although it's not boring at all, because the real tension of the story is not created by the progression of the actions but by the progression of the relationship.
"Straingers on a Train" is not a typical detective story. Highsmith's protagonist is not a private detective who solves the case gloriously. The two murderers are protagonists, the reader even shares the suffering of the two men running away from the "bad" police. This complete role reversal - together with many other unusual initial positions - makes the book to a unique reading enjoyment. Absolutely recommendable!

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Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Deja Vu all over again
This is one of those rare cases when the movie is actually better than the book. If you want the definitive version of this story, then watch the movie. Read more

Published 17 months ago by Joel Cormier

5.0 out of 5 stars An American Dostoyevsky
Patricia Highsmith's "Strangers on a Train" came out in 1950, attaining prompt bestseller status and intriguing filmdom's master of intrigue, Alfred Hitchcock, enough to... Read more

Published on Dec 27 2003 by William Hare

4.0 out of 5 stars Gripping Psychological Study!
Highly entertaining and original, even though so many rip-offs have been produced since its debut. Highsmith does a titanic job of studying the cat-and-mouse psychology of Guy... Read more

Published on Dec 12 2003 by Nelson Aspen

5.0 out of 5 stars Far more disturbing...
...than the movie! As I recall it, the character of Bruno never develops in the movie beyond that of a randomly-met psychopath; the portrayal of Guy, for that matter, is rather... Read more

Published on Oct 31 2003 by P. Micocci