“They’re just kids … It’s only a game.” That’s what Barbara, a lovely twenty-year-old babysitter told herself when she awoke bound and gagged. But the knots were tight and painful and the children would not let her go.“They’re just kids … It’s only a game,” she told herself again. But the terror was real … and deadly!In the decades since its original publication, Mendal W. Johnson’s … W. Johnson’s bestseller Let’s Go Play at the Adams’ (1974) has gained a reputation as one of the most harrowing horror novels ever written, and copies have long been unobtainable except at exorbitant prices. This edition reproduces the original paperback cover art and features a new introduction by Grady Hendrix (Paperbacks from Hell), in which details about this cult masterpiece’s enigmatic author are revealed for the first time.
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Hailed as I was eager to pick up a copy when Paperbacks from Hell re-released it. Knowing the controversy that surrounded this novel, I thought to myself that it would be the perfect read for the month of October and I still stand with those thoughts. While there were certainly slow points to the book, I enjoyed it for what it was- , . There were moments when I flinched and felt horribly for the characters, moments where I just wanted them to “get on with it” because the slow burn was unrelenting, and moments where I prayed Barbara would finally be free. However, I found my heart hurting as things kept going despite the cries and pleas. Man, these kids are HORRIBLE little creatures. They do unspeakable things just “because they can” (exactly their words). There’s really no rhyme or reason to it other than seeing how far they could go. It was completely shocking to put it mildly!
While the book is a good one (and I understand exactly why people HATED this book in the 70’s) I wish the author gave some insight into what happened to these children in the aftermath. He sort of sums things up but it’s so vague that he could have left the epilogue out. I was really disappointed there.
If you liked this book, I would recommend reading and vice-versa. While this one isn’t as detailed as Jack Ketchum’s novel, it does have the same premise.
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I rarely review books. However, every now and again something truly unique comes along. Mendal Johnson’s Let’s Go Play at the Adams’ is one of those books.
It’s difficult to attract attention to a novel without ruining its mystique but that’s my aim with this post. This is an unmissable read.
1974 was a good year for horror. Carrie was published and so was this little frightener. One of the authors went on to greater works, greater wealth and greater fame. The other was dead within two years. Interestingly, both men had trouble with alcohol. In Johnson’s case it was the death of him; he succumbed to cirrhosis of the liver. And, whereas King is wonderfully prolific, Johnson died leaving only three unfinished manuscripts. He was 48.
The plot: Bobby and Cindy’s parents go on holiday for a week, leaving a pretty babysitter named Barbara in charge. Along with their friends John, Dianne and Paul, the kids call themselves Freedom Five. They’ve been playing games together for years. The day after the parents leave, Freedom Five ‘capture’ Barbara and a new game begins.
I don’t want to say too much about the story. If you have a genuine interest in dark fiction, you should read the book. Here, in glorious black on white, is torture porn from 46 years ago. I expected it to be badly handled and poorly written. Neither was the case. Mendal Johnson wrote in tight, measured prose which is, on occasion, beautiful to read. This wasn’t just a book of vicarious thrills either – though, believe me, they are there if you want them – it was an examination of the psychology of children, and therefore, of our own. Each character is fully and tragically realised; their logic and the logic of the novel itself, though twisted, is always rightly fulfilled. The pace and plotting is near to flawless, tension rising all the time. The moment you put the book down, you want to pick it up again and, if you have the time, it’s one of those you could read in a sitting – if you can handle it.
I’m not saying LGPATA is an accurate appraisal of your average child’s mind. Freedom Five are a little isolated. They are a little odd. A situation arises in which their earlier games together can be explored further. One thing leads to another and group ‘morality’ overcomes the morality of the individual. But what I’m also not saying is that these things never happen. They do and it’s well documented. Cases occurred before the book was written and many more have occurred since. And that, perhaps, is what makes the book so utterly chilling. Whether victim or perpetrator, it could be your child. It could have been you. Maybe it was. Who is really prepared to speak of the questionable things we did in our ‘innocent’ youth?
Mendal Johnson, for one, is.