Synopsis:
The lives of the Barretts, a suburban New England family, are torn apart when fourteen-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia. To her parents’ despair, the doctors are unable to halt Marjorie’s descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of The Possession, a hit reality television show.
Review:
“A Head Full of Ghosts,” is a novel that I have owned for three years. Despite having allowed it to gather dust all this time, from the moment I picked it up, it could only be pried from my hands using a crowbar. Alas, this masterclass in ambiguity is the latest addition to my “WHY DIDN’T I READ THIS SOONER?” shelf. A terrifying possession story, or at least a psychological thriller masquerading as one, Tremblay expertly examines themes of mental illness, religion, media and memory- leaving you questioning everything you know about… everything. When a novel garners as much “hype,” as this one, there’s always the fear that it will fail to live up to inflated expectations, but I am pleased to report that everything the internet claims about this cerebral cocktail of possession, psychology and paranoia is true- to put it plainly dear reader, it’s as fucking terrifying as it is terrific.
We follow Meredith (Merry) Barrett, who, at the age of 8 had her childhood irreparably derailed by her older sister. Siblings, can’t live with ‘em. Marjorie Barrett, in simple terms, is acting weird. Slightly more serious than taking too long in the bathroom or stealing from her mum’s purse, her strange actions go far beyond teenagerisms. The innocent stories the sisters exchange suddenly take a sinister turn, Marjorie’s vocabulary has expanded to include some choice profanity, and there’s of course the trademark pea-green vomit as well. Marjorie seems to have all of the symptoms of a girl gone rogue… or possessed. In a move that could only be made more absurd by say, a reality TV show, Mr Barrett stops his daughter from seeing psychologist Dr Hamilton, instead turning to Father Wanderley, an elderly priest who concurs that Marjorie Barrett is more than simply troubled. Enter the film crew. In what will go down in history as one of the most fiercely debated “documentaries,” ever “Possession,” is the paranormal TV show that will leave armchair skeptics and exorcists talking for years to come. 15 to be precise. Now 23, Merry is older, wiser, more haunted than ever, and ready to pull back the curtain.
Made up of Merry’s first person account of her childhood, her present-day interview, conducted by author Rachel Neville, and some initially jarring blog posts, so philosophical they border on meta, “A Head Full of Ghosts,” is one of the most notorious examples of ambiguity in horror. What we think we know seems to change with each additional blog post, each skeleton Merry brings out of the closet- the truth is a carrot on a stick, and we’re desperately searching for it, even beyond the acknowledgments. Trust no-one. Merry’s account is told through the fragmented lens of an 8 year old, she is an openly unreliable narrator. She could of course have her own dark secrets. And what she is told by her quite possibly possessed sister? Also doesn’t strike me as the most reliable source. We simply don’t know. Do not expect answers, expect to be obsessively considering and reconsidering- and perhaps invest in a corkboard and some red string.
As a result of this utter confusion, we can’t help but consider the possibility that our role as a reader of “A Head Full of Ghosts,” is a voyeuristic one. Just like the media, we have barged our way into the home of a slowly crumbling family, we watch heated arguments, tough conversations and incredible stress, all over what realistically, could simply be a very ill 14 year old.These aren’t moments crafted for spectacle, but rather raw glimpses of a family at its breaking point, moments we’re not sure we should be witnessing. And yet, here we are (you’re reading about me reading it… you’re even worse!) unable to look away, complicit in the same exploitation we’d condemn if “Possession,” was actually broadcast. The first of many horrors, beyond the actual demonic possession, is the confrontation of our own morbid fascination and the perverse comfort we often take in the suffering of others… It’s heavy stuff.
Assuming that Merry’s account is genuine, Tremblay examines memory, its fragile and malleable nature, and how it is impacted by trauma. It is our task, an impossible one admittedly, to, from the perspective of Merry, see beyond the fear, stress and time, and piece together the truth. Whilst we’re donning our deerstalkers and trying to get to the bottom of what actually happened, it seems Tremblay is less concerned by the events at the Barrett house, and more focused on how those events have evolved- examining how the mind plugs gaps, alters narratives and is generally slippery and unreliable under the strain of trauma.
The unsettling possibility that Marjorie may not be possessed, but rather suffering from a severe mental illness, is unpleasant, but worth due consideration. The theme of mental health, but most prevalently the fact that it’s not really considered, is underscored by the family’s shift from modern medicine, to the dubious guidance of a crusty priest. This transition highlights the age-old tension between science and religion, dissected in many a gothic classic- this time raising a question about how society responds to mental illness in young women. Tremblay draws direct parallels to Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” explicitly referencing the story as a reminder of the ways in which women’s mental health has historically been misunderstood, misdiagnosed, and dismissed. Marjorie’s erratic behavior is pretty quickly funneled through the lens of possession, the more sensical explanation, that this is a manifestation of psychological distress, quickly being put on the backburner by her father… is Marjorie Barrett simply another Anneliese Michel? In exploring these themes, Tremblay explores the cultural impulse to demonise what we don’t understand, something that becomes particularly dangerous in relation to mental health.
I am not a redditor… just for the record, but have found myself desperately trawling the darker recesses of the internet for answers on a few occasions- Cat Ward’s “Looking Glass Sound,” John Darnielle’s “Universal Harvester,” and indeed “A Head Full of Ghosts,” by Paul Tremblay. In my last-ditch quest for answers, I found an admittedly rather baseless, but very fun theory to share with you. Consider this your spoiler warning: if you haven’t yet traversed the eerie corridors of “A Head Full of Ghosts,” turn back now. Seriously. You’re not ready. Get gone. Goodbye. Okay, so here we go. Father Wanderly, in his infinite, cryptic, priestly wisdom, tells us that demons like to hide behind a false name. A false name like, I don’t know, pseudonym: Karen Brissette? Stay with me here, in the final scene, in which Merry meets Rachel at a coffee shop, there’s an odd emphasis on it being absolutely freezing. “It’s cold enough that my breath is a visible mist,” is imagery that one may remember from the attempted exorcism in Marjorie’s bedroom… a scene in which our pint-sized protagonist is also present. Whilst there are plenty of facts to completely debunk this idea, the signs are there, however faint and fleeting… Perhaps it was Merry who was possessed all along. It’s undeniably fun to let the theory crawl under your skin, as it did mine.
Another Tremblay, another ridiculously long review… if you made it this far, you’re a trooper… who I’d hope does not take much more convincing to pick up “A Head Full of Ghosts,” if you haven’t already. A novel less about finding answers and more about getting lost in questions, this one lingers, possesses, and leaves you wondering what was real all along. Whether you walk away convinced of demonic possession or with the creeping suspicion that Marjorie’s madness is entirely human, one thing’s for sure: this damn book will fill your head with ghosts long after you’ve finished reading it.
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