The Gist:
Drawing a deeper understanding of psychology and what a society would be like if a world was driven by madness, narrator and author Jon Ronson explores the mind of those who are deemed psychopaths, the art of psychopath spotting and its influences.
The Review:
Witty, honest and chilling, Ronson presents us with his own adventure of discovering how society misjudges the world of psychopathy as well as ‘metal illnesses’ that become labelled for profit rather than the impact it causes.
I have never read anything by Ronson, but I am glad to of came across this artistic piece, I admire Jon’s vivid writing style, how at ease he has put me as a reader and I give him my utter respect as he does what most of those in the spotlight cannot do, reveal a weaknesses and then go forward. I find this itself to be positive influence, almost a metaphor that we should pick ourselves up despite what skeletons we appear to behold.
In this novel, we are introduced to a realm of memorable characters including David Shayler, an ex-MI5 agent turned conspiracy theorist who also believes he is the messiah and confidently cross dresses. Yes, there are some moments you’d might want to put the book down and pop the kettle on, I for one am still brewing in awe for the crime descriptions, Kafka-esque moments, and Jon giving light to his personal problems.
Not only are we given an in depth, journalistic journey through interviews and spine tingling moments that will keep on edge, from humour comes pain, we are also given a raw and honest approach to the clockwork mind. For some the book comes across as a know it all documentary, but from my perspective, I think there are many layers to this novel even drawing up the notion if we are connected on this level, who is the real psychopath. Do we have it within ourselves?
The Psychopath Test doesn’t just happen to be a test about psychopaths, but tests the reader into what morbid reality we have drawn and what stems from the truth and what appears to be a parallel universe.
The Verdict:
Now, I’m obviously no psychologist, and most of my Friday nights seem to be just about me and my partner curled up in bed watching endless serial killer documentaries. I’ve read things about psychopaths previously, I have many tastes in pop-psych, transgressive writing, all the while listening to Beethoven as I slice and dice a slab of steak.
I could probably write a poem on the mind of how different brains function and the empathy card, even the Fruedian connotations. But nothing prepares me for Jon Ronson and his journey through psychopathy, violence, sex, its complexity, its judgement and evolution.
It’s terrifying.
Released: 5th January 2015
Publisher: Picador
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