The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense
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- Create Date：2021-08-27 11:21:03
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Edward White
- ISBN：1662074921
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Ryan Creed
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The book that caused me to google "Hitchcock in drag。" The book that caused me to google "Hitchcock in drag。" 。。。more
Gail
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This was a thorough examination of all twelve aspects Alfred Hitchcock's life， motivations， creative genius and personality。 Edward White's well-researched biography （evidenced by 66 pages of acknowledgments， notes， bibliography， and credits） show his wish to be accurate and unbiased。 Dozens of books have been written about Hitchcock， but this one left very few questions unanswered about the controversial， enigmatic innovator in film。 It was a fascinating read。 This was a thorough examination of all twelve aspects Alfred Hitchcock's life， motivations， creative genius and personality。 Edward White's well-researched biography （evidenced by 66 pages of acknowledgments， notes， bibliography， and credits） show his wish to be accurate and unbiased。 Dozens of books have been written about Hitchcock， but this one left very few questions unanswered about the controversial， enigmatic innovator in film。 It was a fascinating read。 。。。more
Nicola Royan
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Manages not to be repetitive- quite a triumph， really - but still thorough。 It’s an interesting structure。
Sara Goldenberg
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I didn't know anything about him going in， so i was happy with whatever it said。 I liked the pictures and hearing about his private life。 Recommeded！ I didn't know anything about him going in， so i was happy with whatever it said。 I liked the pictures and hearing about his private life。 Recommeded！ 。。。more
Raegan Dalton
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A book packed with useful and entertaining material。 Each chapter could stand on its own which was a largely innovative approach to a biography。 A great read which left me with a feeling of satisfaction after finishing such heavy reading。
Christine
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I have always enjoyed Alfred Hitchcock movies but never read a biography about him。 Edward White’s biography "The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock" is a comprehensive account of his personal life and how it impacted his film making。 It is not a technical analysis of his work。 What sets this biography apart from others I have read is that rather than laying out Hitchcock’s life chronologically， it is broken up into 12 chapters which deal with different aspects of his character or background and h I have always enjoyed Alfred Hitchcock movies but never read a biography about him。 Edward White’s biography "The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock" is a comprehensive account of his personal life and how it impacted his film making。 It is not a technical analysis of his work。 What sets this biography apart from others I have read is that rather than laying out Hitchcock’s life chronologically， it is broken up into 12 chapters which deal with different aspects of his character or background and how each is reflected in his films。 Examples are: “The Auteur”， “The Womanizer”， “The Londoner”， “The Family Man”， “The Entertainer” and “The Man of God”。 White does not put Hitchcock on a pedestal; he presents a balanced picture of a man with flaws。 I came away from reading this book with insight into what made Hitchcock both an iconic personality and a brilliant filmmaker。 。。。more
Rudy Seifert
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DNF- not a good choice for summer reading for me。
John-paul
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A very entertaining and modern take on the great Alfred Hitchcock。 I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in the director or film （both classic and modern）。 Unlike other biographies， White examines Hitchcock across 12 different themes that revererate throughtout his work。 The book is filled with details and summarizing much of the work by Spato， Truffant， and others。 Written in a post- #MeToo era， the book also doesn't shy away from the controvery， while still acknowledging Hitchcock A very entertaining and modern take on the great Alfred Hitchcock。 I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in the director or film （both classic and modern）。 Unlike other biographies， White examines Hitchcock across 12 different themes that revererate throughtout his work。 The book is filled with details and summarizing much of the work by Spato， Truffant， and others。 Written in a post- #MeToo era， the book also doesn't shy away from the controvery， while still acknowledging Hitchcock's many enduring contributions to cinema （and the larger film industry）。 The book has greatly enhanced how I view his work。 I plan to use this book as the primary text for a class I am developing called "The Psychology of Alfred Hitchcock"。 。。。more
Lisa Mcbroom
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Biography of Alfred Hitchcock and how aspects of his life inspired his films。
Shelby Stafford
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I dnfed this around 33%。 This should only be picked up by the biggest Hitchcock fans who want to know EVERYTHING they possibly could about him， according to absolutely anyone who knew him。 In my opinion， this was way longer than necessary。 You could cut out about half of each chapter to make the points the author was trying to make about the different aspects of Hitchcock’s personality。 It felt like so much filler saying the same thing over and over again。 A small thing that got on my nerves was I dnfed this around 33%。 This should only be picked up by the biggest Hitchcock fans who want to know EVERYTHING they possibly could about him， according to absolutely anyone who knew him。 In my opinion， this was way longer than necessary。 You could cut out about half of each chapter to make the points the author was trying to make about the different aspects of Hitchcock’s personality。 It felt like so much filler saying the same thing over and over again。 A small thing that got on my nerves was the fact that his name was repeated constantly with no pronoun usage。 It was “Hitchcock did this， then Hitchcock said this， and they called Hitchcock that。” This was absolutely one of the most thoroughly researched books I’ve read， but like I said， if you’re not borderline obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock， I would choose a different biography。 。。。more
Z Gray Adams
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Very interesting biography。 I liked that it wasn’t necessarily in chronological order， but still followed his life chronologically， while hopping around to discuss how things in his life influenced or changed his work。
Judy
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I've watched many productions of Alfred Hitchcock but had always considered them as suspenseful entertainment。 I had no idea that the man who gave me chill bumps with his "good eveningggg" was almost as eerie as the shows and movies he scared the public。 His childhood was plagued with trauma which led him into an extremely complicated adult。 The harsh manner he treated child actors left scars on them that still surface over 50 years later。 His entire life played out as emotional， out of balance， I've watched many productions of Alfred Hitchcock but had always considered them as suspenseful entertainment。 I had no idea that the man who gave me chill bumps with his "good eveningggg" was almost as eerie as the shows and movies he scared the public。 His childhood was plagued with trauma which led him into an extremely complicated adult。 The harsh manner he treated child actors left scars on them that still surface over 50 years later。 His entire life played out as emotional， out of balance， and as far from normal as most of his on screen works。 The book is extremely well written， well researched， and leaves nothing to the reader's imagination。 Some parts are quite disturbing， but so was the reality of Hitchcock。 I think you will find it as fascinating as I did。 。。。more
Joseph Hillyard
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As a young fan of Hitchcock's （my favorites of his films being Rear Window and Psycho）， I found this book an extremely fascinating look into the man and the various factors that influenced his most iconic works。 I thought the section on his relationship to women （his female collaborators， actors and audiences） to be the strongest part， portraying the nuances of Hitchcock's personality， showing how he was capable of being both a domineering control freak and a supportive collaborator。 As a young fan of Hitchcock's （my favorites of his films being Rear Window and Psycho）， I found this book an extremely fascinating look into the man and the various factors that influenced his most iconic works。 I thought the section on his relationship to women （his female collaborators， actors and audiences） to be the strongest part， portraying the nuances of Hitchcock's personality， showing how he was capable of being both a domineering control freak and a supportive collaborator。 。。。more
Ed
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As Hitchcock is my absolute favorite director， I was intrigued by a new study of him that wasn’t just another bio。 This largely works despite a tangential blind alley here and there。 Analysis aside， there were some little bits of trivia I didn’t know。 It’s also nice how Hitchcock’s influence in 2021 is called out。 It’s also not afraid to focus a little on the less flattering aspects of Hitchcock， which I admired。 If you’re a fan， this is a fresh take。 Twelve， in fact。
Mark Wheaton
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Despite the shelves of material that precede it， a fascinating， essential， and unique look at Hitchcock that’s already sending me back to revisit various of the films。 A new personal favorite alongside DeRosa’s “Writing with Hitchcock，” the McGilligan bio， and the Truffaut interviews。
Rick Wolff
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Excellent overview of Hitch's life and work。 Organized around twelve "themes，" it uses these chronologically， raising each of the "lives" at a point in Hitch's life that suggests an anchoring point - and then traces its development throughout his biography。 Those new to Hitchcock will find this interesting; those who have read a lot about Hitch will still find it enlightening， as it adds to existing Hitchcock bios。 Excellent overview of Hitch's life and work。 Organized around twelve "themes，" it uses these chronologically， raising each of the "lives" at a point in Hitch's life that suggests an anchoring point - and then traces its development throughout his biography。 Those new to Hitchcock will find this interesting; those who have read a lot about Hitch will still find it enlightening， as it adds to existing Hitchcock bios。 。。。more
Erin Matson
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Has there ever been an auteur like Hitchcock？ Will there ever be again？ The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock is fabulously well-researched， but after a time， I found its arbitrary divisions between different personality descriptors annoying （“the murderer，” “the entertainer”）， and found myself wanting a more standard narrative flow than chapters that went all over the place under the frame of specific traits the author sought to prove。 Still， this is a good read for Hitchcock fans。
John Albers
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I have read maybe a half dozen biographies of Alfred Hitchock， and this is probably the best。 Hitchcock， who along with Cecil B。 DeMille were the only directors whose names were above the titles of their films， and whose names dwarfed the actors who played in their films。 The author divides Hitchcock's life into 12 areas， explaining how his views on family， women， religion， etc， influenced his work which gives insight to his films: Psycho， Vertigo， North by Northwest， the Birds and many of his l I have read maybe a half dozen biographies of Alfred Hitchock， and this is probably the best。 Hitchcock， who along with Cecil B。 DeMille were the only directors whose names were above the titles of their films， and whose names dwarfed the actors who played in their films。 The author divides Hitchcock's life into 12 areas， explaining how his views on family， women， religion， etc， influenced his work which gives insight to his films: Psycho， Vertigo， North by Northwest， the Birds and many of his less famous films including his films made while he was in England。 During the 1950's everyone knew Hitchcock from his television series which is mentioned in detail。 I was too young to see Psycho when it was released in theaters， though all the older kids knew the film and talked about it constantly for months on end。 The number of directors and writers Hitchcock influenced is tremendous。 If you like movies， particularly Hitchcock's movies， this is a must read。 。。。more
Bill
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Whether or not the hostility is justified， I found it impossible to get through a biography whose subject the author finds so distasteful — and finds it necessary to constantly demonstrate that distaste。
Pia
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A very interesting read。 Each chapter looks at Hitchcock’s life and his development of movies and character。 Good insights。
Beth
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This approach really worked for me， although maybe it went on a little too long。 Even if you already know a lot about Hitchcock， you'll learn new things and/or think about things differently after reading this。 This approach really worked for me， although maybe it went on a little too long。 Even if you already know a lot about Hitchcock， you'll learn new things and/or think about things differently after reading this。 。。。more
Breezy Ann
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If you read any book about Alfred Hitchcock， "The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense" is THE book to read！Edward White has written a fascinating exploration of the many facets of iconic filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock。 Each chapter dissects different aspects of Hitchcock's life and personality。For example， the chapter titled The Londoner looks at how his filmmaking and public persona was influenced by both where he grew up and lived， as well as what he desired peop If you read any book about Alfred Hitchcock， "The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense" is THE book to read！Edward White has written a fascinating exploration of the many facets of iconic filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock。 Each chapter dissects different aspects of Hitchcock's life and personality。For example， the chapter titled The Londoner looks at how his filmmaking and public persona was influenced by both where he grew up and lived， as well as what he desired people to know and believe about it。Each chapter discusses examples from Hitchcock's films and life。 They include stories told by Hitchcock himself as well as people who knew him。 Many of these anecdotal accounts are recognized to be contradictory。 Even stories and events told by Hitchcock himself。 I thought every chapter was fascinating and appreciated White's effortless weaving of facts， rumors， and stories。 I particularly loved the efforts to analyze how all of these things influenced his films。 I finished the book wanting to immediately re-watch my favorites to look for many of the moments mentioned through this new lense。Alfred Hitchcock will always be remembered for his creative influence on some of cinema's most influential suspense films。 This is a great book for fans of his work， as it is both informative and entertaining。I loved the audio version of this book， narrated by the fantastic Qarie Marshall。 His narration was clear， warm and full of humor。 It made for a truly enjoyable reading experience。Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advance copy of the audiobook to review honestly。 。。。more
Stacy
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The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock was a unique biography because rather than discussing his life chronologically， it looks at different aspects of his life across time。 I knew very little about Hitchcock going into the book – not even the fact that he was English！ - and wanted to learn about the man who has had such a major impact on pop culture。 It was interesting to learn about how different aspects of his life affected the movies he made。 Qarie Marshall did a good job as the narrator of th The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock was a unique biography because rather than discussing his life chronologically， it looks at different aspects of his life across time。 I knew very little about Hitchcock going into the book – not even the fact that he was English！ - and wanted to learn about the man who has had such a major impact on pop culture。 It was interesting to learn about how different aspects of his life affected the movies he made。 Qarie Marshall did a good job as the narrator of the audiobook。 Overall， I enjoyed it！Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book。 。。。more
Tala
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**Provided ARC by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review I was once a huge fan of Alfred Hitchcock's work and consumed everything I could get my hands on。 With that being said， and it has been awhile since I have looked into any behind the scenes regarding his films， there was a lot of new and interesting information presented in this book。 While a part of me will always be a fan of classics like Psycho， Strangers on a Train， and Rope， I have grown out of looking at filmmakers through rose c **Provided ARC by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review I was once a huge fan of Alfred Hitchcock's work and consumed everything I could get my hands on。 With that being said， and it has been awhile since I have looked into any behind the scenes regarding his films， there was a lot of new and interesting information presented in this book。 While a part of me will always be a fan of classics like Psycho， Strangers on a Train， and Rope， I have grown out of looking at filmmakers through rose colored glasses。 No words from me can take away his legacy。 With that being said， Hitchcock was not a good man and it's unfortunate that his abusive work tactics have carried on through other Hitchcock hopefuls in believing suffering for the Art is important。 It is dated， cheap， and yet another lower form of misogyny in the name of creativity。 Hitchcock should very well be studied， and that should count for all of his professional behavior， not just behind the camera。 We can support auteurs who can create their own visions of suspense and move the genre forward rather than keep up with the same tactics。 The film industry of today can learn a lot from how this behavior ends up being more harmful than helpful， regardless of the legacy of films an auteur leaves。 。。。more
George
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Illuminating essays about the many facets of Hitchcock’s personality/character/persona/behavior: the womanizer， the family man， the pioneer， the dandy， the voyeur & more。 Will make you want to watch more Hitchcock movies。
Julie
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I liked how this book was organized。 That was the real draw for me。
Paul Callahan
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I grew up with the silhouette of Alfred Hitchcock burned into my memory。 He came at me in the movies with Psycho and The Birds and he came at me through tv with Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour。 Mostly though the came at me through tv showings of his older films like Dial M For Murder， North by Northwest， Vertigo and Rear Window。 This is a very good analysis of the genius of Hitchcock。 Hitchcock came along just when cinema was being born and over the course of his lifetime I grew up with the silhouette of Alfred Hitchcock burned into my memory。 He came at me in the movies with Psycho and The Birds and he came at me through tv with Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour。 Mostly though the came at me through tv showings of his older films like Dial M For Murder， North by Northwest， Vertigo and Rear Window。 This is a very good analysis of the genius of Hitchcock。 Hitchcock came along just when cinema was being born and over the course of his lifetime he was instrumental in the invention of the vocabulary of film making。 He cast a long shadow， influenced a generation of directors and burned his vision into the minds of filmgoers everywhere。 Edward White does a good job of presenting Hitchcock to us by focusing on twelve aspects of his life。 It’s a good summer read for film lovers。 I might even hunt down the interviews Francois Truffaut did with Hitchcock It’s already prompted me into rewatching North By Northwest and I’m looking forward to watching Dial M For Murder and Rear Window with my grandson， Declan this winter。 Three point five stars sounds about right for this book。 If you like movies， you’ll like this。 。。。more
Daniel Rose
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The 12 lives of Alfred Hitchcock is well written with some new insights into Hitchcock's life and legacy。 I listened to the audiobook and it was well narrated。 It kept me fully engaged and I enjoyed listening to this biography。 The only part I thought wasn't clear was the accusations of impropriety with some of the females he directed。 It made it clear that there was no evidence and that several of the females had reasons to react the way they did to get back at Hitchcock for ruining there caree The 12 lives of Alfred Hitchcock is well written with some new insights into Hitchcock's life and legacy。 I listened to the audiobook and it was well narrated。 It kept me fully engaged and I enjoyed listening to this biography。 The only part I thought wasn't clear was the accusations of impropriety with some of the females he directed。 It made it clear that there was no evidence and that several of the females had reasons to react the way they did to get back at Hitchcock for ruining there careers。I just reviewed The Twelve Lives of Alfred Hitchcock by Edward White。 #TheTwelveLivesofAlfredHitchcock #NetGalley[NetGalley URL]Edit 。。。more
Doug Noakes
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