Let's Go Play at the Adams'

Let's Go Play at the Adams'

First edition cover art
Author	Mendal W. Johnson
Language	English
Genre	Horror [1]
Published	1974
Publisher	Thomas Y. Crowell Co.
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print (Hardcover)
Pages	282
ISBN	0-690-00193-2
Dewey Decimal	813/.5/4
LC Class	PZ4.J7118 PS3560.O3817

Let's Go Play at the Adams' is a 1974 psychological horror novel by Mendal W. Johnson and originally published by Thomas Y. Crowell Co. Its plot focuses on a group of rural Maryland children who drug, incapacitate, and eventually torture the college student babysitter hired by their parents while they are away in Europe for two weeks. ^[2]

Johnson was a resident of Annapolis, Maryland. He died on February 6, 1976. ^[3]

Publication

The novel was originally published in the United States by Thomas Y. Crowell Co. ^[1] In 2020, Valancourt Books republished it in paperback format under its Paperbacks from Hell series, featuring its original mass-market paperback artwork, and including a new introduction by Grady Hendrix. ^[2] In 2022, Centipede Press issued a hardback edition, with a limited 500 copies signed by Stefan Dziemianowicz and Dan Rempel, who wrote a new introduction. ^[4]

Reception

A reviewer for Fort Lauderdale News praised the novel, writing that Johnson "is a master of the art of storytelling and suspense, but this one isn't for the squeamish." ^[5] Sheryl Friedlander, writing for The Tampa Tribune , compared the novel favorably to The Collector and Lord of the Flies , praising its "style and flow of thought" as "smooth and interesting". ^[6] It was also compared to A High Wind in Jamaica by William W. Starr, writing for The State . ^[7] A reviewer for The StarPhoenix described the plot as "savage humanity", saying that they wanted to shower after reading it. ^[8]

Writing for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch , Clarence E. Olson criticized the book for its extreme violence, saying its themes are "superficial" and that a readers' interest is only maintained through brutality. ^[9]

References

1. "Let's Go Play at the Adams'". WorldCat . Archived from the original on November 6, 2023.
2. Benedict, Mark (April 2, 2020). "Book Review: Let's Go Play at the Adams' is a Brutal Lost Classic". Rue Morgue. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023.
3. "Johson". The Baltimore Sun . February 8, 1976. p. 122. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
4. "Let's Go Play at the Adams'". Centipede Press. Archived from the original on November 6, 2023.
5. "Tourist Novel is Jet Age 'Grand Hotel'". Fort Lauderdale News . March 10, 1974. p. 8H – via Newspapers.com.
6. Friedlander, Sheryl (August 4, 1974). "An Eerie Renewal of an Ancient Question". The Tampa Tribune . p. 5-C – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Johnson Novel Not For Timid". The State . April 28, 1974. p. 72. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
8. "Authors Offer Little Satisfaction". The StarPhoenix . May 10, 1974. p. 69. Retrieved January 2, 2026.
9. "Not Good, But Violent". St. Louis Post-Dispatch . February 3, 1974. p. 44. Retrieved January 2, 2026.