When five sixteen-year-old orphans are placed in a bizarre room unlike any other, they discover the true depravities of the mind and soul. Unable to get comfortable in this vast room of unending, unceasing staircases, hungry and ill at ease, the five teenagers are forced to work together to satisfy the unpredictable demands of a souless red machine. Only by working together to puzzle out its desires and obey them can they be fed, and even then, the food is never enough. For Peter, Lola, Blossom, Abigail and Oliver, this truly is Hell. Unable to trust one another, unwilling to even like each other, they still rely on a certain unity. But as time wears on, the unity breaks down and factions emerge, one bent on obeying the machine, the other on disobeying it. And then the ultimate, horrifying purpose of the red machine and the endless staircases, and the reason for their entrapment is made clear.

Coming from the same mind that brought us Interstellar Pig, inspired by an M.C. Escher painting, House of Stairs is a disturbing social commentary mixed with a terrifying psychological experiment. This may be one of Sleator’s bleakest books yet, especially since it’s rooted in reality and could very well be carried out today, in some hidden place. One could very well spend thousands of words analyzing this book, with regards to the role of teenagers in society and their alienation from the outside world and each other, or how aversion therapy works, or how positive/negative conditioning is applied, or how the government sees us all as tools, and every one of those directions would be valid in some way. But, boiled down to its essentials, what we have here is a darkly fascinating story about five teens who undergo a terrible experience in a dystopian setting. House of Stairs is a thought-provoking tale that stays with you long after it’s over. Originally published in 1974, it’s as relevant today as it was thirty years ago, and it’s good to see it back in print for a new generation’s consideration.