A review by nick_at_nite
The Long Hard Road Out of Hell by Marilyn Manson, Neil Strauss

4.0

Manson's skilled at creating grotesque caricatures of his friends, family, and would-be girlfriends as you might expect--and he revels in these details. At times he's scratch-your-eyeballs-out hilarious and his own self consciousness gives him apt opportunity to describe himself as a disgusting little booger of a human being. The book is uneven, though, and has more than a few glaring omissions. For example, Manson offers little insight into his parents, nor does he even attempt to offer you insight into his evolution from his "Spooky Kids" days to his thunderbolt of lightning MTV success. Whether he doesn't remember because of the drugs or he doesn't want to go all that deep, it's a little frustrating. You can't help but feel that his anecdotes, while vivid, are the carefully rehearsed tricks of a skilled magician: his slight-of-hand illusions suspend disbelief and leave you hungry for the next trick, certainly. While it's happening you're dazzled but afterwards are left feeling empty: what you wanted all along was an explanation of the magic trick itself.