Damned Good Palahniuk

Damned, Chuck Palahniuk’s newest novel, is an otherworldly adventure. At the mercy of Palahniuk’s signature sharp-edged wit, the reader can’t hold back a few gritty giggles as the story plunges through the underworld with a rag tag group of angst-driven teens.

The heroine of the story is Madison, the daughter of a hip but clueless star-studded couple who gave Madison little in the way of social guidance or emotional support during her short life (she died at age 13). The book begins as Madison enters Hell and introduces herself to Satan with a Judy Blume-esque introduction of “Are you there Satan, It’s me Madison.” She tells the reader why she is in Hell, but everyone knows you can’t trust what the damned tell you about themselves.

In the beginning, Madison spends most of her time trying to convince her audience that she is smart “Yes, I know the word convey. I’m dead, not a mental defective.” The early chapters each contain at least one such assertion. But these assertions become quieter as she battles ravenous demons (once gods on earth) and finds herself “riding in the cupped palm of a towering giant female demon as she strides across the hellish landscape.” As she continues to wander through Hell, she tests her strengths and finds that she has many that are useful in Hell’s harsh environment.

Madison’s low self-esteem and confused understanding of social cues undermine her reliability as a narrator but through her adventures in the underworld and through flashbacks to her life on earth, Madison sheds an ever-strengthening light on her reality.

It’s hard to say if this devilish coming-of-age story, with its stark references to sexuality and drug use, is appropriate for teens but Palahniuk’s characters are believable and easy to relate to for anyone who has survived the Hell of adolescence. For those still suffering in its mucky cages and gurgling rivers of vomit, Palahniuk may offer a humorous and light-hearted escape from the agony.