Long Hard Road Out of Hell

Manson, Marilyn.  The long hard road out of Hell.  New York: HarperCollins, 1998.

       

 Audience:  Age 15+, Music fans,

Genre:  Biography, Comedy,

Topics of Focus:  Life, Music, Goth culture,   

Red Flags:  Sexual content, Drug use, Brief violence, Profanity

When people think about Marilyn Manson, they often have a lot to say. In his book, The long hard road out of Hell, he tells about his life, starting when he was a child spying on his sexually- twisted grandpa with the help of his cousin.  He continues into his adult life being one of the most influential, hated, loved, and judged shock-rock artists.

In the book, he talks about his home life, his early music inspirations, his borderline pathetic start as a musician in southern Florida, his religion, and all of the hate he received along the way. Despite the fact that there are many heavy topics presented throughout the book, Manson doesn’t fail to add in his quirky humor that kept me laughing the whole time. I think it would be near impossible to get bored with this book, even if you don’t like the topics he chose to write about.

Teachers and librarians everywhere should have this book because it opens minds and talks about things most people don’t dare bring to light. It would be hard to study this book in a mainstream classroom because of the situations Manson was put in throughout his life and the way he experienced them is so different than what most people are comfortable with. I think this book is great to independently read because then you can take your time and really think over what you’re taking in. 

Annotation by Sarah Schlough