I've only read one e-book in my entire life. Don't get me wrong, I love to read. There's nothing I'd rather do than get lost for hours in a good novel. But while I'm sure there are plenty of talented e-writers, I have no real desire to spend hours reading from a computer screen (although, as a blogger, that's what I do anyway).
But when I came across John Dies at the End - or JDATE for short - through an Internet classified ad, I couldn't stop reading until I had finished the entire story. Written by David Wong, webmaster of Pointless Waste of Time, JDATE was written over several years, coming a few chapters at a time each year around Halloween.
The actual story is hard to describe. It's a comedy-horror, which Wong calls a Horrortacular. It's like reading Army of Darkness, except it's funnier and actually scary at times. But the biggest surprise I came across when reading my first e-book was the writing style. It was impressive. Very impressive. Wong develops his characters as well as any published author I've read, and his visualizations and foreshadowing make the story come alive.
The best representation of Wong's writing is JDATE's prologue, which I remember reading in an e-mail years before I came across the entire novel. This passage not only sets the playful tone of this horror story, but it also eerily foreshadows the novel's powerful ending:
In the course of solving the following riddle, you will either reveal the terrifying secret at the very core of existence, or go utterly mad in the attempt.Let's say you have an ax. The kind that you could use, in a pinch, to hack a man's head off. And let's say that very situation comes up and for some very solid reasons you behead a man. On the follow-through, though, the handle of the ax snaps in half in a spray of splinters. So the next day you take it to the ax store down the block and get a new handle, fabricating a story for the guy behind the counter and explaining away the reddish dark stains as barbeque sauce.
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Article comments
1 - alienboy
If the quote is indicative of the rest of the book, I'll pass on reading it thanks, it sounds like one of those books that is desperately trying to get people's attention but has a totally bogus premise.
Shame.
2 - DrPat
But it's a good philosophical question. alienboy - rather like "can one step in the same river twice?"
I have to say that the posted sequence intrigues me enough to watch for the printed version of JDATE...
3 - John_Rocks
Alienboy, you are completely wrong about the novel desperately trying to get other people's attention. The novel was written primarily for people who were already fans of Wong's site, PointlessWasteofTime.com. Honestly, though, it doesn't seem like it's trying to get attention; it's just setting the tone for the story's surreal nature.
JDATE is an awesome story that constantly ridicules itself, with the main character often apologizing to the reporter he is relating the story to for the tale sounding so "retarded," as he puts it. Its not one of those books that takes itself so uber-seriously, like many writer's are prone to do. That, to me, is part of the stroy's appeal: it is merely presented as a spooky, but simultaneously lunk-headed, series of events that provides both creepy and humorous entertainment to its readers.
Hopefully, not many other people will build up such baseless presumptions about JDATE, and more will be able to enjoy this silly romp into the world of surreal fiction.
4 - Ragnarok
I'd like to point out something else. David Wong never intended to write a novel, or to get a fanbase. And he never intended to 'hook' writers. He intended it for us regular readers at the site. But like most things he write. There's a lot of intelligence behind the comedy. Read 'The Monkeysphere' for a great example.
5 - Might_Reid
JDATE is one single most intelligent stories I have ever read. Don't sit there and come up with reasons not to read it. Read the first chapter. Then I won't need to tell you're sorry @$$ to read the next one. You'll do it yourself.
6 - Jake Klopp
JDatE is possible the greatest book I have ever read. Though humorous and ridiculous in parts, it reads like a book from a professional writer. The only other books I have ever been so intrigued by are from writers such as Stephen King, or Michael Crichton. After reading it a second time, you start to notice many subtle things that make this a phenomenal piece of literature.
7 - Jake Klopp
He he, by "possible" I meant "possibly"
8 - Bolo
I just finished reading this book and have to say that I haven't enjoyed a book like this in ages.
I haven't laughed out loud at a book in a looong time and managed to finish this book in two days.
Great read.