I will preface this by saying that I am an avid reader. Reading is one of those things that’s been instilled in me since I was very young. That being said, I am hard pressed to think of a book that I genuinely enjoyed as much as John Dies At The End. From the opening riddle, the fake Jamaican and the first introduction of Molly to the journey to “Shit-Narnia”, it is one of those rare books that you never want to put down and then want to start reading again immediately after it’s finished.
It’s one of the best examples I’ve ever seen of watching the main characters sort of fail their way to victory. David and John are probably the most incompetent main characters I’ve encountered in a novel, but it just adds immensely to their charm. The humor is a good mix of “intensely juvenile” mixed with “deep philosophical dick jokes”.
I highly recommend reading this book, and will suggest that if you plan on seeing the movie, watch it first and then read the novel. They’re two seperate beasts entirely, but reading the book after watching the movie just feels like a wonderful surprise as events happen that had to be left out of the final screenplay.
Select Quotes.
- “Keep driving,” said a soft voice in my ear. “She will not bite if you keep driving.” “Fuck that. Fuck that idea like the fucking Captain of the Thai Fuck Team fucking at the fucking Tour de Fuck.”
- “That’s the truth of it; pile together everything we know and care about in the universe and it will still be nothing more than a tiny speck in the middle of a vast black ocean of Who Gives A Fuck”
- “Which would prove I’m a monster, Arnie? Sacrificing the people I love for the fight? Or walking away from the fight to save the people i love?”