Review: God Hates Us All. A novel by Hank Moody

Hank Moody, the fictional protagonist of the US cable series Californication, has had his novel ‘God Hates Us All’ published. Fans of the TV show can now hold a copy of the book in their own real-world hands. This book offers a chance to create something special that transcended simple merchandise. Unfortunately, this is a half-hearted effort that provides little value to fans of the show, or people who appreciate good literature.

Simon Spotlight Entertainment (a division of Simon & Schuster) are behind the release of the book and, for the most part, its an okay, breezy read. Emphasis on the word ‘okay’. For something that shouldn’t take more than an hour or so to plough through, it makes for an okay snack. Unfortunately, fans of the show keep being told that Moodys book was a highly regarded text. And this book certainly is not that.

Back of the book Synopsis
A wry literary masterpiece, God Hates Us All is a coming-of-age tale for the apathetic generation. Hank Moody’s self-loathing yet darkly likeable narrator is a college drop-out-turned-accidental-drug-dealer enveloped in a world of contradictions. His boss — a bong-hitting, dreadlocked Pontiff figure — runs a remarkably organized and ingenious illegal trade patronized by, among others, a sweater-set-wearing Upper East Sider, a Wall Street hotshot, and a wannabe rock star with a hard-to-resist model girlfriend. The lonely narrator yearns for more than the tenuous but intimate thread he shares with his clients. To escape his mother’s desperate expectations, his father’s endless disappointments, and his certifiably insane ex-girlfriend, he moves to the city’s mecca of ambitious slackers — the Chelsea Hotel — where the pursuit of lust (and the rock star’s girlfriend) sends him on a series of well-intentioned misadventures that lead him right back where he started. Told in a unique and subtle voice, God Hates Us All is ironic, optimistic, and unforgettable.

The Content
For the book to succeed, “God Hates Us All” needs to succeed on two fronts. First of all, like any novel, it needs to be a cracking read. The second is a far more formidabble task. For a book that is trading off its very meta existence, it needs to sync with what we know of the book from the television show. This is where the book fails dismally.

From what we understand of Hank Moody from the television show, he’s like a hard rocking Bret Easton Ellis. While Ellis generally has a point to his writing (usually regarding notions of excess, or the malaise that develops around a sense of privilege and entitlement), ‘God Hates Us All’ is completely lacking in substance. Instead, the reader is provided what seems to be the skeletal structure of a strong and worthy read. The books protagonist works as a drug dealer, however has nothing to say about the drug trade, his interactions with clients, or the role that his job actually plays in his life. Ultimately, the protagonist could be working as a regular courier and it changes nothing about the character. Considering the fact that Hank Moody is supposed to be a writer in the league of Ellis, Jay McInerney, or Charles Bukowski, ‘God Hates Us All’ is remarkably flat.

The back of the book tells us the novel is “God Hates Us All is ironic, optimistic, and unforgettable”. None of this is, in fact, true.

Another aspect of the novel that fails when one considers the understanding of the book we have from the show is that the story simply doesn’t work when you consider the book was supposedly re-worked into a lousy rom-com entitled ‘A Crazy Little Thing Called Love’. There’s just nothing that exists within this book that makes sense in the film existing as a Tom Cruise/Katie Holmes vehicle.

What we know about the book from the show feels like a lie. Plus, the book itself simply doesn’t live up to the promise that a writer such as ‘Hank Moody’ offers.

The Package
The front cover is striking and beautifully emulates the cover as depicted in the show. Unfortunately, a giant red circle with ‘As featured on the hit Showtime series Californication’ printed on it ruins the fun of having Hank Moody’s book actually in ones hands. Its a shame that this didn’t exist as a sticker, so that once it serves its purpose in stores, it can be removed by the consumer.

Likewise the back cover, despite being given the wanky synopsis that I’ve cited already, ruins the illusion of the books existence by featuring a low-key image of the shows cast.

Inside, the faux-reality of the novel is maintained with a legitimate-feeling Dedication and Afterward. It’s cutesy, but really, that’s why one buys a book like this.

Ultimately, ‘God Hates Us All’ by ‘Hank Moody’ works beautifully as a mild novelty. Unfortunately the publishers didn’t take the gimmick far enough to provide a genuine experience for fans of the show – possibly pushing the book into the world of legitimate literature. A book based on a respected fictional book in a TV show becomes a respected book in real life? That really would be deliciously meta. Instead, this is just a bland way to waste some time.