Chelsea Horror Hotel: A Novel [Paperback]

Dee Dee Ramone (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 252 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (May 10, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560253045
• ISBN-13: 978-1560253044
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #363,192 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Shocker, In More Ways Than One, March 25, 2004

By 

K. Brown "El Rudo Lucky Pierre!" (Walnut, Ca USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Chelsea Horror Hotel: A Novel (Paperback)

I picked up this book as a Ramones fan, and on a whim. I was expecting something entertaining, perhaps crass and cutting edge, but I was floored to find a really great piece of work by Dee Dee Ramone.

Where do I start? How do I categorize this book? Horror? Humor? Autobiography? All of the above, I must say. Part Dante's Inferno, part Kafka's Metamorphosis, part Phillip K. Dick's "A Scanner Darkly," yet all Dee Dee Ramone. I'm serious! My major in college was Comparative Literature, and reading Chelsea Horror Hotel brought me back to the most beautifully twisted examples of literature, both classic and modern, that I have read. Put Dante Alighieri and Franz Kafka in a time machine, point them toward CBGB's, and you're there!

Dee Dee Ramone sets himself as the central character, shacking up with his girl Barbara and dog Banfield at The Chelsea Hotel, New York's hang-out for the underground hipsters. It is also the site where Sid Vicious killed Nancy Spungeon in the late 1970s.

The entire story takes you through Dee Dee's paranoia of AIDS, perpetual quest to shoot up, repeated encounters with ghosts of dead friends like Sid Vicious and Stiv Bators, bloody murders, the awareness of a secret Satanic society that conducts grisly tortures in the hotel basement, and occasional desperate plea-bargains with God. What makes this story so twisted is the coming and goings of the "fine lines." There are times when it is clear that a segment is grounded in Dee Dee's light grip on reality, but these moments often morph into disturbing paranormal events that seem to indicate that Dee Dee is swimming through a blurry array of nightmares, drug induced hallucinations, sheer paranoia, or improbable realities. It's often hard to tell! Yet the reader is never lost; you will find yourself racing through the pages, eager to see how each frightening misadventure is solved.

Part of what makes this story work so well is that while Dee Dee is the main focus of the story, he avoids painting himself as a sympathetic character. He portrays himself as a borderline sort who, despite frequent self-serving and malicious actions, believes that he is a nice person who is wronged and agitated by all who surround him. He does an excellent job of illustrating an individual who is emotionally tormented and forever craving a fix. Unlike so many "street poets," you see no glamour in his crack & heroin surroundings; you see one great big nightmare.

Nightmarish from start to finish, yes. Strange thing is, despite the desperation throughout the novel, I did not find it depressing in the least. I found myself impatient to get to the next page, just to see the next twisted mess Dee Dee would get himself into.

And forget the lame anti-drug films our health teachers showed us throughout our junior high years; "Chelsea Horror Hotel" would make me steer clear of the rock, the pipe, and the needle FOR GOOD!

One caution: this book is not for the weak of heart (or stomach). Lots of graphic descriptions of blood, vomit, and millions of grotesque mealie-mealie bugs!

"Chelsea Horror Hotel" is Dee Dee's crowning bookshelf glory. It may not be a bestseller, but I hope it nevers fades into complete obscurity. Dee Dee Ramone may be gone from this world, and I hope he's at peace in a much more placid setting than The Chelsea Horror Hotel!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars And you thought you were having a bad day..., May 14, 2001

By 

Rebeca Thorvund (San Jose, California United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Chelsea Horror Hotel: A Novel (Paperback)

I pre-ordered "Chelsea Horror Hotel" and read the entire book the day it arrived. Dee Dee's first novel is highly entertaining. Funny, bizarre, icky, and creepy, it centers around Dee Dee's life at his apartment in the Chelsea Hotel. He thinks he is living in the room where Nancy Spungen died and things just get worse from there. He is in hell, dealing with his meanie wife Barbara, his nagging talking dog Banfield, and the other creepy residents of the hotel. Dee Dee tries to keep to himself but everyone is so annoying he tangles with them, hoping to save his sanity. That only exacerbates his problems. To top it all off, he is soon hounded by the pain in the butt ghosts of Johnny Thunders, Jerry Nolan, and Sid Vicious. Dee Dee writes in his inimitable deadpan style and his vivid imagination and graphic details make the story really come alive. He's always been a gifted storyteller. Right on, Dee Dee!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gabba Gabba Great!, July 17, 2001

By 

J. Surowiecki (Hanover Park, Illinois) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Chelsea Horror Hotel: A Novel (Paperback)

Black leather! Knee-hole pants! Classic!

There are two distinct similarities between Dee Dee's debut novel "Chelsea Horror Hotel" and the music he and the Ramones have given us...both are defiant and timeless.

Dee Dee's stream of consciousness writing will catch you from the very beginning and never let go. There's a wonderful gritty quality to his long form writing style. The individual who penned so many great songs is clearly present within the covers of this novel.

It's surprising how many of Dee Dee's songs could act as the soundtrack to "Chelsea Horror Hotel". If you've ever wondered why the Ramones sang, "I Don't Wanna Go Down To The Basement"...you need only read this novel to find out! At times, some of the scenes that Dee Dee describes have a sort of "comic-book" feel to them. The insertion of some of his original artwork lends itself nicely and compliments these passages.

His biographical stuff was a lot of fun to read, but "Chelsea Horror Hotel" surpasses his earlier work. This is a FANTASTIC debut novel. Keep it up, Dee Dee! I look forward to your next one!

Gabba Gabba Hey!