Guide (Cooper, Dennis) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Luke's at Scott's. Mason's home jerking off to a picture of Smear's bassist, Alex..." (more)
Key Phrases: Daniel James, Rambo Dolls, Black Dog (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Over the past 15 years Dennis Cooper has established himself as the preeminent spokesperson and chronicler for angst ridden teens in Los Angeles. In Closer, Frisk, and Try, Cooper delineated the existential crisis of gay teen boys with no place to go but down, nothing to look forward to but death. Cooper's plots usually revolve around the idea that there are people--usually older men--who are willing to help them with this last desire. Cooper tells a similar tale in Guide, but has placed himself in the middle of the action as a participant. Beautifully and chillingly written, Guide is Cooper's most disturbing, transgressive tale yet. A visionary masterpiece as sublime as it is frightening. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Those familiar with Cooper's work (Wrong, LJ 5/15/92) know that his fiction makes use of some unsavory, at times shocking, subject matter. Necrophilia and child pornography may be taboo in Cooper's world, but they are practiced nonetheless. Against a backdrop of pop culture, this first-person narrative chronicles the exploits of a half-dozen teens viewing life through the heavy veil of drugs and apathy. Though the story is as compelling as it is perverse, Cooper purposefully overrides it with an innovative style and raw, truthful character studies. Deeply lonely, the characters don't trust their own feelings and experience life in spurts. Interaction with anything outside themselves is a contest without a prize. There is a real elegance to the choppy waves of prose, which allow this work to transcend the form of the novel while working within it. With Guide, Cooper claims his place, alongside Genet and Burroughs, as a master of his own disenfranchised generation. For all literary fiction collections.?Douglas McClemont, New York
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press; 1st Pbk. Ed edition (August 6, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802135803
• ISBN-13: 978-0802135803
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #607,681 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars blown away, August 12, 2000

By	jeremy (new york) - See all my reviews

I read this book back to back with another that was dedicated to the author. I'd never heard of Dennis cooper so I didn't know what to expect. I was going to give it three stars but then I realized that was only because it was so upsetting. Along with how well written and engrossing it is, that's actually a reason to rate it higher, so I did. It was my own fear getting in the way. The real frustration was the absence of a moral stance. It's like Bret Easton Ellis that way - you have to make up your own mind about what's going on. You realize you're just getting angry because there's no re-assurance provided, you're totally immersed in a world with no ethical designations. This book is one of the more powerful I've read for that. I'd say this is about as transgressive and gutsy as writing gets. Glad I found it.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brave, original, and shocking novel, October 18, 2003

By	Douglas King (Cincinnati, OH United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Dennis Cooper is an incredibly brave and original writer. His books, however, are not for the faint of heart. "Guide", which is part of a five book cycle that also includes "Closer", "Try", "Frisk", and "Period", is my favorite of his novels because he dares to include himself in the middle of his usual tales of drugs, abuse, exploitation, violence and depravity. He ingeniously draws from an article he wrote for "Spin" magazine about a handful of teenage runaways, and blends reality, fiction and fantasy to create a shocking and original novel. Is what takes place in "Guide" a truthful look into Cooper's own fantasy life? Or is it merely his way of showing how society sexually exploits and degrades young people? It's up to the reader to decide.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An interesting and disturbing account of several teenagers., March 18, 1999

By A Customer

This book is a remarkable account of several lost teenagers living in the LA area with the main character telling the story, which is the author. It has many scenes describing homosexual activity, rape, murder, snuff flim making, etc...The basic elements for nihilism on the West Coast. It's a good read for those who have a strong stomach and enjoy homoerotic text. Far more darker and intelligent than most books out there.