Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

Jan 02, 2010

Zerbe rated it:

Hatcher McCord was a world-famous broadcast journalist, known for his sharply discerning eye for the news and his interviews with the dirtiest dictators and celebrities alike, while dealing with asshole producers and a bevy of bitchy ex-wives. And then he died and went to Hell, where his eternal punishment turned out to be exactly the same as his life on earth, only with even worse traffic and bouts of acid rain. And his producer isn't just an asshole, he's Beelzebub. You see, Hatcher isn't j More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 23, 2011

Geo rated it:

I'll summarize. This was an excellent book. The premise is awesome. I don't want to share too much to avoid spoilers.

The basic idea is that the main character is a journalist who has died and gone to hell, and is now a Evening News in Hell anchorman. Oh yeah, and he's co-habitating with Anne Boleyn. Right, the Henry the 8th Anne Boleyn. The author has cooked up some seriously demented "punishments" for the various denizens. You may consider this a modernized Dante's Inferno More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 14, 2010

Tim rated it:

Someone once said that the problem with sensational journalism is not that it is not journalism, but rather that it is not sensational. Reading through this book, I thought of a new way of phrasing the idea: the problem with experimental novelists is not that they are not novelists, but that they are not experimental.

This could have been a truly imaginative piece of work. When I picked it up, I was looking forward to all the grossness, horror, and enslavement of Dante's Inferno, but More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Mar 04, 2010

Elizabeth rated it:

Hell by Robert Olen Butler (pp. 232)

Hands down, one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. A surreal comedy set literally in Hell with deceased fictional journalist, Hatcher McCord as our tortured, philosophical tour guide who happens to be the current anchor for Evening Nightly News of Hell.

Based on Dante’s Inferno with pieces of Jean Paul Satre, Waiting for Godot, Picasso at Lapin Agile, Dennis Miller, CNN, Entertainment Weekly and your high school history book More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 18, 2010

David rated it:

If you look at most of what I enjoy reading, you’ll understand that every now and then I need a dose of comedy, and this ingenious satiric three ring circus fit the bill well. As with Dante’s Inferno, there’s precious little plot: this one’s mostly about the sightseeing, and much of the entertainment of this book actually stems from the seemingly endless variety and ingenuity of such special punishments, which make Dante look like an amateur. William Randolph Hearst blogs without recourse to the More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Nov 02, 2009

Theresa rated it:

Television news anchorman Hatcher McCord is in Hell. Actual Hell. Complete with sulfur rains, a lake of fire, eternal traffic jams, and emails from Satan, Hell has a way of crafting personal torments for each of its citizens from hunters being hunted by Satan to celebrity bloggers developing the cellulite they mocked the rich and famous for having. But even in Hell, Hatcher has kept him from chosen profession. He hosts The Evening from Hell which airs the popular “Why Do You Think You’re Here?” More...

0 comments like

May 12, 2010

Coleen rated it:

I'm only a little over halfway through this book, but reading it's a bit like taking medicine - horrible, chalky, giant tablets that stick in your throat and although you know you'll be better for swallowing them, they still cause a bit of a gag-reflex and a bitter lingering taste in your mouth.

Well, maybe this book is not exactly like that, but...

What I'm really trying to get at is my disappointment with Robert Olen Butler for this. Perhaps this is unfair, but I guess More...

3 comments like

Nov 23, 2010

Edward rated it:

Butler has written a grimly funny tour of hell, led by a tv anchorman (NEWS FROM HELL) whose favorite interview question is, "Why do you think you're here". The residents include famous people from the past, most of our recent presidents, present day celebrities of all stripes, and just ordinary people such as the couple who continue to bicker, as they did for 50 years on earth.
Satan's purpose is to keep everyone full of worry, regret, bafflement, pretty much what pre More...

0 comments like

Sep 11, 2010

Chris rated it:

This book was an incredible journey through the weird, the paranormal, and the psychological chaos that is embodied by our experiences of pain, suffering, and anxiety. While the characters in the book are all dead and are doomed to eternal damnation in Hell, the true source of the book's humor and brilliance is the metaphor that is found when looking at the "big picture" the book has to offer. It questions the very foundation of what makes us human and what makes us happy, but more im More...

0 comments like

Jun 05, 2011

Scot rated it:

The idea offers great promise, in the tradition of Dante Alighieri: write about a character on a journey/quest through Hell, and use the exercise to offer a commentary on the state of the world you live in and your views on big questions about purpose, ethics, and self-focus. To be honest, I could only take this novel in small doses. I soon accepted it was more an exercise in trying to be clever—look how I juxtaposed celebrity X with figure from history Y, now get ready for some intense pain More...

0 comments like

Nov 15, 2009

Joshua rated it:

This book has a most interesting concept. Who is in Hell? Why did they end up there? Why do they think they ended up there? And of course on the flip side; Who is in Heaven?

This book takes us on the journey of Hatcher McCord, the anchorman of The Evening News From Hell. Not only is he living with the (sometimes) headless Anne Boleyn, he is also on a quest; to interview the most famous persons of Hell and find out why they think they are there. During this process, he discovers More...

1 comment like

Aug 05, 2011

Lyricsninja rated it:

i just read this book recently on a recommendation from a good friend (and trusted book enthusiast) and i was not disappointed. the book follows the life of the anchor of the evening news in hell through his trials in the great beyond. there are a plethora of "cameo" appearances throughout, incluuding some uh... greats?... such as hitler, stalin, bill clinton, judas, and of course the devil himself. a lot of the situations that have some great underlying meaning to them, striking at a More...

0 comments like

Jul 10, 2010

Sara rated it:

I took a longer time in reading this book because it stood up a level from the books that I usually read - intellectually speaking ;-)
Hatcher McCord, in his mortal life, was a famous TV anchorman. After his death, he goes to hell and is surprised to find a great many other famous people in hell as well. Some of these are names one would expect (Hitler and Stalin, for example), however some are strikingly bold residents of hell (Ghandi and Mother Teresa), and some are just plain amusing ( More...

0 comments like

Jan 25, 2012

Shel added it

Writers, read this for: a shifting narrative, a marriage of structure and theme — it's told in the point of view of Hatcher McCord, a television newsman in hell trying to figure out why he's there, and explores free will and freedom of thought. Appropriately, then, it also shifts into first person narratives delving into other characters' inner thoughts (incl. Anne Boleyn, Richard Nixon, Sir Francis Bryan, Jezebel, Judas Iscariot). Chunks of stream of consciousness delivered in italics interrupt More...

0 comments like

Dec 16, 2010

Vincent added it

Not necessarily one I would recommend. Didn't really get anything out of it and was just disappointed by the ending.
Hatcher McCord, the main character and news anchor of the Evening News in Hell who is dating Anne Boleyn - yes beheaded Anne - thinks he has found away out of Hell. The Hell of the book is one that seems to include everybody throughout history and many, many of history's notable are in the book.
Satan listens to everybody's thought and everybody get punished for happ More...

1 comment like

Jan 15, 2012

Justin rated it:

An intriguing premise, Butler writes in a dizzy and disorganized way that makes it unnecessarily difficult to read closely. There are some clever developments, though Butler shows his age and his educational biases in his characters (mostly powerful international leaders from the mid-20th century, culturally salient Americans from the 70s through 90s, and historical figures from the western canon). Most of his choices are pretty obvious: Hitler, Stalin, J Edgar Hoover, yawn. His portrayal of Sat More...

0 comments like

Nov 22, 2010

Mokieblylk rated it:

I wasn't really able to get to into this book, i had trouble picturing everything that was going on probably because of it being in Hell and describing such weird stuffs going on. It's basically about Hatcher McCord who is in Hell and he the anchorman for a news channel. He thinks there is a way out of hell so he begins to find a way out along with interviewing several notorious people. Some notable characters include Hitler and Stalin, Richard Nixon, Anne Boleyn, there is even a pretty distu More...

0 comments like

Oct 25, 2009

Todd rated it:

Wow, this was one of the best things I have read this year. It was creative, thoughtful, funny and entertaining. This is a book that gave me things to think about for a time to come.

I enjoyed the spin on hell and who is there, why they are there and what is might be like. This was interesting and fresh. The characters were strong and easy to relate to.

The story really did cover a spectrum of emotions and thoughts. It went from very funny and creative to thought p More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 25, 2010

Cody rated it:

I heard Robert Olen Butler read this afternoon as part of the Virginia Highlands Festival where he read from the opening chapter of this book. Hysterical! I am pretty sure that Satan is based on Geo. W. Bush and Dick Cheney...a hybrid, if you will.

He also read from his new book which he said should be out in about a year. Once again, he has totally re-invented himself and I look forward to reading this story about the ending of a relationship. Another woman, younger has come alo More...

0 comments like

Jul 12, 2010

Jim rated it:

Everyone goes to Hell. Everyone. Or so it seems. And for once, we actually get to see a future Hell, where many a deserved individual is surely to dwell, despite their having not yet left this mortal coil. Some, certainly, wish them a speedy departure. In fact, Butler at times, seems to have written one of those name-droppers that has important folks thumbing through just to see if they were included, and much chagrined if they are not being skewered and roasted. I enjoyed some of the punishment More...

0 comments like

Dec 22, 2009

Amy Wilder rated it:

New Yorker capsule review got my attention. The premise alone is great - a newscaster in hell does a series of celebrity interviews - just one question: "Why Do You Think You're Here?"
Perversely profound, though we are lured into the novel at the prospect of being a voyeur of someone else's eternal damnation, Butler leads the reader quickly to contemplate the source of all suffering.

In the opening scene Hatcher McCord, the narrator and anchorman of the Evening News f More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 11, 2011

Scott rated it:

My dad lent me Robert Olen Butler's Hell. I can't say I didn't like this because of his writing skills. He is laugh out loud funny at times, and very poetic with beautiful imagery at other times. I just didn't like the story and some of the author's techniques he used. Hearing what was going through each characters heads whenever we meet them and some subsequent times highly annoyed me and took me completely out of the actual story. I also didn't get the point of the novel at the end. It w More...

0 comments like

May 12, 2011

Jill Elizabeth rated it:

Hell: A Novel was my first foray into Robert Olen Butler's world; suffice to say I am now hooked and completely understand how he won a Pulitzer. How can you not love a book whose main character - the anchorman from Hell, literally - manages to be both hero and anti-hero at the same time? Hell is a very clever take on the idea that hell is personal to each of us and features exactly those torments designed to maximize the hellishness of the experience. The banality of what comprises the greatest More...

0 comments like

Oct 04, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

I almost gave up on this, because the first 50 pages are so unrelievedly unpleasant (it's set in hell). It's very funny, though, with little cameos from all kinds of celebrity types (Cheney, Bush, Celine Dion, Beatrice...etc.) Pretty much everyone ends up in this hell, which we view from the perspective of Hatcher McCord, in death as well as life, a TV anchorman. Richard Nixon drives his limo. His girlfriend is Anne of Cleaves (with detachable head). Very bizarre, nice twist at the end...bu More...

0 comments like

Sep 12, 2009

David rated it:

His witty writing style and imagination keeps things moving along - Bill Clinton in Hell (stuck in an anonymous hotel room constantly waiting for the arrival of some woman who he can't remember), J. Edgar Hoover (in Hell because the Devil needs SOMEONE to keep detailed track of everyone in hell), etc.

No outlandish or medeaval tortures here, everything here is the torture of the mundane.

It all leads to an ending that was incredibly predictable.

Clearly not the book he More...

0 comments like

Jul 30, 2011

Sherry rated it:

This book was interesting enough for me to finish reading it, but really I thought that it was somewhat repetitive and boring. It was curious to me that Hell was populated by pretty much everybody. Why? Everyone was bad? It gives one pause.

There were some interesting tortures devised,but really, Hell is supposed to be,well, Hell, so I expected much worse, and all of the time. The philosophical aspects of it were what intrigued me the most. The questions, even the possibilities of faith. More...

0 comments like

Sep 11, 2011

Rachel rated it:

Upon reading the back cover of the book, one would assume that this will be a rip-roaring romp of hilarity through Hell - a new Dante's "Inferno" for the 21st century, perhaps. Well, look elsewhere, fellow readers; sadly, this story is not it. At first, I enjoyed following the adventures of the protagonist, former Earthly (and now Hellish) news anchor Hatcher, but the problem is that he meanders everywhere and the plot suffers for it. Initially, I liked this, thinking, "okay, even More...

0 comments like

Jan 25, 2011

Julie rated it:

The first half of this book was uproariously funny. Think modern day Dante’s Inferno (even Virgil and Beatrice make cameos) with the humor of Christopher Moore. No one is safe from Butler’s hell and satire: former popes, presidents, royalty, writers, even Mother Theresa. Disco is the ultimate form of torture and Hemingway’s personal punishment is that he can’t find a bar. The reader is given glimpses into the thoughts of the deceased (Anne Boleyn still pines after Henry VIII and Judas is stil More...

0 comments like

Jul 27, 2010

Christina rated it:

I'd say that I enjoyed about 7/8 of this book. It was an interesting premise, and the author delivered for most of the book, but I was less than enthused at the end. Maybe it was a little esoteric for me.

Anyway, the book follows famous news broadcaster Hatcher McCord. He was this in life, and in death. You see, Satan makes him the anchor for the Evening News in Hell. Here, he is doomed to read Bruce Almighty-esque teleprompters, no matter how hard he tries to avoid it, and is respons More...

0 comments like

May 17, 2010

Blair rated it:

What is Hell to you? Who do you think inhabits the place reserved for the damned? You may be suprised by the names and faces you'll meet in Satan's realm. That is, of course, if you are willing to see Hell from Mr. Butler's point of view.

In the beginning we are introduced to Mr. Hatcher McCord. He is employed as an anchorman (the same position he held in his mortal life) for the The Evening News In Hell. He reports daily on the infinite sufferings that Hell encompassed for it's

More...

0 comments like

reviews