From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up—When 16-year-old Conor O'Neill dies after being hit by an ice-cream truck, he finds himself in Hell, accompanied by his dog Scrote, who is now able to speak. They are watched over and tormented by a devil named Clarence, which, of course, will raise (and then dash) the hopes of
It's a Wonderful Life fans. There's no doubt that the author has a way with words, and there's even some nifty philosophy thrown into the mix. But the scatology and sociopathology that pervade this book necessitate putting it in the you-must-be-kidding column. McGowan is an author to watch, but this effort is over-the-top.—
Nancy Brown, Fox Lane High School, Bedford, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Product Description
Many sixteen-year-old boys think that life is Hell; for Conor it really is. Ignominiously run over by an ice cream van, Conor is sent Down There, although he thinks he's committed no worse crime than winding up his sister and teasing the fat kid at school. To his surprise, Conor discovers that every inhabitant is in his own personal version of Hell. No pointy pitchforks or consuming hellfire for Conor, but an unutterably boring life in a room stuffed full of ancient books of philosophy, with a radio continually playing erudite documentaries or classical music. Conor foresees eternal damnation by tedium. Then it occurs to Conor that his personal vision of Hell might just be someone else's vision of Heaven - and vice versa! Desperate to discover his after-life opposite, and try to swap places, Conor sets out on a filthy, frightening and unpredictable journey, accompanied by his repulsive dog, Scrote, an unreliable demon and a cross-dressing Viking. On his travels Conor discovers that in this infernal place not only are souls being separated from bodies, they are being destroyed. Discovering how to reverse this process could be the most powerful idea Conor - or anyone - has ever had.
