Evan Wright - Hella Nation: Looking for Happy Meals in Kandahar, Rocking the Side Pipe, Wingnut's War Against the Gap, and Other Adventures With the Totally Lost Tribes of Americ

Pros: Oddly moving and disturbing tales from America's underbelly.
Cons: Meanders with unlikeable subjects.

"...Wow, it's so hella America."
"What does that mean?" I asked.
"Oh God," she explained. "Like hella real. Hella harsh." [page 15]

Collected from 12 pieces previously published, Evan Wright's Hella Nation (2009, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 352 pages) compiles them into a thematic thrill ride into the darker corners of America, places and experiences that "good people" avoid.

These are stories of survival and alienation in a Social Darwin America --- from time spent with White Supremacists, porn stars, Motley Crew, a druggy right-wing nutjob in Hollywood, American troops in Iraq, the Seattle WTO riots, skateboarders, taxi dancers, ultimate fighters, and killers, conmen, and other scoundrels, found all across America.

The larger narrative is one that examines the threads of America's decline and the resultant confusion and anger felt by those at the margins of our society.

Wright has some affection for his subjects and he offers a critical self-examination running through his stories and experiences in a personal and personable way. Although it's hard to take the sting out of the dysfunction on display, Hella Nation is well worth reading for the ride outside the margins of reality television America.

Sources
www.us.penguingroup.com