Role Models by John Waters

I like John Waters a lot. That is to say, I like him in the same way I like Werner Herzog. I have only a passing familiarity with his films, and I don't have an incredibly strong opinion on them (I mean, I LIKED Fitzcarraldo, but am I going to watch Fitzcarraldo again? Girl, please). As a PERSON, though, I love John Waters. He's an icon of subversiveness, yet he comes across as warm and likable. He can explain weird things in such a way that they seem normal, and vice versa. Most importantly, this guy is NOT ASHAMED of the things he likes. He puts it all out there in his book Role Models, which I seriously think has the best cover of any book I've ever seen in my life.

Listen, I'm saying this because I love you. If you're anything like me (and if you're reading this, you're probably a little like me), you're going to love this book. Drop whatever you're doing now and go get your grubby little hands on it. Actually, make sure you get the audio book. It's read by John himself and it is a real treat to hear him say things like, "I'm sorry, but I like Alvin and the Chipmunks more than the Beatles." Right now I am listening to the essay on Leslie Van Houten and it is blow-your-mind good. I may have made myself a promise not to watch anymore movies about cults (because of the terrible, disturbing nightmares I was having, and because I am one of the few people under 70 who really fears cults and thinks about them almost every day), but I didn't make any rules about reading books by iconic directors wherein one of the essays is about a member of the most notorious cult. Read this now!