The Travellers’ Guide to Hell

A witty and (appropriately) irreverent spoof on tourist guides, this Beelzebubian Baedeker tells intrepid vacationers everything they need to know about the hottest of all travel spots. It features chapters on how to research your trip (“Think of satanist groups as cultural embassies”), the best way to get there (indulge in the seven deadly sins), what to eat there (don’t!— remember Persephone?), and tips on day trips to Limbo (“a real must, has that neither-here-nor-thereish atmosphere”) and Purgatory (“a hot-and-bothered boot camp for the soul”). The tongue-in-cheekiness of their humor aside, Pauls and Facaros pack an impressive amount of data into their breezy commentary. Their conception of Hell’s topography, accommodations, and personnel is synthesized from Scripture; centuries of literature, mythology, and folklore; and the writings of popes, theologians, mystics, and visionaries. Funny, oddly informative, and illustrated with modified artistic renderings of Hell and its denizens, this book provides insights into our culture’s enduring fascination with a place where no one really wants to go. [em](BookLife) [/em]