‘Snuff’ by Chuck Palahniuk

**WARNING: DISTURBING CONTENT AHEAD**
 
  If you are a reader who finds Judy Blume’s “Forever” too scandalous or Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” too sexually explicit, then Chuck Palahniuk’s “Snuff” is probably not for you. Actually, you probably shouldn’t read this review either.
  Really.
  Stop.
  OK, you’ve been warned.
  “Snuff” is gross, shocking and almost pornographic, which should be no surprise to the author’s fans. Palahniuk’s latest dive into the disgusting strips bare the porn industry in a raunchy account of the making of a gang bang movie.
  Cassie Wright, a porn queen past her prime, wants to end her career by setting the world record for knocking boots. She does this with the help of 600 old, young, sweaty, oily, fake-tanned, shaved and hairy, Viagra-taking men.
  The story is told through four people: Mr. 600 is aging porn star Branch Bacardi, slathered in self-tanner and sporting fake white teeth. Mr. 72 is a young man who believes he is a porn baby, conceived when Cassie was knocked up while making “World Whore One” with Branch. Mr. 137, a TV star whose career tanked after a gay scandal, is out to prove he’s straight and get a new claim to fame. The fourth voice of the book, and the one that mainly recounts Cassie’s story, is that of Sheila, the talent wrangler overseeing the production.
  The seedy tale is peppered throughout with Palahniuk’s humor. As the men wait, TVs show pornos with titles such as “Gropes of Wrath,” “On Golden Blonde” and, my favorite, “The Ass Menagerie.”
  Sheila adds her own witticisms with her names for the hundreds of skanky guys gathered for the filming, all of which cannot be printed here. (OK, just one — hoagie honkers.)
  Each of the men’s tales slowly unfolds as they wait for their number to be called. Cassie’s motivation also becomes clear, as Sheila tells of Cassie’s desire to have this film be her last — because she will be dead in the end — making it a sure best-seller.
  Yes, this book is sleazy. Yes, it is base. Yes, it might make you a little sick to your stomach. The characters are vile and the story ultimately lacks anything except hopelessness, which I suppose is the point, as Branch says, “The damaged love the damaged.”
   OK, time for a shower.