by John Waters
First published 2014
John Waters stands on a roadside holding a cardboard sign that reads "I'm Not Psycho." The cult filmmaker plans to hitchhike from Baltimore all the way to San Francisco, relying on strangers to carry him across America. Waters arms himself with nothing but his trademark pencil mustache and sharp wit as he faces uncertain roads and unpredictable drivers. Before departing, he imagines wild scenarios that might unfold during his journey. He pictures meeting a generous drug dealer who hands him cash to fund his next film. He envisions a demolition derby driver making crude propositions mid-race. His darker fantasies include gun-wielding drunks taking him hostage and Kansas police throwing him in jail. Waters transforms this real cross-country adventure into both confession and performance art, questioning whether passing motorists should fear picking up the Pope of Trash or if he should worry about them.
Genres: adventure, crime, autobiography, contemporary, memoir, comedy
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Baltimore, San Francisco
Period: Contemporary
323 pages · Hardcover · Farrar, Straus and Giroux