Luke ONeil - Welcome to Hell World: Dispatches from the American Dystopia

Luke ONeil is not on staff. The Boston Globe

Unbelievable. Ben Shapiro

The Lefts new low. Tucker Carlson

Too many journalists are failing the American public by desperately clinging to the rules of the old world, before the Trump Nuclear Bomb hit us all. Luke ONeil is one of the few writers who faces our grim reality the way it is, and not the way we wish it was. Compiling Hell World is a sin-eaters task, and we are indebted to him for doing it. Dan Ozzi, co-author of Tranny

A widely read, offbeat newsletter Mike Isaac, The New York Times

Luke is convinced he lives in a nightmare. Truth is, hes one of the last few people on the outside of it. Welcome to Hell World is a distress call from a place where hope still exists, dispatched by a man who clearly sees the insanity of life in America and believes it doesnt have to be this way. Its adorable. Keith Buckley of Every Time I Die, author of Watch

The defining feeling of being alive at this awful stupid moment in time, for me at least, is that of being locked inside myself and my perspective, looking out helplessly as various horrible things happen and keep happening and while various crimes are committed right in front of my face. Its a very specific sort of horror and a very difficult thing to write about, and I dont think anyone writes about it with more anger and more empathy or with more insight than Luke does. How he somehow makes it all enjoyable to read is something I havent quite figured out yet, but its a pretty remarkable achievement. Hellworld is hellworld, and this is a bad time, but Luke sees it clearly and writes about it with his whole heart, and that, to me, is good. David Roth , Deadspin

Youre such a great writer and a handsome boy but you know I cant read that type of stuff. Maryann ONeil

I dont know if theres another writer working who better channels the dread of the age than Luke ONeil, and I know few that are his equal in terms of wit, style, and pure coruscating honesty when it comes to apprasing what happens to the self, and the soul, in a severely dysfunctional society. Joe Keohane, author and longtime Luke editor

One of my favorite things I read all year Frida Garza, Jezebels The Best Political Writing 2018

Luke ONeils writing reverberates the pulse of our modern dissolve in ways that inspire, provoke and engage. The stories shared in Welcome to Hell World and the analysis ONeil brings inspire self-reflection and pause in an otherwise chaotic era. Jared Holt, Right Wing Watch

Welcome to Hell World relentlessly examines the human toll of American government and society. ONeil brings to this examination a complete lack of fearof what people will think of him, or where logic will take himbut also an abiding sympathy for people whove been wronged. And, deploying considerable writing skill, he somehow covers these serious issues in a personal style that would make Welcome to Hell World a compelling read even if it were a series of dispatches about a restaurants mediocre soup, instead of Americas moral collapse. Matthew Segal, civil rights lawyer

Luke ONeil is like no other journalist working today, fusing original reporting with memoir and frequently-profane observational humor to create what feels like a new type of truth-telling: precise, fucked-up, infuriating, and, somehow, beautiful. ONeils Hell World is bleak but humane; awful but hopeful; despairing but hilarious. In leading his willing readers to confront the daily horrors of this bizarre time, he honors the subjugated while taking a long, warm piss in the powerfuls salmon tartare. This is what it looks like when a gifted writer finds his voice. Hamish McKenzie, author and co-founder of Substack

Theres nothing out there like Welcome to Hell World ; its sui generis, with a sparse, Hemingwayesque writing style that smuggles in its insights to your mind. ONeil is always landing punches, but theyre always aimed upward, with surgical precision, at the people whove so meticulously crafted the Hell World we live in. ONeil harnesses the dual forces of social transformationanger, and white-hot empathywith relentless skill. Talia Lavin, author of Culture Warlords

For a certain type of journalist, digging into the deep, dark secrets of modern life and laying it out there for the world to see is the only work worth pursuing. At Hell World , Luke is doing just thatand you can tell that hes loving the work, even when it hurts. This collection better be just the first of many. Eoin Higgins, Common Dreams

Luke is a beautiful and brilliant writer. His unapologetic commentary is deeply satisfying. The best part is how he invites you in like youre in your dorm with your best friends, but his words get lodged in your brain and haunt you. Shaleen Title, Massachusetts drug policy activist

All rights information:

Visit our website at www.orbooks.com

First printing 2019

2019 Luke ONeil

Scary bunny illustrations by Nicole Barr.

Many of these essays appeared, sometimes in different form, in Luke ONeils Substack newsletter Welcome to Hell World.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, except brief passages for review purposes.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data: A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

Typeset by Lapiz Digital.

Eagle cover: paperback ISBN 978-1-68219-211-5 ebook ISBN 978-1-68219-215-3

Cliff cover: paperback ISBN 978-1-68219-219-1 ebook ISBN 978-1-68219-218-4

To be caught happy in a world of misery was for an honest
man the most despicable of crimes.

Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

If you wonder what I need, I will tell you just what I need.
But I gotta hear your wondering sound.

Family Band, Moonbeams

You cant stay angry forever, or so Im told.

Pianos Become the Teeth, Hiding

CONTENTS

I DONT KNOW WHAT THIS BOOK IS

S ome guy from New Zealand named Hamish wanted to meet me for drinks to talk about newsletters in the summer of 2018. He said he wanted me to write a newsletter because he was starting a newsletter company and I said I dont know mate that seems like a lot of work. People from New Zealand love it when you call them mate because it makes them feel at home and you seem worldly. Fine I said then the day came when he was here in Boston and I said I was too hungover to go out on account of the recently acquired alcoholism I was cultivating but he guilted me into it and then I went and we had some drinks and then I wasnt hungover anymore which is called punting your problems into tomorrow.

As luck would have it I happened to be at one of the lowest points of my writing career and my life lol and quickly running out of money. I had been writing for a lot of fancy publications for years and that was pretty cool because when you say you write for a place people have heard of they think you are smart and good except it wasnt making me happy it had been making me miserable for a long time to be a part of the content generation cycle and besides that the industry was crumbling around me and still is. What if you could write about whatever you want Hamish said. I dont know if he actually said that but its better for the story if I attribute it to him. Fuck it I said Ill write the stupid newsletter I said and I am glad I did because now the newsletter is a book and once you have a book out everyone thinks youre smart and good so thank you for that mate.