7.4 /10 1 Votes7.4
4/5 Barnes & Noble Series Circles of Heck Publication date July 22, 2008 Pages 304 Page count 304 | 3.4/5 Media type Hardcover Originally published 22 July 2008 Genre Children's literature Illustrator Bob Dob | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Followed by Rapacia: The Second Circle of Heck Similar Dale E Basye books, Circles of Heck books, Children's literature |
Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go is a 2008 juvenile novel by Dale E. Basye, with jacket and interior illustrations by Bob Dob. It is published by Random House. The books feature many puns and allusions.
Contents
Summary
One day, the nerdy Milton Fauster and his kleptomaniac sister Marlo are in the Grizzly Mall of Generica, Kansas. They go into a store and Milton unwittingly steals some lip gloss.
As Marlo and Milton are running through the mall with the security guard chasing them, Milton realizes Marlo tricked him into stealing lip gloss. They take a break for a moment and they stop in front of a giant marshmallow model of a Grizzly Bear, and Milton sees Damian Ruffino, his extremely unhygienic tormentor and bully at school. He is sticking some dynamite in the marshmallow Grizzly Bear Statue's behind.
Before the mall security guards can catch up with them, the marshmallow Grizzly Bear explodes and Milton and Marlo both die. Damian also dies. The last thing they see is flaming marshmallow all over the mall. Now, Milton and Marlo are holding hands and plummeting downward and Milton feels a slight sting. He and Marlo land, and they found themselves in a terrible school in Limbo where the principal Bea "Elsa" Bubb torments them with things they wish they could have. But, Damian is getting the special treatment.
Classes include home-ec class with Lizzie Borden, ethics with Richard Nixon, and gym with Blackbeard the Pirate. The children are terrified. They now find themselves in Limbo, the waiting area for the Nine Circles of Heck, which include Rapacia, Blimpo, Precocia, Sadia, Snivel, Fibble, Lipptor (Wise Acres), and Dupli-City. When Milton meets Virgil, his new best friend, they and Marlo plan an escape to return to Earth, instead of spending the rest of their lives tormented in Heck.
Each book in the series deals with a realm of the afterlife of Heck.
Reception
"Parents and readers ages 9-13 who don't mind theological liberties being taken with the hereafter are in for a treat with Dale E. Basye's very funny debut novel."
"In this entertaining tale, style counts for more than plot, but readers will nonetheless cheer when Milton -- rather than being demoralized by the ghastly 1970s tunes piped into the hellish Heck -- is inspired by one of them to stage the most daring breakout in . . . eternity."
Subsequent Books in the Series
Film adaptation
A movie based on Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go is in development with MGM, with Tony-nominated director Alex Timbers attached to direct and Academy Award-nominated writer/director Chris Weitz writing the screenplay.