I’m pretty sure Chuck Klosterman is the author that I have read the most and I haven’t even read all of his books. I’m only missing a couple – and let’s be honest – you know after writing this, I’m going to order them to complete my collection. With his latest release, The Nineties, out this month I knew this was the perfect time to dive into his bibliography.

I can’t remember when I was first introduced to Klosterman but it must have been somewhere around Sex, Drugs, And Cocoa Puffs. I was hooked. These were the essays that I wanted to write when I was in university but didn’t know I could. We talked about this a lot during our episode on Shea Serrano’s Movies (And Other Things).

Here are what I consider the best Chuck Klosterman books, which everyone needs to read (in no particular order). 

Jette’s Top 4 Chuck Klosterman Books 

Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto (2003) 

This is where it all began. I read this working at my first Starbucks location when I moved to Toronto. It started the obsession. 

The first essay is called “This is Emo”—enough said if you know me. Any and all things pop culture end up in this book. The Sims, Guns N’ Roses, the rivalry in the 1980s between the Lakers and the Celtics, porn, and Saved by the Bell. If you’re not sure where to start with Klosterman, this is a great way to get your feet wet.

Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story (2005)

Klosterman went on a road trip around the US hitting spots where famous musicians died. Sign me up! It’s a road trip story. It’s a music story. It’s a story about death. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted. 

You connect with people Klosterman met along the way, as well as with some women in his life. Visiting the locales where Duane Allman and Kurt Cobain died are very surreal moments. It feels a bit like a memoir which makes it even better. People’s fascination with celebrity death is always something that has lived in a weird space of culture, but it’s certainly not going away any time soon.

I Wear the Black Hat: Grappling with Villains (Real and Imagined) (2013)

Give me a good villain any day. This book dives into the nature of villainy but in classic Klosterman pop culture fashion. Klosterman works to determine what a villain really is. Are they the smartest person who cares the least? Is there more to it than that? 

I never would have thought I needed an essay on Andrew Dice Clay, but I did. Perez Hilton, Monica Lewinsky, Fred Durst—everyone is covered in this eight essay collection. It makes you think about what a true villain is and maybe you will reconsider people you previously labelled villains. 

But What If We’re Wrong? Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past (2016)

I could not put this book down. The premise is something that I love—what if everything we believe is actually wrong? What if in one hundred years we learn that red isn’t red or that our perception of gravity is backwards? Just think about that for a second.

Each essay tackles a topic so deftly that your mind is blown pondering all the possibilities. Klosterman talks about television and sports and multiverses. You know we love talking about multiverse stuff. This book might be my highest recommendation for everyone.

All Chuck Klosterman Books are the Best Chuck Klosterman Books

You won’t go wrong picking up any of Klosterman’s books. Start from the beginning. Grab a random one. You will enjoy yourself. We certainly did when we read Eating The Dinosaur for an episode. We STILL talk about the time travel essay. 

I’ve read almost all of his essay collections but haven’t read any of his fiction like Downtown Owl or Raised in Captivity—yet. I’m not a re-reader but I definitely want to go back and read through my collection again. But first, I’m diving into The Nineties! It’s when I grew up and how my entire view of pop culture was shaped. 

Have you read any Klosterman? Let us know in the comments below!