American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis)

Oh my. I couldn't wait to get my hands (and my eyes) on this book. I was desperately in the mood for something morbid and misanthropic, and I got what I paid for (yes, I did go into a *non-corporate* bookstore to purchase my own copy). This book is humorous, deeply disturbing, and rather profound, I think: as a cultural satire, an exploration of insanity, and a story from the point of view of a truly despicable villain. Amazingly, by the end of the book (which consists mostly of descriptions of five things: articles of designer clothing, food at fancy restaurants, the villain's favorite music, his sexual adventures, and the appalling ways in which he tortures and murders his victims), our villain manages to become almost a tragic protagonist. I'm not sure how this happens, but it does.
This book is certainly not for the faint of heart.