Joan Singleton is best known for writing Because of Winn Dixie, but will now turn her talents toward a less family friendly book adapation she hopes to produce with her Husband Ralph Singleton. John Belushi is Dead, a novle by Kathy Charles that follows an odd pink haired girl named Hilda who has a twisted fascination with the death of celebrities.
Hilda and Benji’s morbid pastime takes an unexpected turn when they meet Hank, the elderly, reclusive tenant of a dilapidated Echo Park apartment where a silent movie star once stabbed himself to death with a pair of scissors. Hilda feels a strange connection with Hank and comes to care deeply for her paranoid new friend as they watch old movies together and chat the sweltering afternoons away. But when Hank’s downstairs neighbor Jake, a handsome screenwriter, inserts himself into the equation and begins to hint at Hank’s terrible secrets, Hilda must decide what it is she’s come to Echo Park searching for . . . and whether her fascination with death is worth missing out on life.
Sounds pretty dark and twisted.
Have you read the book?
What do you think about a relationship drama that explores such a dark fascination?
