Hairstyles of the Damned is an honest and affectionate depiction of wanting to belong, but never quite belonging. Joe Menos pitch-perfect prose illuminates the tumultuous realities of American adolescence, the disintegration of the modern family, and the way a mix-tape can change a persons life. Following the riotous exploits of Brian, a Catholic-school malcontent, and his best friend Gretchen, a punk-rock girl fond of brawling, this work of fiction unflinchingly pursues the truth in discovering what it means to develop your own identity.