DAMNATION DIARIES

Damnation Diaries is a dark satire that follows a sinner in Hell, infernal inmate PKRx354, who, after 300 years, decides to get therapy. He's referred to Fred Greenberg—Hell's only therapist—who ironically enough treats both sinners and "staff." Throughout, we learn about our protagonist and his relationships in the Underworld: his girlfriend, mother, father, fellow residents, and, of course, Fred. Equal parts horror comedy and character-driven drama, the book uniquely combines the look of mainstream comics with literary content, depicting Hell's ornate landscape, which serves as a richly surreal but familiar mirror of New York and other large cities: rapidly gentrifying, fairly organized, bustling with activities, and a perfect setting for caustic social commentary. The setting may be imaginary, but the urgent social issues the story addresses are not: growing economic inequality, student debt, political crisis, terrorism, and the attempt to find peace even in the most hostile of circumstances.

Peter Rostowsky is a Russian-born artist and writer who emigrated from the former Soviet Union as a political refugee in 1980. His fine art has been shown widely in the US and abroad and exhibited at museum venues such as PS1/MoMA, The Walker Art Center, MCA Santa Barbara, Artspace, The Blanton Museum of Art, S.M.A.K., as well as a host of private galleries.