Hyperbole

The most violent comedy since The Bible.DC gets destroyed.Harland gets wasted.America gets the leader it deserves.This pitch-black satire follows a disillusioned pothead and his friends navigating an American minefield of domestic terrorists, power-grabbing opportunists, and meaningless dead-end jobs. Philosophical, irreverent, and sometimes oddly hopeful, Hyperbole explores what might become of the laymen when America’s head gets chopped off.Fans of transgressive fiction and dark humor should grab this book with both hands and not eat or sleep until it’s consumed.＂Hyperbole＂ is the debut novel by author Ryan Parmenter, who has performed in and around Detroit, Michigan as a comic improviser, a teahouse musician with JRS, and as leader of the defunct progressive band Eyestrings.

Ryan Parmenter began writing in elementary school, to begrudgingly fulfill the required daily journal quotas. A typical conclusion to an entry read: ＂There, 3/4 of a page. Are you happy?＂ In high school Ryan began recording music using MIDI sequencing, as well as performing in his high school’s annual Pop Concerts. He released his first solo album, ＂Helvetica＂ under his initials RCP, at age 17. As he graduated from the University of Michigan with an English degree (which degrees, he likes to joke, can be found on rolls next to the toilet), he began musical jamming with friends, which led to the founding of the progressive band Eyestrings. Eyestrings played Metro Detroit venues and found some fans in the eastern United States, playing the first Rites of Spring festival in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania in 2005, and twice playing Orion Studios in Baltimore, Maryland. Eyestrings released the albums ＂Burdened Hands＂ (2004) and ＂Consumption＂ (2005). The band broke up and Ryan turned back to prose, completing his first (and yet unpublished) novel ＂Hole Filler＂ in 2007. Ryan released the solo albums ＂The Noble Knave＂ (2006) and ＂Sad Men＂ (2009). He joined the Second City improvisation training program, graduating from the Second City Conservatory program in 2009 along with the woman who would become his wife. Ryan performed as an improviser and wrote and performed in original stage shows, including the bizarre variety show ＂Shim & D’rothy＂ (2009, again with his future wife) and the one-man character revue, ＂Jerks＂ (2011) at Go Comedy in Ferndale, Michigan. He has played live music as part of the trio JRS since 2010. Ryan also wrote the musical score for the satirical ＂RoboCop: The Musical,＂ which had two successful runs at Go Comedy. In 2010, Ryan began writing what became ＂Hyperbole,＂ a novel exploring themes such as terrorism, divorce, suicide, meaningless employment, relationship fidelity, and happiness. He e-published the novel in 2012 along with a 7-song album, ＂Hyperbole: The Original Novel Soundtrack,＂ based upon song titles mentioned throughout the novel. Ryan then produced and recorded the audiobook version of the novel. In 2013, ＂Hyperbole＂ got its first print release under the imprint Rype, along with the audiobook and e-book.