“A story about love, death, driving, narcissism, the ill-advised glamorization of recreational drug use, and — to a lesser extent — prehistoric elephants of the Midwestern plains.”

Fans of Chuck Klosterman take notice — “Killing Yourself to Live” is not the music lover’s wet dream that “Fargo Rock City” was.

It is, however, every bit as absorbing and just as full of pop-culture factoids. Everything from the Green Bay Packers and Kobe Bryant to cocaine and “Saved by the Bell” are touched upon in Klosterman’s newest pleasure.

“This is a story about love, death, driving, narcissism, America, the ill-advised glamorization of recreational drug use, not having sex, eating breadsticks at Olive Garden, talking to strangers, feeling nostalgic for the extremely recent past, movies you’ve never seen, KISS, Radiohead, Rod Stewart, and — to a lesser extent — prehistoric elephants of the Midwestern plains. If these are not things that interest you, do not read this book.”

This quote, “written opposite the cover page,” gives the reader an idea of what to expect out of this 6,557-mile car trip that Chuck Klosterman makes across America as he ponders death and past relationships.

Along the way, Klosterman reflects on some of life’s toughest questions — which is a better song, “Slow Ride” or “Free Ride”? Can 20 million Elvis fans be wrong? Did Radiohead’s “Kid A” predict 9/11? Is “Layla” a better song because the keyboard player ended up in a mental asylum? Is Christian cinema the genre of the future? Why is Led Zeppelin the ultimate rock ‘n’ roll band?

All these questions and many more are answered by Klosterman in a way that only he can pull off.

Is killing yourself the best career move a rock star can make? Why do rock ‘n’ roll stars who kill themselves — “with the exception of Shannon Hoon” — get so much bigger after they are dead? Chuck Klosterman wants to find out too, and he visits every location in America where a famous rock star died in search for those answers.

Randy Rhoads played on two Ozzy Osbourne records before he tragically died in a plane crash, yet some people consider him one of the greatest guitar players ever. Sid Vicious was a no-talent hack who couldn’t play his instrument, yet after the famous Chelsea Hotel incident, he became a god.

In the spring of 1994, Pearl Jam was much more popular than Nirvana, and there was a Nirvana backlash of sorts spreading throughout America. Yet after Kurt Cobain killed himself, “Saint Kurt” was the most important thing to ever happen to music.

Klosterman’s “epic article” was originally intended to appear solely in Spin Magazine, however, he felt he had enough good information to write a book. Interspersed with Klosterman’s analysis of dead rock stars are detailed accounts of his past relationships gone sour.

Only Klosterman, a man with 2,233 CDs, could compare all his past girlfriends to the members of KISS “past and present,” and only Klosterman could make detailed accounts of weekend trips with his girlfriends sound interesting.

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