Ruination in Bloom is a masterful collection of Decadent, or Neo-Decadent poetry, a rare flower for the connoisseurs of all things macabre, grotesque and fantastic.
 
Originally published in 2015 by Ex Occidente Press in an edition of only 85 copies, Purple Bearded Uncle offers this new edition, subsidized by a poem not in the previous edition.
 
Who is Charles Schneider? Well, it depends on who you ask. For fans of Weird Fiction he is the author of The Mauve Embellishments, a book described by no-less than Thomas Ligotti as “a display of moral and mental deterioration.” For fans of ironic Gen X nostalgia, Schneider is the editor of the 1992 Feral House publication CAD, which mimicked the boozy debauchery of mid-century America, and featured contributions from the likes of Coop and Dan Clowes. And for fans of B-movies, Schneider is recognizable from his bit character parts in films like Bloodsucking Strippers and Bride of Re-Animator.
 
This cinematic sideline dovetails with another Clowes connection as Schneider portrayed the weird TV comedian watched by Rebecca and Enid in the 2001 film, Ghost World. “This is one of my best friends, Charles Schneider, who I’ve known since my art school days,” says Clowes on the film’s commentary track. The cartoonist and screenwriter goes on to explain that several big-name comedians auditioned for the part, but they were all ultimately found to be “too, like, actually funny.” Sufficiently awkward, the part went to Schneider, which was appropriate as he had created the character himself ten years earlier, and Clowes “stole it,” first for his "Ghost World" comic book, and then the film version.
 
Schneider’s career is too strange and diverse to detail in-full here, but let it not be forgotten that the man is also a poet, and author of this macabre collection Ruination in Bloom, now back in-print in a limited edition from Purple Bearded Uncle. This new edition is beautifully produced, with the entirety of the text printed in rich red and blue ink, and features a full-color reproduction of one of Schneider’s paintings on the inside back cover. (Did I mention that our man also did the “death paintings” from ART SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL?) If you’re a connoisseur of the strange and unusual, this book will be a worthy addition to your collection.
—Aaron Lange
 
PAPERBACK EDITION
 
Limited to 100 copies.
8.25x5.75in, 68 pages, thread-stitched. and printed in Italy.
Cover: ivory 240gsm felt-marked Aquarello Italian paper.
Interior: 120gsm Italian ecological paper made from seaweed and recycled fibre.
Interior text: printed entirely in scarlet and dark blue inks. 
Printed in Italy, 2025
ISBN: 978-1-64525-178-1
 
HARDCOVER EDITION
 
Limited to 60 copies.
8.25x5.75in, 68 pages, thread-stitched. and printed in Italy
Red clothe with embossed spine.
Interior: 120gsm Italian ecological paper made from seaweed and recycled fibre, with 140gsm flamingo-colored endpapers.
Interior text: printed entirely in scarlet and dark blue inks. 
Printed in Italy, 2025
ISBN: 978-1-64525-178-1