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Lunch » Tags » Books » Reviews » Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas: A Savage Journey To The Heart Of The American Dream » User review

In a Search for the American Dream

  • Sep 20, 2010
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+5
Hunter S. Thompson was a much celebrated American journalist and writer, and "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" is his most famous book. Written in a style of "gonzo journalism," this seminal book aimed to capture as much as possible the wild and reckless drug-induced adventures of Thompson and his lawyer friend over the course of two journalistic assignments in Las Vegas in the early 70s. The actual protagonists of "Fear and Loathing" were actually slightly altered from the real world personages, as is probably a big part of the actual narrative in order to create more dramatic and deliberately outrageous events.

This is perhaps one of the most entertaining and original books that I have read in my life. Some of the slang and jargon feels a bit dated, but overall the book has aged remarkably well. It is as fresh and lively today as when it was first written. I actually did laugh out loud on many occasions while reading it. Most of the time there was a total disconnect between the cognitive parts of my brain and the parts that were in charge of making me laugh - while I was positively outrageous with some behaviors and situations, parts of me couldn't help but laugh.

The book was also meant as a form of social criticism, especially of the over-the-top consumer culture as symbolized by Las Vegas on one hand, and the overly prudish middle-America in the form of small town police officers and Sheriffs. In the middle of it all Hunter S. Thompson was in a search of the American Dream, and what he finally found it was a burnt-down psychiatry club. The symbolism of it needs no further explanation.

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More Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas... reviews
review by . September 26, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
Hunter S. Thompson was a much celebrated American journalist and writer, and "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" is his most famous book. Written in a style of "gonzo journalism," this seminal book aimed to capture as much as possible the wild and reckless drug-induced adventures of Thompson and his lawyer friend over the course of two journalistic assignments in Las Vegas in the early 70s. The actual protagonists of "Fear and Loathing" were actually slightly altered from …
review by . July 12, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
I laugh every time I read this book, and I have probably read it about 20 times. The scene that gets me isn't in the film, so you won't remember it from the film. Duke, having nearly escaped Las Vegas, is called back into town and is given his second rental car, the Great White Whale. He convinces the boy at the service station to fill up the tires with air to the point of danger and drives around, enjoying his newly enhanced handling, feeling every pebble on the road, but turning on a …
review by . July 01, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
I do not even know where to start.  I guess you can start at the beginning with...THE BATS!      This is a very good fictional representation of the early 70's drug scene.  The tale follows a writer and his attorney as they go to Vegas so that the writer can cover a race.  Very actual work is done, unless you call being a social deviant work.  As the story goes on, so does the rampant amount of drug abuse that could kill an adult elephant, but not …
Quick Tip by . July 17, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
While the thought and intention behind the book is genius, it is a disgusting, vile, crude, and uncomfortable read.
Quick Tip by . July 16, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
A sucker for Thompson's scathing and brutal narratives and point of view, I absolutely love all of his work. Check out the Gilliam flick, if you haven't yet.
Quick Tip by . July 13, 2010
A crazy journey, that one can actually join with Gonzo!
Quick Tip by . July 12, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
Funny book, and a funny movie too. I read that Hunter S. Thompson made it all up though. An interesting look into the drug culture.
Quick Tip by . July 08, 2010
wonderfully brillant, thompson is a true seeker of distraction
Quick Tip by . July 05, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
buy the ticket, take the ride!
Quick Tip by . July 04, 2010
posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More
Hunter Thompson was a sick young man and this told the story of one of his sickest tales.
see all Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas... reviews (22)
About the reviewer
Bojan Tunguz ()
Ranked #65
I am a benevolent rascal. I love lounging in bed on a Sunday morning. Rainy days make me melancholy, but in a good kind of way. I am an incorrigible chocoholic. I hate Mondays, but I get over it by Wednesday. … more
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About this book

Wiki

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is the best chronicle of drug-soaked, addle-brained, rollicking good times ever committed to the printed page.  It is also the tale of a long weekend road trip that has gone down in the annals of American pop culture as one of the strangest journeys ever undertaken.

Now this cult classic of gonzo journalism is a major motion picture from Universal, directed by Terry Gilliam and starring Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro.  Opens everywhere on May 22, 1998.
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Books, Cafe Libri, Biographies, Hunter S Thompson, Gonzo Journalism
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Details

ISBN-10: 0679785892
ISBN-13: 978-0679785897
Author: Hunter S. Thompson
Genre: General Fiction
Publisher: Vintage; 2nd edition (May 12, 1998)
Date Published: Original Copyright 1971
Format: Paperback: 224 pages, Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
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"A cultural artifact"
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