OcUK Book Club #10: Hunter S. Thompson - Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

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Here it is folks! Give yourself a pat on the back if you've managed this far and welcome aboard if you're just beginning to get involved. We've finally reached double digits!

If you're interested in getting involved, a list of our past threads can be found here.

Our tenth book as submitted by Malakite and chosen by nydryl is Hunter S. Thompson's fantastic Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream.

Described by Thompson as "[A] failed experiment in the gonzo journalism." for which he became best known, it is now required reading for many in American literature studies. It is a book that Mikal Gilmore explains as trying to "[...] give voice to the mind-set of a generation that had held high ideals and was now crashing hard against the walls of American reality."

It has also been adapted into 1998 screenplay of the same name which I'm sure many of you have seen, or at least will now.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_and_Loathing_in_Las_Vegas

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream is a novel by Hunter S. Thompson, illustrated by Ralph Steadman. The book is a roman à clef, rooted in autobiographical incidents. The story follows its protagonist, Raoul Duke, and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo, as they descend on Las Vegas to chase the American Dream through a drug-induced haze. The novel first appeared as a two-part series in Rolling Stone magazine in 1971, was printed as a book in 1972, and was later adapted into a film of the same name in 1998 starring Johnny Depp and Benicio del Toro.
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Enjoy!
 
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I've got a copy of the novel right in front of me. I'll be taking part in this, for the first time.
 
OriginalJonty said:
Just wondering if this was still happening?
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Surely is, my copy arrived on Saturday and I'm about 3/4 of the way through it. I could probably finish tonight if I was so inclined but I'll still need something to read on the train tomorrow. Once I'm done I'll generally post to say that I'm finished and maybe put down an overall impression then give it a couple of weeks before posting anything that might be considered a spoiler to let other people finish off for themselves.
 
I read it back in August but I'll start it again this week when I'm done with what I'm on just now. Will post up with a few non spoiling thoughts when I'm done next week sometime.
 
Read it last week for the second time ironically.

I find it an absoluty brilliant book. It is fun to read, it is always active and constant, and this is definitly one of my favourite things about Hunter S Thompson.

His mind throws you, and you really have to be involved in the book. A lazy reader wont appreciate the whole story. You need your mind to be active and imagine.

Some people really won't like it, but i for one do!

(Imo it is much much bettr than Rum Diary, although that is ok, Fear and Loathing just releases ideas that are uncomprehendable to a lot of us)
 
Ah just noticed this thread. Glad to see my suggestion got picked :D

Will post my own thoughts on the book later when I an not at work.
 
As expected finished it today and I rather enjoyed it, maybe slightly less than Hells Angels but more than the Rum Diaries - I may have to rewatch the film too as from what I recall it is one of relatively few films that go some way to doing justice to the book. Once we've got a few more people finished I'll have to think about posting up some proper thoughts on it.
 
When I was about 14 years old a friend of mine told me about a film he'd seen where a deranged man stumbled around a demolished hotel room, smoking a cigarette and wearing a six foot long lizard's tail. That was my introduction to Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas.

I couldn't get my hands on the film so settled on reading the book which, to my amazement, was on my father's bookshelf. I casually read it over the course of a summer. Picking it up whenever boredom took hold.

What struck me first was Thompson's style of writing. His brutal honesty and conversational tone removed any barriers between me and the author. It was as if I was along for the ride, from one chaotic encounter to the next. Never before had I read anything so involving.


Permeated by images of brutality and violence steeped in pitch black humour, Fear & Loathing remains a personal favourite to this day.

Having never attempted to review a book before and not wishing to spoil it for anyone who hasn't finished it yet it's hard to know what else to say. This was the book that introduced me to the savage world view of Hunter S. Thompson. For that, I shall always be grateful.



To those of you who enjoyed this book but aren't sure where to turn next then might I suggest The Great Shark Hunt. And if you'd like to learn more about Dr. Gonzo (aka Oscar Zeta Acosta) then I recommend you read Revolt of the Cockroach People and Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo.
 
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Dark_Injection said:
(Imo it is much much bettr than Rum Diary, although that is ok, Fear and Loathing just releases ideas that are uncomprehendable to a lot of us)
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I have to disagree a little with you there sir, I absolutely loved Rum Dairy. I thought it was a great read and captured the mood and lifestyle that was within Cuba during the late 50's, and as usual he creates the lead to be a drunken, anarchic, violent anti-hero, that you cant help rooting for throughout. (Movie comes out this year)

Dont get me wrong though, I have read F&L 3 or 4 times and with each read managed to find passages and experiences that I missed before. It is one of the best books I have read for the simple fact that you really get lost in the passages and end up like you have been on every high and low with him through it. Its a semi-autobiographical account of a lifestyle you may never get close to experiencing, with 2 men on the verge of self-destruction all in an attempt to find what they call the American Dream, which in the end but their own account they don't. A highly recommended read and a book you simply cannot put down.
 
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jp_bl_68 said:
Fingers crossed. But this film's production and release have been delayed time and time again. Also, they've made some major changes (no Yeamon :( ).
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Well lets hope it does come out, thought Depp was excellent in Fear and Loathing. To cut Yeamon from the film makes no sense, that lovable beach-bum was a great character in the book. But then again since when did movie adaptations of books even do them full or any justice really?
 
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