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Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Paperback)
by Hunter S. Thompson
| Category:
Fiction |
| Market price: ¥ 148.00
MSL price:
¥ 138.00
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Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
MSL rating:
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| MSL Pointer Review:
A book about a weekend in Las Vegas full of drug-induced debauchery, Fear and Loathing is brilliantly written and consistenly entertaining. |
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Author: Hunter S. Thompson
Publisher: Vintage; 2nd edition
Pub. in: May, 1998
ISBN: 0679785892
Pages: 224
Measurements: 8.0 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BA00464
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- MSL Picks -
This nonfiction account of Hunter S. Thompson's search for the American Dream is a trip you won't soon forget. It is not for the meek or squeamish. The substance abuse is staggering. I imagine there is some degree of exaggeration. Thompson himself has admitted as much in interviews. I must warn that the consumption in this book will be shocking if not scandalous to many.
Fear and Loathing rocks with an unerring intensity. This book is written like a typewriter tanked on meth. The road trip, the hitchhiker, the booze and the drugs, spending an employer’s money destroying hotel rooms. It is a full force assault on the senses. It left me dazed and confused. It is hilarious at times but in that guilty way when you know that you really shouldn't be laughing. Raoul Duke is like Jerry Seinfeld in that you know he's a jerk but you can't help liking him.
Thompson was an extreme individual. He was notorious for missing deadlines. Reading this book makes it easy to see why. He was very absorbed in the moment. He seemed more intent on getting hammered than on writing the book. But in the end, his extraordinary talent allowed him to produce an amazing book.
The description of drug use will be disturbing to many readers. LSD, mescaline, cocaine, ether. Thompson doesn't seem to be very discriminant in what he'll introduce to his bloodstream. His consumption assumes staggering proportions here.
The writing is surprisingly good. Thompson is able to convey the sensation of being there as all this insanity unfolds. He had a fine grasp of the English language and a deftness at cutting a good sentence. The carefree excitement of youthfulness is captured here. I always feel more alive when I finish this book. It is also a book that I refer to a lot. It is fun to read a single paragraph and then put it away.
This book is for students of the 60s and for readers who like an intense, tumultuous trip into madness. It is shocking and even offensive to some but it is a great ride for those that like a bit of shock value in their entertainment. Truly great - don't miss it! Along with Fear and Loathing, I also recommend The Loser’s Club by Richard Perez, a book whose writing was obviously strongly influenced by Thompson.
(From quoting George Tibbs, USA)
Target readers:
General readers
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From the Publisher:
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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| View all 12 comments |
Tom Wolfe (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-05 00:00>
A scorching epochal sensation! |
The New York Times Book Review (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-05 00:00>
The best book on the dope decade. |
Larry Flint (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-05 00:00>
Hunter S. Thompson's famed novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas creates a vivid portrayal of a drug-afflicted life for a non-using reader. Written during the era of drug use, Thompson's novel leads one to believe that if you were alive during this period, you surely would not have remembered it. The true depths of Thompson's mind are displayed through the various hallucinations and psychedelic images envisioned by the main characters Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo. If maniac, crazed drug trips are not your style, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas would not be a number one choice on your literary register.
As early as the first chapter, the reader realizes the magnitude of the drug affiliation in the story when Duke states, "We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half-full of cocaine and a whole galaxy of multicolored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers..." Thompson uses Duke as a character in which he is really portraying himself. This technique, known as "Gonzo," places the journalist into the story and allows the writer to show action with himself being involved. This style is used in various works of Thompson and is very prevalent in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
Due to Thompson's journalistic background, another device that is frequently used in his work is the process of analyzing everything around him. Thompson, being portrayed as Raoul Duke, presents the entire story as an observation and with an analysis. Despite his inapt sense of judgment due to the drugs, the main character still leads the reader through a plot of a great journey into the heart of Las Vegas. Duke suspends the reader in a world of fantasies that occur while visiting the great city while still leaving behind the dark images of drug abuse.
The true evil side of a drug addiction comes to mind in thrilling scenes such as Dr. Gonzo's trip in the bath tub. He considers suicide by electrocution while listening to the song "White Rabbit." Duke's lunatic encounter with the monsters in the lobby of the hotel takes the reader down a spiraling staircase in the depths of true insanity. All of these psychotic experiences make Fear and Loathing an intriguing and stimulating read. Although some consider the novel an immature, drug pushing, anarchic story; it is truly a witty masterpiece.
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Kara (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-05 00:00>
Hunter S. Thompson, in my opinion, is one of the most phenominal journalists to ever live. He is responsable for the term "Gonzo", which refers to off-the-wall journalism. His work is a depiction of his own life, which consisted heavily of hard booze and all the drugs he could get his hands on. Although he did not live his life as what society would these days consider "normal" he had a unique style in his writing which will forever be remembered and loved. |
View all 12 comments |
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