5 comments about Are You Somebody?: The Accidental Memoir of a Dublin Woman.

1. This was a slow read for me; I had to force myself to pick it up each night. I found the writing fragmented with references to many people (particularly writers) I had never heard of. The subtitle "An accidental memoir" is fitting becomes the book seems to be constructed of disjoint notes and memories (many involving drinking). A recurring theme is Faolain's disappointment with her parents' behavior (particularly her mother's alcoholism). I felt that Faolain was a bit self pitying (which she acknowledges in the book). It wasn't until the end when she discusses her surprise at being alone and her loneliness that I became more engaged in her story. Until that point, Faolain's story was a whirlwind of working, drinking, and traveling interwoven with criticisms of her parents. I am surprised that this book was a best seller and I wonder what I am missing.



2. I am astonished at the 5 star reviews for this book. Pay attention to what other readers are saying. I read this book because it was our book club selection of the month. Out of many years in book club, this was the worst book we have read. I am writing this review so others may be spared by the glowing marks of 'professional' reviewers.
   
   It's difficult to describe how rampant the name-dropping was in this book. There were parts of the book in which 10 or more names would appear per page for dozens of pages. I don't care if the names are notable authors, it's boring to read lists of names! This was not writing, this was 'list making'.
   
   The book couldn't hold a theme for more than a couple sentences. (spoilers next)... The author has a miscarriage, which gets just 2 or 3 sentences of attention. The author is raped. Apparently something as life shattering as that gets only a brief mention as well. There are many traumatic and life-changing events that are barely explored in the book, because the look is too busy name-dropping every person she has met.
   
   This memoir should have been exciting, it should have been a great book. What an amazing life she has led, against tragedy and great odds. Yet somehow she manages to make this story sound boring.
   
   An interesting development is the 'Afterward' after the book has ended. It's so well written you can't help but wonder if it was done by the same author? The first 20 pages and the Afterward of this book are great, the 200 pages in the middle are a mess. Do yourself a favor and pay attention to the reviews here. Life is short and there so many great books to read, I regret I'll never get the time back I spent reading this disappointing book.



3. This is a splendidly written autobiography, unbelievably rich in detail and raw emotion. While other reviewers have ably described her life's journey - from a chaotic household with alcoholic parents to a very good job as TV producer and then columnist - this is also a beautiful and vivid evocation of a changing Ireland. O'Faolain provides the grittiest of portraits, of a stalled society that is emerging from centuries of repression and excessive religiosity to a modern society. She herself embodies much of it, journeying (across class lines) from desperate loneliness (seeking love as a panacea) to a self-empowered feminist writer who has the strength to keep going. It is deep and gets you to reflect on your own predicament, particularly middle age.
   
   Warmly recommended.



4. Nuala O'Faolain writes reasonably well. She has developed her craft enough to be labeled lucid, although inspired isn't a word I would use. When she writes about the shift in the concept of family that has taken place over her lifetime she can hold my interest. But what she did with whom over the course of her life, without a deeper examination of why, falls more in the category of vaccuous gossip, and won't hold any serious reader's interest.
   
   Most disappointing of all is the absence of the story that Nuala can't relate, the one she has yet to understand herself. Ms. O'Faolain tells us all about her upbringing as a child of alcoholics, complete with a horrific description of seeing her mother dead drunk on the floor of her home. She even laments the alcoholic demise and early death of her younger brother. But she never admits to alcoholism herself despite a book-long description of irrefutable symptoms. Aside from a borderline flippant remark about what she refers to as a brush with alcoholism and a one-line mention of "addiction" to pills in her younger years, Nuala never conveys any grasp of the nature of the disease that killed her mother and brother, and shortened the life of her father.
   
   For those of us with more than a casual relationship with alcoholism, Ms. O'Faolain's present condition of relative isolation is revealing, as well. It's another predictable phase in the inevitable progression of the disease. She also talks (writes) like a "dry drunk," and has the dysfunctional relationships to prove it. When she writes about retiring alone to read - with a bottle of wine - it is painfully obvious that she is living in denial of her own condition, that she has missed perhaps the most important revelation available to her. As she left us at the end of her book, it appears that the lessons her ancestors paid such a terrible price to impart have escaped Ms. O'Faolain.
   
   Alcoholics and their families and friends are among the many who would want to read "Are You Somebody?," and they want to read it with the hope that an understanding of alcoholism was reached by the author, especially after such a traumatic lifetime experience with the disease. Nuala has yet to absorb that lesson. When she does, the story she can relate will acquire a depth that escapes her present version.



5. I love the flow of Nuala's writing style. So beautifully written, almost poetic. I find myself reading some passages over many times to contemplate what is being said. She's so insightful to human character.

5 comments about Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson.

1. This is a very good book. I recommend it to any people who are inspired by Hunter S. Thompson. Good read.



2. You'd think that what is essentially a biography of one of the greatest writers in our time would at least be well written. It's not.



3. 
   I'm of two minds about this book. Hunter gave his life keeping Raoul Duke and the Gonzo image alive. Is it fair to draw back the curtain and peer into the wings after the last act? I don't know. I am a huge fan of Hunter's writing, and that is what is important. That's what Hunter would want us to cherish and remember. His brilliant prose did not come easily, it was crafted carefully, and arduously. All great writers benefit from great editing and criticism. Jann was a part of the process and seeks proper recognition for his efforts toward that end. Without Jann, and Rolling Stone, who knows what would have become of Hunter. Many wanted to believe that Raoul Duke was real, that he could just keep on tripping, forever young, and indestructible. Hunter Thompson was an addict, an alcoholic, a narcissist, and a user in every sense of the word. He was a troubled soul and an extraordinarily difficult person. His life was filled with enablers. Could he have written without them? Could he have stopped using? Sadly, his fans were his greatest suppliers, free drugs pushed at the addict from every direction, an impossible situation. I found it hard to read this and not feel we had all been complicit in his destruction by applauding his self-immolation. Would Hunter have wanted us to read this book? I don't think so. This book shows him to be just a pathetic and pitiful addict as a man, with all that entails. I want to remember the incredible talent and brilliance, not the clown act, or the drug addict/alcoholic, or the narcissist who was cruel and manipulative to most of those near to him. If you really want to know, read the book. Otherwise, read Hunter's work, and leave the man to rest in peace.



4. The truth is this man was difficult, selfish, irresponsible as a father and a husband and as an employee. I enjoyed like everyone else Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas but my admiration for this man is really limited after reading this book. I abide by the fact that it's important to be a good dad, to leave your children a good legacy both financial and emotional, and to me Hunter Thompson was important to himself only,that's the gist of it, face it folks, the man was not easy to live with, made so many people miserable, and quite frankly is not the stuff heros are made of.



5. This book presents Hunter Thompson, the good and the bad. Everything in this guy's life was extreme: his writing, his moods, his activities (drugs, alcohol, explosives, etc.). Frankly, my only negative comment about this extremely entertaining biography was Johnny Depp's overly saccharine introduction. Oh, how Johnny loved Hunter. I guess people don't want to speak ill of the dead, but, let's face it, someone who absorbs so many substances on a daily basis is not going to be Mr. Nice Guy all the time. Johnny all but canonizes the guy.
   
   I'm sure Hunter Thompson was a party animal extraordinaire. I admit it - I've daydreamed about hanging with Dr. Gonzo. This book will cure you of those pipe dreams PRONTO. His long suffering wife Sandy goes into depth about how it was to live with this out of control individual for 17 years. She typed his stuff, made the phone calls and kept the writing machine running and put up with abuse along the way. When her own sanity was at stake and she had to walk away, Hunter turned on her like a rabid dog.
   
   Hunter's son, Juan, also has a running commentary which is less explicit than his mother's. You've left with the feeling that there's a lot left unsaid. What struck me, as pointed out by his son, was how unusual (and from my view, selfish) it was for Mr. Thompson to shoot himself in the head while his family was in the house after he couldn't tolerate his pain and deterioration.

5 comments about Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa.

1. While traveling on an overland safari, I ran out of books to read. (Although I brought plenty, as an English teacher, I was devouring them as we drove through the African countryside.) Fortunately, one of the French girls in the back of the truck had just finished a book and was willing to lend it to me. She said that Mukiwa was captivating and that I wouldn't be able to put it down, and she was right. Having already visited Zimbabwe several times, I was fascinated to learn more about the white experience there, especially since I had recently read Catherine Buckle's African Tears, which also describes the current land invasions. Because many tourists don't delve deeper into Zimbabwe than a quick jaunt to Victoria Falls, Godwin's memoir is an important read. Godwin describes the reality of living in a country as tumultuous as it is beautiful. The reader can't help but gain a love of the country himself and come to understand why Godwin would risk his life in returning. Fortunately, I was able to experience a glimpse of the beauty of the country myself while visiting some of their game parks. It was on one of these drives in Hwange that I first fell in love with Africa and can understand why Godwin's parents would risk their lives by choosing to remain. I enjoyed the book so much that I purchased the sequel When a Crocodile Eats the Sun at the Johannesburg Airport. I follow the news in Africa online every day--especially the news of Zimbabwe and South Africa, and cannot express how much I value the insight that Godwin provides in both of these books. I also developed a fondness and empathy for his family as they endure the turbulent times that face Zimbabwe. Despite the many problems that face the continent, I am looking forward to my eighth trip. I have been discussing Godwin's book with my honors students and told them that I plan to read his other three--Wild at Heart, The Three of Us, and Rhodesians Never Die--before I leave.



2. All Peter Godwin's book, this one,and When a Crocodile Eats the Sun, are fabulous, easy to read, and so informative!



3. Our choice for April was especially meaningful to one of our members who had lived in Africa for over 12 years as a missionary. She was aghast at the author's mother leaving him while she did her medical duties and this was cause for a great discussion both of Africa and the decisions parents, especially mothers, so often have to make. We all thought the beginning chapters were the very best writing, just made us feel as the author had felt growing up. Especially powerful were his writing about wanting to live where it wasn't so dangerous for little boys! Lots of grief in this story, but lots of love, too.



4. Peter Godwin displays great skill in recounting his life and coming of age in Rhodesia. His personal life story touches many aspects of Rhodesian life from the UDI era through to the early parts of the ZANU(PF) Mugabe led Zimbabwe. Via his memoir you join him as a fly on the wall during the late years of Rhodesia through to the early years of Zimbabwe. Now I must say Peter Godwin weaves a beautiful narrative without interjecting any over bearing political beliefs. An excellent read!



5. Peter Godwin certainly has a story to tell. It's a story of an idyllic, if unusual childhood, a disrupted but eventually immensely successful education, military service and then two careers, one in law, planned but aborted, and then one in journalism, discovered almost by default. Listed like this these elements might sound just a bit mundane, perhaps not the subject of memoir. When one adds, however, the location, Rhodesia becoming Zimbabwe, the result is a deeply moving, in places deeply sad, as well as quite disturbing account of a life lived thus far. Mukiwa, by the way, is Shona for white man.
   
   The setting for Peter Godwin's early years was a middle class, professional and, crucially, liberal family living in eastern Rhodesia, close to the Mozambique border. I had relatives in that same area, near Umtali and Melsetter, and they used to do exactly what the Godwins did regularly which was to visit the Indian Ocean beaches near Beira. We used to get postcards from there every year, usually in the middle of our north of England winter. Envy wasn't the word...
   
   Peter Godwin's mother was a doctor and this meant that his childhood was unusual in two respects. Not many youngsters in white households had liberal-minded parents and even fewer helped their mothers conduct post mortems. Unlike most mukiwa, Peter Godwin had black friends. He learned the local language and got to know the bush. He also grew up close to death and then lived alongside it during the years of the war of independence. He describes how the war simply took over everything and labels himself as a technician in its machinations. It's a telling phrase, admitting that he did not himself want to fight anyone. Like everyone else, he was caught up in the struggle, required to actively perpetrate the violence and that is what he did.
   
   His education was disrupted. His family life was effectively destroyed. And how he managed to keep his sanity during the period I have no idea. He served most of the period in Matebeleland alongside other members of the Rhodesian armed forces and police who were not, to say the least, as liberal as he was. So in some ways he was already doubly a foreigner in that he was working in an area where he could not speak the language and was accompanied by fellow countrymen with whom he shared no beliefs or ideals. And yet he had to fight.
   
   I have never served in a war and hope I never will. But my relatives from the same area as Peter Godwin were also called up into national service and also fought the war. I had not seen them for fifteen years or so when we met after they, along with many thousands of others, as recorded by Peter Godwin, had already fled south. But for them also memories of war were deep and resented scars. It was a bloody and dirty war where, if you were lucky, you could at most trust your closest colleagues. It was a vicious conflict at times and left everyone angry. No-one won. Everyone suffered.
   
   Having eventually achieved the education he sought, Peter Godwin attempted to launch a legal career. But then, almost by default, he became a reporter. After independence, he learned of atrocities perpetrated by the Zambabwean army in the area where he had served during the war. He investigated. He reported. And then, on advice, he fled.
   
   But he did eventually return to all of the areas he knew and the last part of the book is a moving and deeply sad account of how little he recognised in the places he loved as a child. But within this, there is a moment of hope as he meets a former freedom fighter and, with humour and new friendship, the two of them realise that they had not only been enemies, but had actually been two commanders trying to kill one another on opposite sides of the same skirmish.
   
   But in the end, Peter Godwin is changed man, and his home and homeland, at least as he had experienced them, were no more. War had changed everything and everyone. No-one won.

No comments about Big Russ & Me: Father and Son--Lessons of Life.

5 comments about Personal History.

1. Absolutely perfect biography. Graham's book is frank in ways few would care to be. Her leadership of the Washington Post has been much talked about, and I'm a big fan of the paper, so it was a fascinating story. When she took over the Post in the 1960s, women could not be found in too many positions of power. She honestly discusses her difficulties, self doubts, and mistakes in ways one is not likely to find in many other places. Since I find politics interesting, I appreciated Graham's insights into the development of media over the twentieth century and her candid insider thoughts on some of the most important and powerful leaders of the 20th century.



2. It is long (642 pages), and the print is small. Why would anyone want to read it? Because every page has something of interest in it. And because this is not only the personal history of Katharine Graham, but a view of the United States from a woman reluctantly thrust into power by the death of her Washington Post husband. The time covered is from the early 1900s, when her parents met, through the early 1990s. Think of how life changed during that time.
   
   Mrs. Graham was raised by nannies in New York while her parents were busy helping out in Washington. She showed her independence by attending the radical University of Chicago and working before she married. When Katherine's father stepped down from management of the Washington Post, her husband, Phil, took his place. When Phil became ill and died, it was she who became president of the Washington Post Company.
   
   Constantly during this sweep through politics, labor relations, corporate management, the rise of feminism, the importance of communications, and much more, Graham weaves her personal growing consciousness of where she and other women stand in relationship to it all. She writes of the help she received and downplays her own acumen in becoming the only woman in the Fortune 500. Never does she flaunt who she was, who she became, and the power she held.
   
   Every page brings not only her personal insights about the (mostly) maturing of America, but also explains how she gains confidence while remaining concerned with and involved in her own family as well. An excellent read, but don't expect to finish it in one reading.
   
   by Judith Helburn
   for StorycircleBookReviews
   www.storycirclebookreviewsorg
   reviewing books by, for, and about women



3. This is a great book about a great woman! Interesting to see how even the privileged have difficult experiences in life and how it all only depend on us. We are very capable of achieving our goals and this book shows that even though it might not be easy, in the end, it can be very rewarding. This book shows a great insight in the history of newspaper business and politics.



4. My only regret is that I did not pay more attention to Katharine Graham and the Washington Post while she was alive. Through unveiling her own insecurities and illustrating how she moved into one of the most powerful women in the world, I learned US History and the trials of a CEO woman in the 1960s and forward.
   
   Ms. Graham reveals much about "inside Washington" and does a particularly good job of making the "players" come to life. I really hated to see the book end. Yet, Ms. Graham did what she set out to do -- documented a time in our history. Kathy Condon Executive Coach



5. Fantastic, gripping book, though it bogged down for me near the end with the minutia of labor/management disputes at the Washington Post. Still recommend highly.

5 comments about In an Instant: A Family's Journey of Love and Healing.

1. This story recounts the miraculous survival of news anchor Bob Woodruff. More importantly, it exposes the fear, frustration, and fatigue that Woodruff's family experienced as they guided him through months of trauma.



2. This book tells the serious story of the tragedy and triumph shared by Bob Woodruff and his wife, children, friends and co-workers when he was devastatingly injured while reporting in Iraq. The trauma of his head injury is explained in a very detailed manner, and his subsequent recovery is followed mainly from his wife's point of view, describing the horrors they all went through. The ability to deal with all of this makes this book a very moving and uplifting tale of how Bob and also our brave soldiers are coping with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and why it is important for all of us to become aware and understand this signature war injury of Iraq and Afghanistan.
   
   The poignant and matter of fact telling of the process to recovery is sprinkled with humor and makes a great read for those interested in learning how to move through this difficult situation.



3. As a longstanding fan of Bob Woodruff, I felt such sadness for him and his family when he was injured. I followed his progress as much as possible through the general media. Thank you to both Lee and Bob for sharing their stories and more importantly their feelings. As a nurse having cared for patients with brain injuries, I am delighted to see him doing so well and his family adjusting to the "new normal." Please continue your work with research and families struggling through the same ordeal. It is much appreciated!



4. What would it be like to have one's brain blown open and body sheared by an IED to the point where everything shifts physically, mentally and emotionally? How does one and one's family deal with the aftermath with all the possible implications of possible infection, complications, recovery and/or death? In An Instant is that story, described by Bob as a reworking of the brain, "...like seeing the top of a mountain from a path, but without the ability to find the way up...by taking one step at a time, little by little, I realize I can still get there..."
   
   Lee and Bob's story is starkly told from two perspectives not only of voice but also interweaving the past with the present. Their story begins with the devastating event that so dramatically changed their lives, the explosion of that IED on an Iraqi road where Bob was working as an embedded journalist/anchor for ABC News. Lee is a respected public relations executive and freelance editor whose career has evolved with the multiple changes of Bob's career from high-paid lawyer to executive anchor man for a top notch news service.
   
   Bob and Lee do a superb job of carrying the reader through history as Bob's teaching law stint in China allows him to enter the world of journalism as a "fixer" during the Tiananmen Square crisis and numerous other smaller and larger historical, pivotal events including 911, the war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and more. They are skilled writers who know how to convey the excitement, peril and significance of these events.
   
   At the same time, In An Instant is the story of the "Landstuhl survivors," a group of family members trying to deal with the multiple demands of a challenging career and now of a devastating crisis enough to break the toughest spirits. Their story is told with honesty, intelligence and a specificity that renders the reader humbled and highly respectful of this daunting experience that has reshaped not only the Woodruff family but continues to affect numerous other families of soldiers and journalists serving in Iraq.
   
   The best nonfiction work this reviewer has read in a very long time!
   
   Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on March 5, 2008



5. I really liked this memoir. The writing style in both Lee and Bob's pieces is a very comfortable style--like they are talking to you. I was very moved by this book. As the title says it can happen, "In an Instant"

5 comments about Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story.

1. This is by far my favorite book by Klosterman. It was the second book I read by him, but he was definitely more relatable than in "Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs." I would definitely recommend it as a first read to anyone who wants to get into his works.



2. An awesome book, was SOOO much fun. You really love the author by the end of it and he really makes you feel like you are apart of the whole thing. His randomness is awsome and the only problem that I had with the book was the comment he made about Shannon Hoon.



3. I love reading Chuck Klosterman in Esquire. In fact, I thought he was a late-fortysomething until I read this book and found out he's younger than me. This book is pretty entertaining in the first 1/2, and then it just has nothing to do with music or his original intended purpose of driving around the US writing about dead rock stars and their death locations.
   
   What irritates me about "Killing..." is, I guess, Chuck himself: Stringing along 3 different women across the country; his remark that all women who accuse men of rape might be insane, and lying, and should be checked for this (um, they are, chuck!); and dissing Elvis while glorifying Chuck D.
   
   Ultimately, this tome is a little, immature boy stuck in a thirtysomething's body, who got to drive around the US and recording his every rambling, irrelevant,thought, and being paid for it.



4. I became a fan of Klosterman's after reading "Sex, Drugs, and Coco Puffs," and therefore had high expectations for this book. Needless to say, it did not disappoint! In this book, Klosterman reminisces about his relationships with four different women while travelling across country on assignment to visit various rock-related "death sites." Along the way, he makes observations about love, music, and just about everything else. Of course all are made with the flair and wit we have come to expect from Chuck.
   
   On the surface, this premise sounds a bit like "High Fidelity" -- in fact, Klosteman even makes this comparison himself toward the end of the book. But aside from the passing similarity that both books discuss relationships via music, they are very different. However, I will say that if you are the sort of rock snob that enjoyed "High Fidelity," it's a slam-dunk that you will like this book. In fact, with the great musical taste that Klosterman hints at in this book (everyone from Led Zeppelin to Kiss to the Sex Pistols), it is hard to believe he writes for a crappy magazine like Spin.
   
   "Killing Yourself to Live" had me laughing and thinking in several places, and made for a quick read that I honestly wish lasted longer than it did.



5. I like Chuck. This is his best book. It follows a narrative so his complex musings on music and the men who have died making it have a cohesion lacking in his previous works. I suppose some prefer the random ruminations he proffered elsewhere but this book is the real deal. His quest is a story about music makers who have died tragically. Duane Allman in a motorcycle accident in Georgia. Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper in a plane crash in Iowa. Cobain in Seattle. He embarks on a journey across America to investigate the scenes of the crime and invites the reader along for an entertaining and enjoyable ride.

5 comments about Growing Up.

1. Note: Some immature Mormon has been slamming my reviews because I wrote some negative reviews of books attempting to defend the Book of Mormon.
   
   So your "helpful" votes are greatly appreciated. A shorter review is not necessarily a bad review if it leads you to a great book. I've just noted the general theme. Thanks
   
   Inside my paperback copy of Russell Baker's book, I wrote "Great Book!"
   This was in 1985, and I would rank this memoir as one of the best I have ever read.
   
   From his youth in rural Virginia through the Depression in Baltimore, the very best of America shines though in this charming autobiography. I laughed till I cried at Baker's description of living above his uncle's funeral parlor. Whenever families gathered, he provided shrimp, and so whenever the young Russell smelled shrimp, he knew there was a funeral.
   
   Mrs. Baker's determination to raise a good family after her husband's death was inspiring. My own father died when I was fifteen, so I could see my mother in her--even though my story was set in the 1960s, not the 1930s.
   
   Highly recommended. I would also highly recommend the "Autobiography of Malcolm X." A very powerful account of Malcolm X's life. I do not agree with his religion, but I was inspired at how he turned away from a life of crime and made a better man of himself. In the last few years of his life, he turned away from the racism against whites that he had earlier believed.
   
   The Autobiography of Malcolm X : As Told to Alex Haley
   The Autobiography of Malcom X



2. Wanting to have a little more insight into the life of someone living through the Great Depression (besides my father) I found this book "filled the bill". The book isn't exciting and doesn't really have a plot, but is more like a "day in the life" of a young man living in hard circumstances and being too young to understand the depth of the hardships. The author has an engaging writing style that kept me from putting the book down. I found I felt like I knew him and could feel his fears, embarassments,and his insecurities.



3. WHen I first encountered "Growing Up" in 1983, I thought it was dull. Once I allowed myself to be patient, I realized how wrong I had been. When I allowed myself the time to read, "Growing Up" became a pleasure and a classic I have since read several times. Baker spent his early years in Virginia, in a time before modern communication. People in that time and place took their time telling a story, but good storytellers always get to a point. Those of us born after WWII have to learn not to expect instant gratification. A book like "Growing Up" teaches you that if you will let the storyteller tell his story, you will be caught up in his magic. Take the time to read "Growing Up" and I bet you will be sorry when you get to the end, hungering for more about Russell Baker and his family. Like all families, there is pain and anger, conflict and crisis, but at the core, in "Growing Up" and in the Baker family, there is deep love.



4. My three favorite books about growing up, "My Dog Skip", "The Old Man and the Boy", and this book, "Growing Up" by Russell Baker, were all written by newspaper and magazine journalists with Southern roots. There must be some southern storytelling tradition that turns out writers of great memoirs. This is a charming book, full of love of family, humor, and growing up during the difficult history of the depression. I have read and re-read this book, and always find something to laugh about or something that touches me deeply. I expected the reviews of this book to be all five-star accolades, and I am shocked and alarmed by the several reviewers who found the book "boring" and "repetitive". I can't help but wonder what comprises excitement in such readers' lives.



5. This is the first book by Russell Baker I've ever read. (I didn't even know who he was until I read the book Growing Up!) I love the way Russell Baker writes. I will definitely read more of his work very soon! What a fine man (and boy) Russell Baker is. Enjoyed his life story very much!

No comments about Mr Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream.

5 comments about Fear and Loathing in America : The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist.

1. For fans of the good Dr., This rates right up there with his other top sellers.His slant on the American Dream is certinally unique.



2. This is my second attempt at writing a review about that ATAVISTIC GIBBERISH called fear and loathing in america.I guess the review GESTAPO didn't like my totally honest review of HST's schizophrenic prose, in my first review(to their credit) i did say some things about HST that would make even DR.Gonzo, go GONZO, LOL!!!
   The MOST DISGUSTING part of this book is on page 199-200 when he offers his writing services for the kennedy's inre: to Mary jo kopechne's SO-CALLED ACCIDENTAL DEATH :-((( Can anyone be more pathetic than that???
   I could go on and on about this ATAVISTIC GIBBERISH but my LOATHING will undoubtedly draw more attention from the review gestapo.
   Don't get me wrong, there are some funny letters from HST and guest, but the DISGUSTING OUTWAY THE HUMOR by 10 to 1 :-(((
   Hopefully this review will see the light of day, i truely believe it needs to be read, there's been enough GIBBERISH from his syncophantic minions.



3. The second installment in HST's selected letters, Fear & Loathing in America has proved to be a fascinating read. Beginning in the 1950's, HST keep carbon copies of all his letters for filing purposes in the belief that one day he would be a famous writer and his correspondence would be published. Like so many other Thompson predictions, this one proved true. The range and scope of the letters contained in this volume is simply amazing. HST had contacts and correspondence across almost every section of American society from Jimmy Carter, Pat Buchan, Gorge McGovern, and Walter Mondale at one end of the spectrum to Ken Kesey, Tom Wolfe, Jann Wenner, and Oscar Acosta at the other end.
   
   The time period covered by these letters have proven to be a crucial period in modern history and nobody should be without a view from HST's side of things. From the 68' Democratic National Convention to the 75' American withdrawal from Vietnam, the Mint 400 in Vegas to his own personal bid to run for Sheriff of Pitkin County (Aspen) on the Mescaline ticket, HST was there and more often than not part of the action. In this regards his letters read like a quasi-autobiography, tracing the twists and turns of his life throughout this turbulent period of American history. For the creator of Gonzo Journalism, this was his defining period.
   
   It is certainly preferable to start with the first volume HST's published letter, if for nothing else it provides a better context for this volume. I have to confess that I enjoyed vol. 2 more than the first, so I guess it really depends on what you are after. I found myself laughing out loud at numerous occasions while at other times rather stunned at the insight and predictive nature of some of the correspondence, specifically the politically orientated ones. Of course there are other times when HST degenerates into pure gibberish, but all the parts add up to give a composite picture of that unique and individual whole we have come to know as Hunter. So read this book when you get the chance or anything else by HST for that matter. For me he is the best US writer of the last 50 years and I do not say that lightly.



4. If Volume I of the trilogy is "Rebel with a Cause (Writing)," then Volume II (this volume) is "Whining for Dollars." If you are new to Hunter S. Thompson, start with Volume 1 -- it will give you a much better feeling of who this man was, especially with regard to the risks he was willing to take to tell a good story. If you are interested in politics of the 1960's and early 1970's, and want to read about all his problems with getting paid, this is the volume for you. Having said all that, HST was truly incredible: in 1968 HST recognized Bob Dylan as the icon of the 60s; HST was everywhere -- from the Matrix, the womb of The Jefferson Airplane in San Francisco, to Saigon in April 1975, during the evacuation; and as a political junkie, HST could see the impeachment of Richard Nixon coming long before it did, as well as the eventual fall of South Vietnam. The first volume is much wilder, and even more sentimental; by Volume II, HST is starting to settle down.



5. Ordinarily, I wouldn't think letters would be that interesting. But Thomson's style and sense of humor are so outrageous, I find myself laughing out loud every few pages or so.
   
   But it's much more than humor. The letters overlap the period of Martin Luther King's Assassination, Robert F. Kennedy's Assassination, the Democratic National Convention of 1968 (which he attended), etc.
   
   I was struck at how he tried to convince his younger brother to stay in college for at least another semester, because by then, we would probably be out of Vietnam. It was apparent to him at the time that we would leave. And yet...Saigon didn't fall until April 1975.
   
   He also has a particular revulsion for Nixon, who has always been a fascinating figure for me. And of course,there are letters to his fans. He clearly has fear and loathing for some of them. His letters to and about them are hillarious.
   
   A great read.