Fear and Loathing in America: The Gonzo Letters, Vol. 11 1968-1976 The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist – Hunter S. Thompson 730 pg.

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. Perhaps the best way to get an understanding of the book would to read a few excerpts.

“But as I grow older and meaner and uglier it becomes more & more clear to me that only a lunatic or an egomaniacal asshole would try to impose the structure of his own lifestyle on people who don’t entirely understand it, unless he’s ready to assume personal responsibility for the consequences.” (584) - How relevant is that today? Maybe Bush should brush up on his HST before he starts his next war.

“You decadent pig. Where the f*** do you get the nerve to go around telling those wops that I’m crazy? You worthless c***. My Italian tour is already arranged for next spring & and I’m going to the whole goddamn trip wearing a bright red field marshal’s uniform & accompanied by six speed-freak bodyguards bristling with mace bombs & when I start talking about American writers & the name Tom Wolfe comes up, by god, you’re going to wish you were born a f***ing iguana!” (373) HST writing his old buddy Tom Wolfe.

“America is really Amerika” (342)

Well I think you get the point by now and if not, well than I guessed you never will. So read this book when you get the chance or anything else by HST for that matter. For me he is the best American writer of the last 50 years.

A HST Classic

Hunter S. Thompson – Fear & Loathing: On the Campaign Trail ’72 505 pg.

Another classic from HST, in fact maybe my favorite work I have read of his so far, but its hard to choose. The setting for the book is the presidential campaign of 1972 pitting Gorge McGovern against Richard Millhouse Nixon. Hunter is sent by Rolling Stone to be the Washington D.C. correspondent for the magazine. Aside from running the National Affairs Desk, HST provides his own unique perspective on what it is like to be out there on the campaign trail. Starting with his coverage of the Democratic primaries and running all the way to the nomination of McGovern at the DMC, HST gives the inside story on what is happening ‘out there’ on the campaign trail, something the straight press can never do because of restrictions like ‘objectivity’ and the like. The result is perhaps the best account to date on what is really going on behind the scenes of a campaign for the highest office in the land.
The only drawback about reading HST is that it always gives me an incredible urge to drink and act in a semi-crazed style. I don’t know what it is, but it always results in me consuming at least a few beers if not more. And with a hunger to find a mescaline dealer, but I haven’t seen one of them wandering around for quite some time. Maybe I’m just not looking hard enough…. Ok, I seemed to have digressed there. I just trying to say that this book is essential reading for anyone interested in politics and the machinery behind it. Even if politics aren’t your cup up tea, HST brings a new dimension to any subject that he writes about, one that can be appreciated for its raw truth as well as its unconventional delivery.