Fear & Loathing In America (hunter Thompson Letters)
(Hunter S Thompson)
The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist (The letters of Hunter S Thompson. Vol. II 1968-76)
From ranting at mail-order retailers to railing against the direction of American society, these letters (the second of three volumes) provide an unforgiving insight into the mind of journalist-author Hunter S
Thompson, and a glimpse of a tortured genius who would, a quarter century later, take his own life. Thompson was a forefather of so-called gonzo journalism -- participatory reportage and a distant antecedent to today's blogs.
The letters, written to friends, publishers and politicians, cover post-JFK America, the demise of the
Hippie Dream and the tortuous ending of the Vietnam War. Reading them, you wonder how the radical,
irreverent freelancer managed to produce anything at all. They come thick and fast, sometimes three or four a day -- predominantly long, often rambling, often repetitive, mainly written at night and fuelled by drink and acid.
The style is pure gonzo, the context incisive, provocative and a savage indictment of a social and political system that is anathema to Thompson and his cohorts of Freak Power -- disenfranchised hippies, bikers, losers and drop-outs who balked at the power and influence of Big Money.
From his Aspen, Colorado retreat, Thompson battles with editors and publishers to give him direction, purpose and money. Despite the critical success of his first book, Hells Angels, Thompson is constantly short of money, ill-disciplined to the point of rarely meeting deadlines and steadfastly refuses to
conform or compromise.
The letters pay little attention to Thompson's family life -- his son, wife Sandy's miscarriages and 'normal' daily routines. His focus is on his work, the demons he battles to get books finished and the need to reform society as the American Dream becomes a horrible caricature of itself.
All in all, a fascinating insight into the modalities of freelance writing and the genius of one of the last century's greatest intellectual innovators.
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