false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171580308m/108220.jpg 108220 12 <I>Kingdom of Fear</I> is billed as a memoir, but in essence, all of Hunter S. Thompson's books could fit into this category since his life and work have always been tightly bound together by a mythology largely of his own making. (After all, this is the man who, before earning a single dollar as a writer, began meticulously saving a copy of every letter he ever sent.) Still, this is certainly an unconventional memoir, but then what would you expect from the father of gonzo journalism? In these pages Thompson manages to dig deep and reveal a few "loathsome secrets" without offering the kind of personal details he has always avoided. His childhood, for instance, is basically summed up in a sentence: "I look back on my youth with great fondness, but I would not recommend it as a working model to others." He does, however, reflect upon his considerable legacy, including his well-known, and admittedly exaggerated, use of controlled substances ("The brutal reality of politics alone would probably be intolerable without drugs"), as well as offer assessments of his own work, such as <I>Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas</I> ("It's as good as <I>The Great Gatsby</I> and better than <I>The Sun Also Rises</I>").<p> In this collection of twisted parables and outlaw adventures, Thompson writes about his early run-ins with agents of authority and the lessons learned; his stint in the Air Force and the beginning of his journalism career; his unsuccessful, though illuminating, bid for Sheriff of Aspen, Colorado in 1970 as the Freak Power candidate; the casualties and unintended consequences thus far in the War on Terror; and numerous examples of present-day injustice and hypocrisy--all with his characteristic mix of brutal frankness laced with humor. He also offers his own take on state of the Union: "The prevailing quality of life in America--by <I>any</I> accepted methods of measuring--was inarguably freer and more politically <I>open</I> under Nixon than it is today in this evil year of Our Lord 2002." Thompson continues to make even the most deadly serious subject matter endlessly entertaining. <I>--Shawn Carkonen</I> 104287 2002 Kingdom of Fear: Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Century total:1337|5:365|4:538|3:341|2:76|1:17| 1337 5169 1730 94 2 0 false false Mon Sep 03 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Nov 09 15:13:28 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 09 15:13:51 -0800 2009
Before the sad loss of Hunter S. Thompson, human marihuana chimney and perpetual idol to each new batch of college students, the Colorado-based chronicler of injustice and, um – sports – left this rambling ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Jan 02 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 14 10:17:50 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 14 10:32:46 -0800 2009 This is Hunter at his finest. This book was one of those that you wish had just one more page at the end for all of eternity. Kingdom of Fear is written in a loose biographical form, in true Thompson style, it leapfrogs f...more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Apr 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 29 18:21:10 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 03 16:46:04 -0700 2009 -Tom Wolfe

Thompson’s Kingdom of Fear: Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Cent...more...]]> 1 0 false false Wed Jul 29 21:07:57 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 30 00:32:12 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Apr 28 15:48:30 -0700 2007 Wed Jun 06 17:38:25 -0700 2007 Fear and Loathing which is untouchable). This one is his most personal, and is his last actual book (Hey, Rube was a compilation of online sports articles so I don't count it) before he blew his brains out.
...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Dec 10 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Fri Feb 01 12:35:53 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 01 12:49:35 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Sep 16 13:29:57 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 13:31:31 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 08 15:15:15 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 08 15:22:04 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Sep 09 20:16:04 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 20:16:27 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 22:02:40 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 22:10:42 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Thu Oct 22 09:43:39 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 22 09:45:58 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Fri Jul 24 00:24:29 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 01:08:46 -0700 2009
This is one of those books I couldn't put down.]]> 4 0 false false Fri May 30 00:00:00 -0700 2003 Wed Jan 07 16:53:27 -0800 2009 Wed Jan 07 16:53:51 -0800 2009 4 0 true false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Nov 04 18:46:32 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 18:59:47 -0800 2009 1 4 0 false false Wed Jan 07 20:03:25 -0800 2009 Wed Jan 07 20:04:39 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sun Sep 23 23:45:56 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 23 23:50:09 -0700 2007 Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Still, that was a great no...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Feb 24 21:31:11 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 21:31:11 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Dec 07 20:04:30 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 20:24:09 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Fri Dec 05 22:55:41 -0800 2008 Fri Dec 05 22:57:47 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Tue Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Mon Jul 23 14:29:04 -0700 2007 Mon Jul 23 14:35:30 -0700 2007
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