Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga (Modern Library)
by Hunter S. Thompson
published
December 7th 1999
(first published 1978)
by Modern Library
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binding
Hardcover, 288 pages
isbn
067960331X
(isbn13: 9780679603313)
description
"California, Labor Day weekend . . . early, with ocean fog still in the streets, outlaw motorcyclists wearing chains, shades and greasy Levis rol...more
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avg 3.96
Read in April, 2008
Hunter S. Thompson’s first book, Hell’s Angels is not nearly as “gonzo” or as good as his later writings and not nearly as fresh and fascinating as, say, Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. Hell’s Angels is a far more straightforward piece of journalism than HST’s later work but it is still an interesting read some 45 years on (certainly no small feat).
For one, it is cursorily interesting in how Hell’s Angels has quickly become outdated with references like, “Hell, eight dollars was...more
For one, it is cursorily interesting in how Hell’s Angels has quickly become outdated with references like, “Hell, eight dollars was...more
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Read in January, 2003
recommends it for:
Hunter Thompson fans or Hell's Angels members because they're the only ones who could appreciate it
Hunter Thompson was this crazy guy who threw himself into his research (literally). He spawned a movement called Gonzo journalism. We read this book in college and learned all about Gonzo. So in 1965 he gets the brilliant idea of joining up with the Hell's Angels. This is back when they were extremely violent. This book is all about his experience riding along with the them. I didn't particularly care for his writing style or the content, so needless to say I am not a fan of this book.
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Read in November, 2008
I love Hunter S and perhaps my fandom added a star to what I should rank this one. In Hell's Angels, you can see the early seeds of gonzo writing but he isn't there yet. No where as riveting as "F&L in Vegas".
I agree with an earlier reviewer about what this book, in retrospect, says about how society perceives fears. Motorcycles gangs were considered these terrible menaces back in the 1960's, but they look silly today. Just some of the names like "Hell's Angel's",...more
I agree with an earlier reviewer about what this book, in retrospect, says about how society perceives fears. Motorcycles gangs were considered these terrible menaces back in the 1960's, but they look silly today. Just some of the names like "Hell's Angel's",...more
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Read in November, 2008
recommended to Erin by:
Johnny Depprecommends it for: Hunter S. Thompson fans (and you don't have to be into motorcycles)
I found this book interesting and entertaining for the most part. It is pretty apparent that it is Thompson's very early writing - he hasn't yet developed that Gonzo style that makes him who he is... although there are a few parts that hint at it and are so incredibly well written they make the whole book worth it (most notably the end). Hell, he had me wanting to ride a motorcycle and meet the Angels and THAT is really scary. I loved reading about the Kesey parties, the psyche of OUTLAWS, an...more
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Read in October, 2008
I'm a pretty big Thompson fan, but I never really hit my stride with this book. I think that the impact would have been much stronger had I read this 40 years ago, but at this point the social fragmentation of American society isn't that new of a proposition to even your average square. Thus, the central proposition that these Californian bikers are simply too many standard deviations from a white collar, tax paying median isn't that revelatory.
It's one of the rare books where I think I wo...more
It's one of the rare books where I think I wo...more
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Read in July, 1986
Probably Thompson's best written book aside from Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas.
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I love Hunter S., and granted, this is his first book, and I love books written about this time, and there's great insight and observations and great writing and all, but I got halfway through this book more than once and (granted again, this was during my A.D.D. phase where I couldn't finish any book, I usually had 4-6 books going at the same time and never finished any of them) didn't reach the end. Well I finally picked it up again and read it from beginning to end, without reading a bunch o...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommended to Julia by:
Quin
Although a bit tangentle at times, I really liked this Thompson's raw view of the notorious Hell's Angels motorcycle outlaw gang, and ultimately of the very society we live in. I thought this book was 100 times better than Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, which I never really developed an appreciation for past its ability to still be a novelty as far as journalistic, narratives go. Hell's Angels is wonderfully written, entertaining, informative, philosophical, and told in Thompson's...more
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Read in May, 2008
When I started reading this book several Hunter Thompson fans told me it wasn't a "real Hunter S. Thompson book", and that it was "just" straight reporting, implying that I shouldn't waste my time. And it was more earnest than some of his other stuff, but still contained plenty of paragraphs like this one:
"For reason that were never made clear, I blew out my back windows with five blasts of a 12-gauge shotgun, followed moments later by six rounds from a .44 Magnum. ...more
"For reason that were never made clear, I blew out my back windows with five blasts of a 12-gauge shotgun, followed moments later by six rounds from a .44 Magnum. ...more
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I want to read Thompson, but I don't want to read Fear And Loathing. I know that probably seems like an awful thing to say, especially considering that I love New Journalism and all, but I submit to you the following pieces of evidence: 1) I've continually tried to watch the movie but keep falling asleep, and 2) I hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate books about drugs. See Naked Lunch, in particular. I do not get along with books about drugs. It's not that I'm...more
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Read in March, 2006
So, what else to follow classic fantasy with but gritty 20th century gonzo journalism? It all hangs together so perfectly....
Much has been made about Hunter S. Thompson's effect on American culture and journalism. After his death, there were countless portraits painted of him, some calling him a brilliant innovator of the written word, others calling him an egotistical madman who cared more about himself than the story.
All I have to say is that anyone who actively pursues the company of ...more
Much has been made about Hunter S. Thompson's effect on American culture and journalism. After his death, there were countless portraits painted of him, some calling him a brilliant innovator of the written word, others calling him an egotistical madman who cared more about himself than the story.
All I have to say is that anyone who actively pursues the company of ...more
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Read in January, 1999
Hunter made one of the most anthropologically incisive observations of the American condition EVER in this book: The migration of Europeans to the "new world" was the movement of the disenfranchised. Generation after generation, people who were persecuted or otherwise unattached to the land beneath their feet found convenient exit going West. The trip itself, across the ocean to begin, was no picnic, but certainly better than the certain death of staying put. At each stop along the way...more
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Hell's Angels was written before the age of Gonzo. Or more precisely at the forefront of Gonzo, a forerunner but lite version of what was to come. The book is split into three main sections, the first highlighting the outlaw gang and the way the media covered them at the time the book was written. The second part and perhaps the reason to read this book details a weekend with the Angels, the police forced to watch over them, and the people the who undesirably have to share a resort hideaway with...more
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Read in December, 2007
The only other Thompson book I have read is "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," but I am fairly familiar with 'gonzo journalism.' I wanted to read this book because I'm a big fan of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, and the Angels are mentioned quite a bit at La Honda. I also have a ridiculous fascination with the West Coast during the 1960's, and am completely positive I was born at the wrong place and definitely the wrong time.
That said, I really liked the book. If you like Thompson'...more
That said, I really liked the book. If you like Thompson'...more
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Read in November, 2007
Hunter S. Thomson's study of the infamous Hell's Angels. His observations are direct and concise, and his deft writing a mastery of form.
On the merits this and his work from the same period, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, one begins to wonder about his slow, prolific decline. Drugs can have a curious effect: they tend to produce a double, much in the same way digital CGI effects are a double of the lens/film/light mechanism that was the earlier foundation of movies. Not many of us ca...more
On the merits this and his work from the same period, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, one begins to wonder about his slow, prolific decline. Drugs can have a curious effect: they tend to produce a double, much in the same way digital CGI effects are a double of the lens/film/light mechanism that was the earlier foundation of movies. Not many of us ca...more
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Read in June, 2004
recommends it for:
fans of HST, hippies, freaks, people interested in the 60s counter culture
I read this book because I was a fan of Hunter S Thompson from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. I borrowed the book from a friend, and it confirmed my appreciation of him as an author.
This book is an excellent piece of Gonzo Journalism (it did, afterall, start the genre.) The exploits of the Hell's Angels are recounted in vivid details, and HST contributes surprisingly insightful commentary.
The bad boy of journalism investigates the bad boys of society and portrays them with fairly well...more
This book is an excellent piece of Gonzo Journalism (it did, afterall, start the genre.) The exploits of the Hell's Angels are recounted in vivid details, and HST contributes surprisingly insightful commentary.
The bad boy of journalism investigates the bad boys of society and portrays them with fairly well...more
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Read in May, 2003
recommends it for:
anyone who's heard of it
I've read virtually everything by Thompson and when I was younger he was definitely my favorite. Probably for all of the usual reasons--his being a true and modern outlaw, possibly the last to invest himself in it so seriously. But that was years ago and I'd still argue he was/is a valuable person to read, and this book is a major reason why. Thompson was quite obsessed with The Death of the American Dream, and if you spend any time observing and researching the presidencies and long-term effect...more
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Read in January, 1998
Few journalists would have the balls to live amongst the Hell's Angels in their heyday with the intention of writing what amounts to a tell-all book, and letting them know that's the intent. But this is Hunter Thompson we're talking about here, that ballsiest of all journalists and hero of the excessive, the freaked out, and the screwed up. This really was an excellent journalistic exploration of this rowdy and often violent (Thompson himself took a rather savage beating which, wisely, marked ...more
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Read in October, 2008
recommends it for:
those interrested in the motorcycle and it's impact on the U.S.
Hell's Angels, as it stands, is a very compelling piece of literature. Unlike the traditional style set out for books, it rides along it's own set of rules. It contains a plethora of run-on sentences, and it's plot jumps from here to there, making it seem like there is no order to the chaos of which it holds. It's a true nightmare for any English teacher. However, it also has a certain charm to it in the way that it weaves Hunter S. Thompson's personal experience with the Hell's Angels in with...more
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i don't care about motorcycles. i don't care about the hell's angels. logic says i shouldn't care about this book. i had just watched fear and loathing in las vegas and had decided to read some of hunter s. thompson's work, so when i found this book in the thrift store for 10 cents, i figured i'd give it a chance and, despite my lack of interest in the subject, i bought it. i discovered something. i love hunter s. thompson's writing style! he was a rock star! so it was very upsetting when i disc...more
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