Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

The Monkey Wrench Gang

4.06 of 5 stars 4.06 · rating details · 9,424 ratings · 736 reviews

Ed Abbey called The Monkey Wrench Gang, his 1975 novel, a "comic extravaganza." Some readers have remarked that the book is more a comic book than a real novel, and it's true that reading this incendiary call to protect the American wilderness requires more than a little of the old willing suspension of disbelief. The story centers on Vietnam veteran George Washington Hayd...more

Paperback, 480 pages

Published December 12th 2006 by Harper Perennial (first published 1975)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

Best Environmental Books

11th out of 353 books — 416 voters

Anarchism and Other Essays by Emma Goldman

Anarchist books

8th out of 168 books — 114 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

May 22, 2007 Abby rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: environmentalists, disillusioned activists

Shelves: fiction

Yes, it's an iconic work of anarchy and environmentalism, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth the read. This book is hilarious. Like most other American nature writers, Abbey was a bit of a self-important pig (I can't stand Farley Mowat, though maybe he's Canadian); unlike most other American nature writers, he has a sense of humor about it.

The characters are grizzled and absurd, their actions are grandiose and delusional, and I felt a strong sense of solidarity and sympathy the whole way that...more

11 likes · like · see review

Mar 07, 2007 meredith rated it 1 of 5 stars

I blame reading this book at an inappropriately young age (9 or 10?) for the violent gag reflex that occurs whenever I smell patchouli, as well as the involuntary "NOOOOOOO" that I surprise myself with every time a ratty college do-gooder accosts me with a clipboard and a jaunty, "do you have a minute for the environment?"

Also, the surfeit of clunky, unshaven, back-of-the-VW-with-a-dog-looking-on-from-the-front-seat sex that occurs every second or third chapter couldn't have been good for my ove...more

7 likes · like · see review

Aug 08, 2008 Jason rated it 3 of 5 stars

OK I'll try not to say what other reviewers have said. First of all, I loved the drama, the ideas, the characters, but I didn't buy the ending at all so I deducted a star. The other star was deducted because of the at times clunky writing and I think the character's histories merited further discussion.

First what I liked: The plot is riveting, to the point of agonizing. You just want them to call it quits and save themselves! It can get a little bogged down in technical descriptions. Stylistica...more OK I'll try not to say what other reviewers have said. First of all, I loved the drama, the ideas, the characters, but I didn't buy the ending at all so I deducted a star. The other star was deducted because of the at times clunky writing and I think the character's histories merited further discussion.

First what I liked: The plot is riveting, to the point of agonizing. You just want them to call it quits and save themselves! It can get a little bogged down in technical descriptions. Stylistically, it was reminiscent of a lot of old Western stories. In this work, the West is now the last essentially in tact wilderness in the U.S. At one point they even say something like, "The East is lost".

For me, the ideas in this book (environmentalism, anarchism, freedom, gender, sense of place, survival, sin, hypocrisy, etc) make this one of the most exciting, relevant, and rewarding reads I have had in a while.

I did see the sexism in the work, but considering the time frame (1970's), it wasn't all that out of place. Bonnie herself was just as strong and interesting as any of the characters.

However, I deducted one star because I felt the characters needed more of a history. The book basically starts off with Doc burning signs and right there, I felt that a disconnect existed. Why was he doing it? I know doctors that care about the environment. They don't burn down billboards for fun.

(SPOILER ALERT)

Secondly, I deducted a star because the ending really betrayed the ideas in this story. I don't believe Hayduke would have returned, nor would they have saw themselves as "victoriuos", nor would they probably have kept at it.

The characters to me, were essentially tragic ones. Yet when Hayduke returns, like the Lone Ranger, its just cliche and not what was being built up. His whole character was built up to have this death-wish syndrome and it was very realistically done. I just felt that I had been tricked into agonizing over this character, who it turns out, wasn't really in too much trouble.

The other characters were tragic as well. I mean there is just no discussion about how Bonnie's family felt or how their reputations were affected. In American society, getting sentenced by a court of law, as the characters did, is a tragedy.

Lastly, the result of all their actions was the the prosecutor got elected to office and goes on to make development a huge priority! So that's a tragedy for their cause as well. That is environment that you can't just "regrow."

So unreal was the ending, that I actually read it almost as if it was a dream, almost expecting Doc to be hallucinating.

(UPDATE: I just took a look at the reviews for the sequel to this book, titled "Hayduke Lives!" and was not surprised to find they consistently mention how the book fails to live up to the first, in that they didn't like the further development of Hayduke.)(less)

3 likes · like · see review

May 24, 2007 Nate rated it 4 of 5 stars

Amazon.com
Ed Abbey called The Monkey Wrench Gang, his 1975 novel, a "comic extravaganza." Some readers have remarked that the book is more a comic book than a real novel, and it's true that reading this incendiary call to protect the American wilderness requires more than a little of the old willing suspension of disbelief. The story centers on Vietnam veteran George Washington Hayduke III, who returns to the desert to find his beloved canyons and rivers threatened by industrial development. On...more

4 likes · like · see review

Jun 18, 2007 Ryan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Giving this book 5 stars would probably put me on some sort of a list, but let's be honest: I'm already on that list. If you're at all concerned about the environment, this is a pretty good book to read. It was the inspiration for Earth First! (The exclamation point is part of the name of the organization, the real end of the sentence follows this parenthetical). But the great part about this book is that it isn't a boring didactic screed. Instead, it's a hilarious comedy/adventure novel. To giv...more

5 likes · like · see review

Jul 27, 2007 Nadine rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: lovers of our few remaining natural treasures

Shelves: environment

Edward Abbey was my dad's favorite author. We once stayed at a place near Moab, Utah called Pack Creek Ranch. Our cabin butted up against Abbey's former shack, where he did his writing. Somehow it has taken me 10 years to pick up one of his books, and I'm so glad I did. The Monkey Wrench Gang makes even the most law abiding citizen (such as myself, haha) want to pour sand into the gas tank of a bulldozer. The book revolves around a plot to blow up Glen Canyon Dam, the travesty that drowned the c...more

3 likes · like · see review

Jul 22, 2008 Kelly rated it 3 of 5 stars

Lovable and brave, if occasionally sloppy. The politics win out, even if some of the descriptions meander. I was very glad to see Loa mentioned. Thanks again, Jeremy (and Amy).

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 12, 2007 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: readers who like action/adventure, and those who normally read non-fiction

Shelves: readit

Genteel Doc Sarvis, solid and faithful (though patently unfaithful in marriage) Seldom Seen Smith, wild George Hayduke and breathtakingly pretty if directionless Bonnie Abbzug make an unlikely band of eco-activists/bandits with questionable motives in this book perhaps loosely based on an actual group of bandits running around blowing up things they thought ecologically unsound in the 1970s.

Despite lots of action-packed sequences, this book really took me forever to get through. I started it in...more Genteel Doc Sarvis, solid and faithful (though patently unfaithful in marriage) Seldom Seen Smith, wild George Hayduke and breathtakingly pretty if directionless Bonnie Abbzug make an unlikely band of eco-activists/bandits with questionable motives in this book perhaps loosely based on an actual group of bandits running around blowing up things they thought ecologically unsound in the 1970s.

Despite lots of action-packed sequences, this book really took me forever to get through. I started it in June some time, and even took it with me on a trip to New England in July (lots of plane, train and bus time) when I thought I'd come home in triumph, having finished the darn thing. But no, I didn't wrap it up until late August. I swear I put in good reading time on it, at least getting through about ten pages during my traditional before-bed reading time most nights (Ok, sometimes it was probably more like three or five pages...but still). I was not motivated to put in additional reading time to get through it more quickly, which is not to say I didn't like the novel. I did like it, I just don't think it was the most compelling thing ever. I certainly won't give it away, but a surprise twist at the end of the book made the slow reading time worth it.

Another point in this book's favor is the development of the characters. They are each eccentric, loveable and exasperating in their own ways. You grow quite attached to them. George Hayduke is battling some demons he brought home with him from Vietnam, Bonnie Abbzug is a compelling female character, by turns totally wimpy and willfully strong. She's compulsive and follows her heart's whims--she's smart, but perhaps not in a way that's very useful. Doc Sarvis is kind and well-mannered, and the most ethically sound one of the bunch, if a bit doddering and not as physically strong as he might be. The glowing eye of his constant cigar is somehow reassuring and morally grounding. Seldom Seen Smith has several wives (he's Mormon in the old way), but he is entirely faithful to the little band of misfits he joins. He also makes you think everything might just be ok--he understands nature, and respects it. He's a solid guide and a lover of nature--he perhaps has the most clear and direct motive for wanting to protect the natural environment.

Also, this book does make you think about our current environmental state, and what we should (and shouldn't) do in response to it. I also enjoyed the question of why these four could and couldn't justify their actions, and how thin the line can be between activism and terrorism, between righteousness and injuriousness.

I noted above that I recommend this book to people who read nonfiction. Although this is a fictional work, it has some of the flavor of a nonfiction documentation of events and people.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Apr 28, 2013 Jürgen Zeller rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Der Zufall führt die hübsche Bonnie Abbzug, die mit Doc Sarvis liiert ist, mit dem Mormonen Seldom Seen Smith und dem ehemaligen Green Beret Elite-Soldat George Hayduke zusammen. Jede(r) für sich ein spleeniger, eigenbrötlerischer Charakter oder mit dem Aussehen eines Waldschrats versehen aber sie verstehen sich auf Anhieb und sie vereint die Liebe zur Natur und den Hass gegen die rücksichtslose Ausbeutung und Verschandelung der durch profitgierige Konzerne. In einem Anfall von Idealismus beschl...more Der Zufall führt die hübsche Bonnie Abbzug, die mit Doc Sarvis liiert ist, mit dem Mormonen Seldom Seen Smith und dem ehemaligen Green Beret Elite-Soldat George Hayduke zusammen. Jede(r) für sich ein spleeniger, eigenbrötlerischer Charakter oder mit dem Aussehen eines Waldschrats versehen aber sie verstehen sich auf Anhieb und sie vereint die Liebe zur Natur und den Hass gegen die rücksichtslose Ausbeutung und Verschandelung der durch profitgierige Konzerne. In einem Anfall von Idealismus beschliessen sie sprichwörtlich Sand ins Getriebe zu werfen und starten damit nachts Baumaschinen zu sabotieren. Was mit dem durchschneiden von Kabeln und dem befüllen von Tanks mit Sand und Sirup beginnt steigert sich in einen Anschlag auf einen Güterzug und selbst eine Brücke wird zum Ziel. Was wohl aus dem Plan wird einen Staudamm zu sprengen...?

Willkommen zu einer schrägen Gaunergeschichte um vier kauzige Gestalten die zu ihrer Naturverbundenheit stehen und sogar bereits sind für ihre Überzeugung Gesetze zu brechen und das Recht in ihre eigene Hand nehmen. Sie verfolgen leidenschaftlich ihre Ziele und sind in ihrer Weltanschauung doch herrlich naiv, stets den Blick auf das gerichtet was unmittelbar vor ihrer Nase liegt. Vom Adrenalinkick berauscht und vom Abenteuer belebt halten sie sich über Wasser und schaukeln sich gegenseitig hoch, immer in der Einbildung das Richtige zu tun und für andere ein Vorbild zu sein. Sie verlieren sich in der Euphorie und fühlen die alchemistische Macht der Glückshormone. Dabei sind sie doch nur ein winziger Splitter in der Maschinerie der Industrialisierung die sich längst verselbstständigt hat.

Diesem Buch haftet zu Recht der Nimbus an ein Kultroman zu sein. Geschrieben vor mehr 35 Jahren hat es nichts von seiner Aktualität eingebüsst. Würde es heute geschrieben wäre vom Wutbürger die Rede, von Menschen die sich gegen die Ausbeutung der Natur von Grosskonzernen auflehnen und auf ihre Weise dagegen protestieren. Natürlich sind die Methoden der vier freakigen Ökoterroristen grundfalsch und zu verurteilen aber dadurch das der Focus fast vollständig auf den Protagonisten liegt vermag man als Leser Verständnis aufzubringen und sich sogar in sie hineinzuversetzen. Ganz ehrlich, wir sind doch Gefangene in den eisernen Klauen eines technischen Molochs, einer seelenlosen Maschinerie mit einem schnellen Brüter als Herz. Eine weltweite Hochindustrialisierung die wie ein Krebsgeschwür wächst. Wachstum um des Wachstums willen, Macht um der Macht willen. Da sind Menschen die sich dagegen auflehnen irgendwie sympathisch oder nicht?

Geschrieben ist das Buch im Stil und dem Humor der 70er Jahre, auch mit einem Blick auf die Westernfilme dieses Jahrzehnts. Es hat etliche witzige bis pathetische Dialoge und bei der Beschreibung der Natur und ihrer Schönheit geht einem Leser zwischendurch das Herz auf. Die wunderbaren comichaften Illustrationen machen dieses Buch zu einem echten Prachtexemplar.

Die Geschichte ist gewiss kein Kinderkram aber heutzutage schon fast ein harmloses Werk, zumindest wenn ich schaue welche brutalen Thriller in den Regalen der Buchhandlungen stehen. Ziviler Ungehorsam in einer kriminellen, radikalen Art aber immer darauf bedacht das keine Menschen zu Schaden kommen. Ein kurzweiliger Lesegenuss abseits des Mainstreams ein Geheimtipp.(less)

like · see review

Mar 30, 2009 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

In recent times, Al Gore has credited Rachel Carson (The Silent Spring) for introducing environmental concerns into his nascent consciousness, but it is a work of fiction not fact, Edward Abbey's "Monkey Wrench Gang", published first in 1975, which is regarded as having inspired a new generation of angry young environmental activists to the practice of extreme sabotage, sometimes called terrorism, for the sake of protecting the earth. For this reason, I recently reread this novel. I was interest...more In recent times, Al Gore has credited Rachel Carson (The Silent Spring) for introducing environmental concerns into his nascent consciousness, but it is a work of fiction not fact, Edward Abbey's "Monkey Wrench Gang", published first in 1975, which is regarded as having inspired a new generation of angry young environmental activists to the practice of extreme sabotage, sometimes called terrorism, for the sake of protecting the earth. For this reason, I recently reread this novel. I was interested to see if it had dated or whether if it still held relevance in these modern times, on this continent.

In the author's own words, "Monkey Wrench Gang" is a "comic extravanganza", a wild improbable story of symbolic aggression and constructive vandalism. A group of 4 passionate environmental warriors comprising a Vietnam vet, an eco-feminist, a wealthy medical doctor and a wilderness guide join forces to commit mayhem and liberate parts of Utah and Arizona from evil developers. They do this by waging war on billboards, construction machinery, roads and dams. While there is plenty of rollicking outrageous fun, nailbiting chase after chase and drama enough, the characters provide a vehicle for Abbey to voice his concerns and express philosophical observations on the subject of environmental preservation and the essential relationship between a healthy planet and healthy human beings. "The wilderness once offered men a plausible way of life, " the doctor said. "Now it functions as a psychiatric refuge. Soon there will be no wilderness......then the madness becomes universal...And the universe goes mad". Is it just a ringing in my ears, or do I hear echoes of Thoreau's "In wilderness is the preservation of man" here.

Having been thoroughly entertained by this page turner's quirky characters and hilarious, daring escapades - the reader is left with heightened awareness of the serious moral questions concerning the nature of our relationship with wilderness and our personal responsibility and culpability. These moral and ethical questions are as contemporary today as they were in the seventies. This book is funny, wise and as dangerously disquieting as the day it was first published. (less)

3 likes · like · see review

Jun 11, 2013 Nina rated it 3 of 5 stars

My interest for this book and author was piqued by seeing the contrasting and extreme affinity presented by Edward Abbey's readers. While some hailed Abbey as the patron saint of 'Eco Warriors' with 'The Monkey Wrench Gang' as his gospel, others called him an intellectually dishonest eco-terrorist.

Abbey probably fashioned his major characters on people he actually knew in real life. That, to be honest, is a scary thought. I am no puritan, and I agree that some level of intervention is inevitabl...more My interest for this book and author was piqued by seeing the contrasting and extreme affinity presented by Edward Abbey's readers. While some hailed Abbey as the patron saint of 'Eco Warriors' with 'The Monkey Wrench Gang' as his gospel, others called him an intellectually dishonest eco-terrorist.

Abbey probably fashioned his major characters on people he actually knew in real life. That, to be honest, is a scary thought. I am no puritan, and I agree that some level of intervention is inevitable to sustain a minimum quality of life for humans. But I do sympathise with Abbey and his gang's cause. I can imagine the bewilderment and pent up frustration in seeing your beloved landscape being vandalised by bulldozers, billboards, and trucks.

It is impossible to proceed through the book without agreeing that most of it is romanticised wishful thinking. There are true moments when you feel the stress, and have to read faster to know what really happens to them.

The second point is that Abbey lived a comfortable life afforded by exploiting the same earth he preached to protect using barbarian means. There is a cognitive dissonance that I can't fully reconcile. I am not calling him a fake, but I believe talking without doing is hollow.

Abbey's sense of humour is riveting; you would find these gems of sentences throughout the book.Abbey also saves us from any didactic streak by throwing in situation wherein the gang itself cannot agree on certain emergency responses. They agree not to harm any life, but end up having to nearly kill people on different occasions. The details of the American wilderness do tend to be a bit pedantic at times, but the landscape in itself is a character in this book. There is latent sexism that emerges sporadically, but I would overlook that as the only female character is pretty badass and covers up for her lack of physical fitness with her wit.

I loved the characters. All four of them are fully formed and are realistic. Unless you are already bought into the cause, Abbey fails to convince the rest of us. His characters agree to work as a team and towards a vaguely defined cause on a whim. The protagonist, George Washington Hayduke III, is the crudest and most fierce of them all. His cause doesn't get the undecided reader's nod approval. We do not know what does he feel that drives him to this rampage. There are plenty of us who would buy re-usable shopping bags, and switch off the light when we leave the room. We love the environment too, in its pristine beauty. We can join the protests, candle light vigils, and donate our pay check. How is Hayduke different? Doc and Seldom Seem Smith get our sympathies faster. They have clarity, we know why they are the way they are. We know that about Bonnie too, though she becomes a warrior out of her habit of following and helping the Doc, that any real conviction. It is doubtful if she even gives it any thought, the excitement of destruction is her only driving factor. Abbey doesn't win you over with this book. You remain where you started, on his side, the other side, or straddling on the fence.

The ending is the most disappointing part. Had Abbey not written the last few pages of the book, it would have been elevated a few notches.

Edward Abbey is not for everyone. This wasn't as rewarding a read as I would have liked it to be. I might return to Abbey at some time, but not anytime soon.(less)

like · see review

Jun 07, 2012 Steve Howes rated it 4 of 5 stars

Supposedly, this book provided inspiration for Earth First! and other eco-terrorist groups. While I don't condone the kinds of destructive activities carried out by this band of four misfits, I found myself rooting for them as they wreaked havoc on construction equipment, bridges, dams, buildings and railroads; and tried to avoid detection and capture. The "Gang" consists of four persons - a former Viet Nam green beret, a physician, his assistant (with a degree in classic French Lierature), and...more

like · see review

Nov 26, 2011 Mick rated it 2 of 5 stars

Overall, a halfway decent read, but wouldn't call it "deep" in any way. The situations and story kept my interest, and I love national parks and the American West, so the places all had a familiar ring to me. But in order to enjoy all this you're gonna need to get passed the one-dimensional characters. Sorry, but these aren't actual people that you or I would give two shits about. Each one merely represents an idea or viewpoint. Edward Abbey wrote much like this earlier in Desert Solitaire, but...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 13, 2010 Elaine rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: dirty hippies that are rebels to be rebels

Recommended to Elaine by: bookclub

We are reading this in my book club. So far I want to punch myself in the face. Hard. As hard as I possible can. Cartoon-like storyboard, self-important hippies that drive cars that use gas and miss the irony of that act, sexist men, hippies that talk about saving the environment as a "I care about stuff more than you, look at me I am such 'rebel' and everyone who disagrees is the Man" masturbation technique, annoying tense shifts, hippies, 7th grade creative writing descriptions of scenery, and...more

2 likes · like · see review

Nov 02, 2009 Tony rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction-mainstream

Abbey, Edward. THE MONKEY WRENCH GANG. (1975). ***. This was very much a book of its times, when concerns for ecology and preservation of our natural environment was becoming of prime importance to a growing number of people in our country. As such, the novel struck home with all of these newly inspired and dedicated people, especially the younger people that were attracted to these causes. It reads today as a dated manifesto for forcifully reclaiming our natural surroundings – or at least prese...more Abbey, Edward. THE MONKEY WRENCH GANG. (1975). ***. This was very much a book of its times, when concerns for ecology and preservation of our natural environment was becoming of prime importance to a growing number of people in our country. As such, the novel struck home with all of these newly inspired and dedicated people, especially the younger people that were attracted to these causes. It reads today as a dated manifesto for forcifully reclaiming our natural surroundings – or at least preserving it – by more or less using ecoterrorist tactics. Although certainly not advocating the use of terrorism to stem the tide of the ruination of our natural landscape, it had a great appeal to people who could see no other way to halt the progress of a greater industrial ravaging of our natural resources. The story is set in the Southwest, and involves four people who are subsequently known as “The Monkey Wrench Gang:” Bonnie Abbzug – no relation to the politician – an exile from the Bronx, an idealist and assistant to. Doc Sarvis, M.D., F.A.C.B., a wild (mad?) conservative and libertarian whose initial hobby was the destruction of roadside billboards; Seldom Seen Smith, a lapsed Mormon (although he practised polygamy and had three wives) who ran a wilderness river rafting operation and bemoaned the fact that his native town of Hite, UT, was under water because of the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam, and George Washington Hayduke, an ex-Green Beret, ex-Viet Cong Medic, who was dismayed at the changes in his native land upon his discharge from the service. All of these players meet on one of Smith’s river rafting expeditions and find out that they all have the same issue in common: “They’re destroying our land. How do we stop it?” Plans are laid and raid after raid is carried out against the offending developers whose purposes are always cast in the light of industrial despoilers. New strip mines, new roads, new bridges, new anything – all are targets of this gang. At the time of publication, this kind of book was novel – at least when set in the present day America – and it became an immediate and long-term best seller. I think its time has past.(less)

like · see review

Jun 22, 2012 Eugene Miya rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book is a must read, as noted by others, to understand a bit more the Earth First! environmental wing. It also needs to be read followed by Hayduke Lives! (the less than serious sequel with the martini in the end). A California utopian consistent equivalent is Ernest Callenbach's Ecotopia and
Ecotopia Emerging less the rage.

Monkey Wrench, and I regard it to a certain degree as a cartoon like others, is also a somewhat serious comment about/for anarchy. It is a period book and some reference...more

1 like · like · see review

Apr 22, 2012 Amatullah Richard rated it 5 of 5 stars

I haven meant to read this book since going to university. I adored Edward Abbey's Desert Solitaire. Since Abbey worked as a park ranger in southern Utah (I did as well though in a different decade), his descriptions of these areas is rich, accurate and as beautiful as the wild terrain. Abbey is an unabashed radical preservationist. In this book of fiction, Abbey seems to live vicariously through the characters, an assortment of misfits, who begin to commit sabotage, destroy, and secretly fight...more

like · see review

Apr 12, 2011 Mykle rated it 3 of 5 stars

This novel has all the same elements that make Edward Abbey's non-fiction so compelling: the depth of his knowledge and emotions about the desert landscapes of Utah and Colorado, his poetic descriptions of same, and his eloquent condemnation of the loss of this wilderness for the sake of city-dwelling, industrial man.

This book has all of that on display in droves, but also it highlights some of his weaknesses: smart-assey movie dialogue, rampant sexism and a love of bad puns. His four protagonis...more

6 likes · like · see review

Oct 05, 2009 Stacy rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I was about 12 years old, my dad took my sister and me camping in Southeast Utah. We took my dad's Ford truck with four wheel drive to Canyonlands National Park and went on various roads, back roads, dirt roads, and roads that were barely roads at all. We bumped around the slick rock of Ernies Country, and went up a narrow and twisty dirt road with a sheer cliff on one side. It terrified my sister and I so that we buckled into the middle seat together and sang hymns the whole way down. We c...more When I was about 12 years old, my dad took my sister and me camping in Southeast Utah. We took my dad's Ford truck with four wheel drive to Canyonlands National Park and went on various roads, back roads, dirt roads, and roads that were barely roads at all. We bumped around the slick rock of Ernies Country, and went up a narrow and twisty dirt road with a sheer cliff on one side. It terrified my sister and I so that we buckled into the middle seat together and sang hymns the whole way down. We camped underneath one of the needles, and slept in sleeping bags under the stars. Before night fell, my dad took us to the edge of the canyon and peered over the edge into The Maze. As we looked at it, he told me the story of the climax in The Monkey Wrench Gang. I knew I would have to read this book. Standing there on the light side of dusk, and in fact that whole trip, hymns and all, is one of my favorite childhood memories.

And so it was with a fond recollection of my times in Northern Arizona Southeast Utah I read The Monkey Wrench Gang, a book about the beauty of this unforgiving dessert and the environmental anarchists that love it.

The plot is simple - in the mid 70s, 4 characters unlikely to hang out together under normal circumstances - a young new age hippy woman, a liberal doctor/processor, a Vietnam vet turned wildman, and a Mormon polygamous white water river tour operator - have a chance meeting and hatch a plot to disrupt the building of dams and bridges, logging, and other industrial pursuits. Along the way they have various adventures while trying to evade the authorities.

The book is very comedic, and I found myself chuckling at various points throughout. At first I thought I wouldn't be able to sympathize with these characters who didn't seem much like me and were involved in destructive illegal activity. And yet I did find myself rooting for them all along the way.

The book kept me guessing til the end. Would they get caught or not? Would they evade the police? How would they do it? I wondered if the author would let them get caught to pay for their crimes or not. I found the ending to be very satisfying and it left me with a smile on my face.

I'd recommend this book to any person familiar with Southeast Utah. It really brought back some wonderful memories. This book is also for anyone who loves nature or hiking. Even if you would never dream of blowing up a dam, the characters' passion for unspoiled wilderness is contagious.(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Mar 10, 2009 Patrick Gibson rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people who don't take it all seriously

Shelves: the_west, contemporary-literature, new_mexico

Anarchy is my middle name. Not really. It’s Thumper—like the bunny. Okay, maybe its Boring like what my friends call me. Well, at least they don’t call me late to blow up a damn.

As anarchy reined supreme in the 70’s a diverse fictional quartet of colorful characters set out to impede the effluence of industrialization spreading across the southwestern desert. Starting with the burning of billboards and working up to bulldozers and power towers, their ultimate goal is to destroy Lake Powell Damn...more

like · see review

Jan 23, 2013 Molly Jergenson rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book was quirky and somewhat surprising. Having heard of Edward Abbey as an environmentalist who spent his life in the American Southwest, it was fun to read his description of the canyon country in Utah and Arizona. Even his quick references made me remember those places... not just the way it looks, but the air, the smell, the heat of the sun, and all sorts of little details were brought back to mind. The characters were all somewhat crazy, but still very human in a way that I don't think...more

like · see review

Feb 07, 2010 Matt Shake rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

Aug 28, 2012 Kathy rated it 4 of 5 stars

A one-sentence review would be the following--this book reads exactly like a Hollywood movie, and all the awful and wonderful things that statement implies. It was hard to decide whether to go with 3 or 4 stars, but the positives outweighed the negatives overall. My political sympathies lie too close to the topic for me to go any less, I suppose, and there are several truly delicious passages of description, analogy, and character insight throughout. This was my second reading of the novel, alth...more

like · see review

Jul 14, 2011 Andrew rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: environmental

The book really didn't get going, well at least exciting, until about 3/4 of the way through. The initial portion is more meandering and tells the story of how the characters formed up into their own little ELF group. Out to slow down, maybe even stop, the rate of destruction of the environment. Now, at no point was there any discussion about what they'd be willing to live with. A bridge here a dam there to save on gas and coal? Or back to the middle ages? Or simply a slower rate of destruction...more

like · see review

Apr 25, 2013 Errol Orhan rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'm not sure. I like the idea of an unlikely group of people rebelling against the modernisation/development/whateveryouwanttocallit of the American South West. Abbey lovingly describes the landscape, but to my surprise the passages I had looked forward to when buying the book (the ones dealing with blowing up bulldozers, bridges, and cars) were not that exciting. However, the sections that deal with the every day lives of the members of the Monkey Wrench Gang, and their motivations to participa...more

like · see review

May 05, 2011 Ben rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-lit

I am not an environmental enthusiast - a "tree-hugger". This is not to say that I don't understand the moral sympathies of such people, my enthusiasm simply falls into different categories. But like any good piece of literature, this story is not about circumstances, but about conflict and the natures of those waging it. This carefully-crafted, satirically pleasurable, intense and near-unbelievable story is about the courageously convicted against the farcical power of man's progress. Oh, Hell's...more I am not an environmental enthusiast - a "tree-hugger". This is not to say that I don't understand the moral sympathies of such people, my enthusiasm simply falls into different categories. But like any good piece of literature, this story is not about circumstances, but about conflict and the natures of those waging it. This carefully-crafted, satirically pleasurable, intense and near-unbelievable story is about the courageously convicted against the farcical power of man's progress. Oh, Hell's Bells, let's call it what it is. Destruction.

It seems to me that passionate lovers, whether for nature, music, art, literature, sex, most often promote the object of their convictions. It is a rarer thing to see those lovers aggressively, though methodically, dismantle the opposition over their love. While corporate lovers, Self lovers, dismantle the opposition to their convictions with moral ease, violence, unwarranted retaliation and hypocritical ambition. There is nothing God-like about the domineering egotism or hypocrisy of the bishop, or the legislators and law enforcement "allowing" and justifying the destruction of God's naturally evolved creation. Yet what they would defend as the great progressiveness and power of America is still subject to the sabotage of the Land's defenders. It is still a finite and vulnerable power. And it cannot hold back the vehement and violent love for nature.

And even though progress is vast and swift, it does not have the power to squelch its resistor. Yet as love for the land may be strong and focused, it cannot squash the destruction of progress. Which passion will survive the firefight? If we can learn anything from The Monkey Wrench Gang, it is that the conflict itself is inextinguishable, as Haydukes will rise, masked and furious, over and over again; against all corporate reasoning.

I had not heard of Edward Abbey before reading this book but I am pleased to learn of yet another gifted American prose stylist and visionary. The characters who comprise the Monkey Wrench Gang contrast and balance perfectly into the ends of the plot. The philosopher with the gun savvy lunatic and the polygamist Mormon with the sexy Jewess. It's perfect! But let's not forget the smarmy narrator, that all-seeing and verbose vulture in the sky laughing, crying and holding truths so enviable to the little antlike bipedal creatures scurrying on the dry earth below.(less)

like · see review

Sep 14, 2010 Katrina V. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: general-fiction

The summer after I graduated from college I spent a lot of time out west, roaming the country between Salt Lake City, Utah and the beautiful park land nearby; Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, and a personal childhood favorite of mine, Goblin Valley, where the shadows cast by the rocks in the twilight evoke ghoulish figures creeping up on you from all sides. I love these landscapes, so different from the Connecticut hills I grew up in – the colors, smells, and emotions of the American West are somethin...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 03, 2010 Phillip Twining rated it 3 of 5 stars

Sometimes the dialogue is contrived, perhaps the whole "getting into tight situations but inevitably coming out on top at the last second," is reminiscent of old pulp adventure stories, but the energy of challenging the system--of putting one's life on the line for a cause they believe in--is inspiring (as in making you want to blow up a Wal-Mart inspiring). Also Abbey's prose when describing the landscape is exciting and interesting--something I notice a lot of Southern/Southwestern writer's st...more

like · see review

Sep 18, 2011 Alice rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, library, classic, humor

As an artifact of its age, reflecting social mores and values at the time, this book is interesting. However, as an interesting story with engaging characters, I was unimpressed.

This book is given as a strong recommendation for a character to read in one of Carl Hiaasen's YA books, and so I took that as a signal that it must've informed young Carl's writing. That may well be true; a lot of the same themes and sort of scenarios crop up. However, this book lacked a clear narrative. I was not rivet...more

like · see review

Aug 02, 2011 Vance Dubberly rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is not great literature by any stretch of the imagination nor is it's Abbeys best writing. But it's fun pulp and a lot of what is expressed in this book speaks to me on some level. Apparently it spoke to a lot of people since you can probably credit it with codifying the ideologies for Earth First, ELF and other such groups. I can't recommend this book as it focuses more on blowing things up than on expressing the reverence that Abbey is famous for, but if you are interested in knowing why...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Penguin Modern Cl...: "The Monkey Wrench Gang" by Edward Abbey	1	4	Apr 12, 2013 03:50am
where to read	1	48	Dec 16, 2007 08:28pm

combine
Other Editions (22)

More editions...

Genres

Environment > Nature

51 users

Environment

47 users

Classics

28 users

Politics

26 users

Humor

26 users

Novels

23 users

Literature

18 users

Adventure

16 users

Book Club

11 users

Literature > American

10 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Edward Abbey

Abbey attended college in New Mexico, and then worked as a park ranger and fire lookout for the National Park Service in the Southwest. It was during this time that he developed the relationship with the area's environment that influenced his writing. During his service, he was in close proximity to the ruins of ancient Native American cultures and saw the expansion and destruction of modern civil...more

More about Edward Abbey...

Books by Edward Abbey

The Journey Home: Some Words in Defense of the American West

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About The Monkey Wrench...

4 trivia questions

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from The Monkey Wrench Gang

“Somewhere in the depths of solitude, beyond wilderness and freedom, lay the trap of madness.” — 23 people liked it

“Poor Hayduke: won all his arguments but lost his immortal soul.” — 5 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: The Monkey Wrench Gang
avg rating	preview: The Monkey Wrench Gang Goodreads rating: 4.06 (9424 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/99208.The_Monkey_Wrench_Gang?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349067863l/99208.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/99208.The_Monkey_Wrench_Gang?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey[/url]

The Monkey Wrench Gang

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website