Armand's review
The Rum Diary: A Novel
by Hunter S. Thompson
Armand's review
The Rum Diary: A Novel by Hunter S. Thompson
Armand's review
rating:
Finished this book on the beach in Washington State, beer at my side. While quite a bit short of Hunter's rum-fueled rage through San Juan, it felt appropriate nonetheless. Hunter's first "novel" tracks a struggling journalist through a short period in Puerto Rico in the late 1950s. The book is so place specific that a map of San Juan is included before the first chapter, noting a few key bars and hotels. The same themes of his later books are present in this one, especially the protagonist's horror at mainstream culture and his self-destructive means of dissociating from it. This book is worth reading for many reasons, but most of all it is fascinating to see that Hunter has always been a moralist, looking to better himself, just unsure exactly how to do it.
