Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga (Modern Library)
by Hunter S. Thompson
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Book Summary Information
Author: Hunter S. ThompsonEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1999-12-07
ISBN: 067960331X
Number of pages: 288
Publisher: Modern Library
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780679603313
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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Book Reviews of Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga (Modern Library)
Book Review: If you like Hunter Thompson, you'll like this
Summary: 4 Stars
And I do. Years ago, I read most all of Hunter Thompson's books, but I missed this one. I always intended to get around to it but it always got put on the back-burner.
Well, having recently been a fan of the FX TV show Sons of Anarchy, and after finding this book in the garage after a cleaning frenzy, I decided it was time.
On the good side -I found myself cracking up every few pages. This book is not nearly as laugh-out-loud as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, or Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, but it's still got its moments. There are also horrifying moments to be sure, but he manages to slip in an observation or a description that is vintage Thompson.
I found the book very interesting, and he not only talks about the Hell's Angels from the time he was with them (1965-66), but he educates us about the history of that group and other biker gangs. They essentially started when WWll vets returned home, and Hunter goes on to explain the origin of the 1% ers - the outlaw motorcyclists that are at odds with the AMA (the American Motorcycle Association.)
I have read some criticism that Hunter mythologizes this group as heroes, and I certainly didn't get that impression from this book. Thompson does humanize many of the bikers with nicknames straight out of Bad Guy central casting, but I never saw this as his being reverential to them. In fact, especially in the later chapters, he goes on to explain why he feels they are the "losers" in society, banded together with an allegiance only to each other and with the knowledge that they live in the here and now because their future is so unknowable and bleak.
Thompson also does a good job of showing how the media is more to blame for the group's barbarian image, than their actual exploits. Mind you, Thompson certain details examples of violence and savagery that would scare anyone and earn them their reputation - but the media's exaggeration of some of the more well-known events only served to make them famous. They became every decent citizens scary boogeymen, and they achieved a certain cachet or prestige just because of that.
So is the book dated? In some ways, it is. This is certainly not 1965, and MC gangs like the Hell's Angels don't have the press or attention they used to get. Yet, I still found the book so interesting, and Thompson has a way of describing the type of marginalized personality that gravitates to this type of lifestyle in a way that's relevant today.
Summary of Hell's Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga (Modern Library)
The author's harrowing and critically acclaimed first book chronicles his year riding with the Hell's Angels and other motorcycle gangs, an "experiment" that ended when he was beaten nearly to death by a group of Angels. 20,000 first printing. NYT.General Books
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