Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72: Amazon.ca: Hunter S. Thompson: Books

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With the same drug-addled alacrity and jaundiced wit that made Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas a hilarious hit, Hunter S. Thompson turns his savage eye and gonzo heart to the repellent and seductive race for President. He deconstructs the 1972 campaigns of idealist George McGovern and political hack Richard Nixon, ending up with a political vision that is eerily prophetic. A classic! --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Review

'The best stuff on the campaign I've read anywhere.' Nicholas Von Hoffman, Washington Post 'Obscene, horrid, repellent ! driving, urgent, candid, searing ! a fascinating, compelling book!' New York Post 'Hunter S. Thompson is the most creatively crazy and vulnerable of the New Journalists. His books are brilliant and honorable and valuable ! the literary equivalent of Cubism: all rules are broken.' Kurt Vonnegut Jr 'Gaze in awe ! Hunter Thompson does in his own mad way betray a profound democratic concern for the polity. And in its own mad way, it's darned refreshing.' New York Times 'Shocks you into laughter.' Detroit Free Press 'Unnerving!' Newsweek --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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55 Reviews

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4.7 out of 5 stars (55 customer reviews)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars MAYBE THE BEST POLITICAL BOOK EVER WRITTEN, Jun 11 2004

By

Steven R. Travers (CALIFORNIA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 (Mass Market Paperback)

Hunter Thompson would despise me. I am a conservative Reaganite. I thought Dick Nixon a brilliant President. I think the Lord Jesus Christ saves my soul. Whereas I despise Michael Moore and do not think he speaks the truth, I admire Hunter Thompson, who is probably a lot closer to Moore's politics than mine. It is not just the passage of time that heals divisions, it is more than that. If I were to analyze Hunter's political nostrums, I would probably find much that I know to be wrong, and that Hunter had enough education and knowledge available to him to know it was wrong but he wrote it anyway. Still, whatever visceral reaction I have to Moore I do not have for Hunter.

I guess humnor must be why. Hunter is absolutely inconoclastic. He is side-splitting. He never smiles, and his writing has no funniness in it. I picture him writing out of dread and hate, yet it magically transforms itself into laughs when my eyes meet his words and transfer to my brain. Forgive my bad attempt to get into his head and "explain" Hunter. It's all I can do to try.

This book is phenomenal. It contains events that are different from any descriptions ever. Others have novelized reality, but nobody splits the difference like Hunter. Hunter's supposed on-scene reportage of Edmund Muskie coming unglued in the New Hampshire snow, Frank Mankiewiczs' furious (drug induced?) ramblings, the one-on-one with Nixon himelf, leaves the reader exhausted in an effort to separate reality from fantasy. Hunter is like the great con man who uses Truth to augment his lies. This is not calling Hunter a liar, it is just an example. The fact that I don't see this as lies is telling, and separates Hunter and his times from the current political climate, in which his spawn, if you will, the likes of Moore and Al Franken, try to make Hunteresque points but leave themselves exposed as obfuscators instead. The answer is that Thompson is just so much better than almost all other writers that he cannot be duplicated or even imitated. To try is pointless. Many, inclduing myself, have tried to be the "next Jim Murray," but like Murray nobody can be Hunter, either.

STEVEN TRAVERS(...)

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4.0 out of 5 stars A no-holds-barred look at the American political scene, Feb 23 2000

By

Andrew Thorn (Nowhere special, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 (Mass Market Paperback)

Although not as thrilling as Hell's Angels and not as profound as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, F+L: on the campaign trail '72 does offer a brilliant analysis of the frenzied, unpredictable nature of American politics. With the McGovern/Nixon presidential race as its focus, this book gives the reader an insider's unflinching view of a year out with the candidates as they crisscrossed the USA. Unfortunately, Thompson takes some of the transcribed dialogue sections a bit too far and the inclusion of many irrelevant details was not necessary. The book should have been properly edited and cut down by about 100-150 pages. But having said that, the word for word transcription of an interview with George McGovern near the end of the book is priceless! What insight! The last 20 pages or so - the "Editor's conversation" - is also very good. If any foreigners want an understanding of the American campaign process, THIS IS THE BOOK TO READ. From no one but Thompson will you get such a realistic account. Gonzo journalism at its twisted peak, perhaps. Excessive at times, but worth the time and effort. Thompson's writing is more penetrating and entertaining than that of any tradional political journalist, period. Hell, you've got to give this guy credit. He's an original! The "football conversation" with Richard Nixon in New Hampshire and the "Sheridan"/Jerry Rubin incident on Muskie's Florida train are both hilarious!

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5.0 out of 5 stars THANKS!, Feb 13 2011

By

Sharbies - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 (Mass Market Paperback)

The item was shipped off twice due to the negligence of the postal service, and it STILL arrived faster than most books I had ordered.

THANKS!

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