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sjforsko's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Took me forever to get through, but that was largely Nathan's fault. Very exciting and fun adventure - especially the last 50ish pages, where it was tough to put down! A good one for anyone interested in environmental activism (or had a dad/father in law Vietnam vet with a crazy streak).
alisonjfields's review against another edition
4.0
I grew up in the mountains of Western North Carolina in a small city notable for its hippies and weirdos and just a hop, skip and jump away from a university where Edward Abbey taught English and raged against machines for a minute or two. My dad was pretty environmentally motivated. And I'm pretty sure "The Monkey Wrench Gang" made its way into dinner conversation several times in my youth. This may have been why I never read it as a teenager* like the rest of my friends did.
I remember when a bunch of my friends went all gung-ho Earth First!-y somewhere around my Senior Year. I wasn't swayed, largely for aesthetic reasons. (I was seventeen at the time. I was that shallow)
I think I tried to read this book in college. It kept coming up. It was always gone from the library, sometimes stolen. It never showed up at the used bookstores. And I was desperately afraid it would be terribly earnest and no fun at all, like the hippies of my youth in their wooly socks and prayers for the trees.
So, I was surprised, upon finally reading "The Monkey Wrench Gang," to find that I liked it. It is, in fact, a rollicking, exaggerated western that gallops along to the end with lots of good (and bad) jokes and lots of ideological gray area. His titular gang is comprised of four mostly !@#$-ed up individuals, whose commitment toward preserving the environment at not-quite-all costs, is just about the purest thing about them. Otherwise they are played for comedy, for sex appeal, for commentary and utter batshit crazy but loveable black-hatted outlaw nonsense. There are some great digressive paranoid Pynchonian riffs and a some edge of the seat explosion/evasion scenes that are straight out of your favorite Western train robbery. Less impressive are Abbey's occasional detours into the same kind of wiseassed-horny-old-man-talks dirty-with an-impossibly-hot-impossibly-cool-walking-centerfold-of-a-heroine crap that tends to turn me off of Tom Robbins. It's definitely a fun read. And given where we've progressed (or haven't) with regards to protecting the environment, this book still feels remarkably timely.
* It may have been victim of what I like to call the "My Mom thinks Tom Robbins is awesome" problem. It's hard to find pleasure in the transgressions of the things your parents (and your parents' friends) find edgy and cool.**
** Which probably also accounts for my lack of enthusiasm toward The Doors, The Grateful Dead, Kurt Vonnegut, Ernest Hemingway and anything smelling remotely of Wicca and patchouli. This also goes some way in explaining how loving Henry James always felt faintly subversive.
I remember when a bunch of my friends went all gung-ho Earth First!-y somewhere around my Senior Year. I wasn't swayed, largely for aesthetic reasons. (I was seventeen at the time. I was that shallow)
I think I tried to read this book in college. It kept coming up. It was always gone from the library, sometimes stolen. It never showed up at the used bookstores. And I was desperately afraid it would be terribly earnest and no fun at all, like the hippies of my youth in their wooly socks and prayers for the trees.
So, I was surprised, upon finally reading "The Monkey Wrench Gang," to find that I liked it. It is, in fact, a rollicking, exaggerated western that gallops along to the end with lots of good (and bad) jokes and lots of ideological gray area. His titular gang is comprised of four mostly !@#$-ed up individuals, whose commitment toward preserving the environment at not-quite-all costs, is just about the purest thing about them. Otherwise they are played for comedy, for sex appeal, for commentary and utter batshit crazy but loveable black-hatted outlaw nonsense. There are some great digressive paranoid Pynchonian riffs and a some edge of the seat explosion/evasion scenes that are straight out of your favorite Western train robbery. Less impressive are Abbey's occasional detours into the same kind of wiseassed-horny-old-man-talks dirty-with an-impossibly-hot-impossibly-cool-walking-centerfold-of-a-heroine crap that tends to turn me off of Tom Robbins. It's definitely a fun read. And given where we've progressed (or haven't) with regards to protecting the environment, this book still feels remarkably timely.
* It may have been victim of what I like to call the "My Mom thinks Tom Robbins is awesome" problem. It's hard to find pleasure in the transgressions of the things your parents (and your parents' friends) find edgy and cool.**
** Which probably also accounts for my lack of enthusiasm toward The Doors, The Grateful Dead, Kurt Vonnegut, Ernest Hemingway and anything smelling remotely of Wicca and patchouli. This also goes some way in explaining how loving Henry James always felt faintly subversive.
nicinlos's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
addisrednick's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
One of my favorites! Classic Abbey!! Slightly less sexism and notably less racism than Desert Solitaire
yosemite_spins's review against another edition
3.0
The idea of a industry heads chasing environmental anarchists through the beautiful American Southwest is great. I just wished the characters were more likable, smarter, and more effective in their causes.
barnesstorming's review against another edition
4.0
Great stuff here with lots of literary gems spat out as effortless asides, like Bob Dylan's early songs. Some of the folks are caricatures, sort of like what Carl Hiaasen would later do with his villains, and that's not my jam. And the only female character here is treated by everyone around her as a trophy and a stereotype — but she's among the strongest characters in the novel and who am I to say this wasn't SOP for how women were treated in the 1970s? I'll defer. But this book is awesome. It'd been in my queue for years, but seeing the film "How to Blow Up a Pipeline" is what pushed me into taking the plunge. So glad I did.
hoodster's review against another edition
2.0
Cartoonish, sexist, racist, hypocritical, arrogant, and sophomoric. And I'm an environmentalist.
cokester's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
1mcmaz's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The racism and sexism of the characters is somewhat tolerable in that they are written to be layered and morally ambiguous, and not so forgivable in the author’s narration and humor.
Bonnie Abzug is a decent attempt at a woman written by a man in the 70s. Her characterization is a bit inconsistent, since she is portrayed as rebellious and free spirited (e.g. sex positive, unapologetically vocal) while simultaneously filling the archetypal woman’s role (desirable prize for beauty/sex, worries dutifully for her men, etc.).The fact that she ends up married and pregnant makes me emotionally unwell.
Excessive descriptions bog down the pacing of the book, making it a much slower read. However, the descriptions of nature do a wonderful job of showing the author’s love and respect for the land, making the reader sympathetic to the gang’s cause and absorbed in the beautiful country which is the main reason behind the book. Also, the little flashes into each character’s headspace are enjoyable for the complexity of emotion and personality they convey. The writing is at times genuinely funny and thought-provoking.
Bonnie Abzug is a decent attempt at a woman written by a man in the 70s. Her characterization is a bit inconsistent, since she is portrayed as rebellious and free spirited (e.g. sex positive, unapologetically vocal) while simultaneously filling the archetypal woman’s role (desirable prize for beauty/sex, worries dutifully for her men, etc.).
Excessive descriptions bog down the pacing of the book, making it a much slower read. However, the descriptions of nature do a wonderful job of showing the author’s love and respect for the land, making the reader sympathetic to the gang’s cause and absorbed in the beautiful country which is the main reason behind the book. Also, the little flashes into each character’s headspace are enjoyable for the complexity of emotion and personality they convey. The writing is at times genuinely funny and thought-provoking.
hecticdinosaur's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated