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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
Decent read, though I was surprised how different it is from the film. Thompson's youth while writing this story is evident but over all it was an enjoyable read.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
reflective
slow-paced
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book is mainly about journalists drinking rum and eating burgers. Like that's it. Rum and burgers with the occasional bar fight. Other than a lack luster plot, 22 year old Thompson had amazing writing skills and captured a Caribbean vide.
I've heard people say this book changed their lives. No seriously I have; and I wanted to say to them how crappy has your life been? This book was, to me, predictable. It was a decent read but unless your a devotee of Thompson, I'd skip it.
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
No
Melancholic. The world was certainly built, and when you’re in it you’re swimming around in there completely. The story was not captivating but the writing was really nice. To be awful, I’d say the vibes are good in this book, but it was about all I could do with it to read 224 pages. Good thing it’s short so that I can actually say I thoroughly enjoyed it, I guess. This is my honest review.
adventurous
medium-paced
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Going into this, I was full of optimism and excitement because I’ve loved every piece of Hunter S. Thompson’s work I’ve read before. This, however, was an incredible let down, and I have to say it makes sense why it wasn’t published when he’d first written it.
Before I talk about the flaws i find with plot and the characters, it has to be stated that on a surface level, just the experience of reading the bland descriptions and the boring events had me so disengaged that it took me over a month to actually finish this novel. Unlike the exciting twists and turns Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has with Hunter’s witty metaphors and interesting phraseology, this book was void of anything enrapturing, and I only noticed two or three occasions that reminded me that it was written by an actual talented author. For the most part, I found trudging through every chapter a bore, and to my memory, I can’t recollect any stand-out moments or things that have stayed with me.
Now, to the characters. Paul is a likeable enough protagonist and narrator, he seems to just be doing his best, and is too alcoholic dependent to be good enough. This, I assumed, would be a powerful setup, since it could be a part of his character that he could grow from and change out of by the end, but it seems he just stays exactly the same. His internal monologue often irritated me too, especially anytime he even thought about Chenault, never mind actually described what she looked like. His whole obsession with her was painfully annoying, and didn’t just border on the misogynistic - it just was. This I find to be a fault with Hunter, who for the life of him cannot write two-dimensional female characters. From beginning to end she is viewed as a sex object by Paul, Yeamon and everyone else, and I find it hard to see anything romantic in their dynamic.Paul lusts after her, then she’s (presumably) violated in St. Thomas, making her undesirable to Yeamon, leaving Paul to be left with her. She very much gives off the aura of the manic pixie dream girl trope, which as far as I know wasn’t even a thing when Hunter first wrote this, but her spontaneity, her obedience to men, her attractive physique and mysterious nature makes the men around her desire her, and reading her felt like reading absolute bullshit. Yeamon is worse by far, since he actually hit her and had that attitude of ownership, but neither of her lovers are redeemable in my eyes.
And finally, the plot - one of the most mind numbing plots I’ve ever had to read recently. It very much followed a “this happened, then this happened, then we did this, then this happened to us” trajectory, and nothing but their arrest and Chenault’s return to Paul’s apartment had me engaged. The only thing that saved this from being a complete waste of time was the fact that I did enjoy the setting quite a lot, but only in certain ways. By that, I mean the atmosphere of heat and sun and coasts that’s frequently alluded to by Paul as he travels around as he writes - imagery in his new apartment was particularly calming to imagine, as it conjures up that idyllic Caribbean lifestyle of paradise Paul references at the beginning. The parts I didn’t like about the setting, however, was every part that reflected on San Juan as a dangerous, low income, and uncivilised place where we find these poor Americans suffering.The arrest, Chenault’s implied assault, the carnival etc. - all of it made the place out to be a temporary zone of work where these people will have to escape from by the end, because it’s simply so torturous, when they were the ones who went there in the first place. This presentation irritated me, especially considering how Paul and Chenault are to return back to the ‘civilised’ mainland of the US and be with one another in New York.
All in all, I found this novel extremely average and not at all worth my time. I’d love to read some reviews of people who enjoyed it if only to get a grasp on what makes this book at all good, but for now I have to say that I don’t recommend this to anyone, especially not lovers of HST’s work. I definitely prefer his Gonzo.
Before I talk about the flaws i find with plot and the characters, it has to be stated that on a surface level, just the experience of reading the bland descriptions and the boring events had me so disengaged that it took me over a month to actually finish this novel. Unlike the exciting twists and turns Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has with Hunter’s witty metaphors and interesting phraseology, this book was void of anything enrapturing, and I only noticed two or three occasions that reminded me that it was written by an actual talented author. For the most part, I found trudging through every chapter a bore, and to my memory, I can’t recollect any stand-out moments or things that have stayed with me.
Now, to the characters. Paul is a likeable enough protagonist and narrator, he seems to just be doing his best, and is too alcoholic dependent to be good enough. This, I assumed, would be a powerful setup, since it could be a part of his character that he could grow from and change out of by the end, but it seems he just stays exactly the same. His internal monologue often irritated me too, especially anytime he even thought about Chenault, never mind actually described what she looked like. His whole obsession with her was painfully annoying, and didn’t just border on the misogynistic - it just was. This I find to be a fault with Hunter, who for the life of him cannot write two-dimensional female characters. From beginning to end she is viewed as a sex object by Paul, Yeamon and everyone else, and I find it hard to see anything romantic in their dynamic.
And finally, the plot - one of the most mind numbing plots I’ve ever had to read recently. It very much followed a “this happened, then this happened, then we did this, then this happened to us” trajectory, and nothing but their arrest and Chenault’s return to Paul’s apartment had me engaged. The only thing that saved this from being a complete waste of time was the fact that I did enjoy the setting quite a lot, but only in certain ways. By that, I mean the atmosphere of heat and sun and coasts that’s frequently alluded to by Paul as he travels around as he writes - imagery in his new apartment was particularly calming to imagine, as it conjures up that idyllic Caribbean lifestyle of paradise Paul references at the beginning. The parts I didn’t like about the setting, however, was every part that reflected on San Juan as a dangerous, low income, and uncivilised place where we find these poor Americans suffering.
All in all, I found this novel extremely average and not at all worth my time. I’d love to read some reviews of people who enjoyed it if only to get a grasp on what makes this book at all good, but for now I have to say that I don’t recommend this to anyone, especially not lovers of HST’s work. I definitely prefer his Gonzo.
adventurous
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes