Reviews

Steal This Book by Abbie Hoffman

egg_carpark's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative fast-paced

3.0

turquoiseshell's review against another edition

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5.0

a wildly entertaining read. lots of the references to relief organizations are outmoded, but it's still an impressive compendium.

jq_247's review against another edition

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challenging dark informative medium-paced

3.0

chloekg's review against another edition

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5.0

A lot of the recommendations have been lost in the passage of time. However, the spirit of the book is timeless and exhilarating. To recognize that Americans are living in the heart of the Empire and to respond to all that entails, it's a hard order. Rebel laughter and gorilla costumes make the whole mess a lot easier to bear.

burstona's review against another edition

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adventurous funny

4.5

knightofswords's review against another edition

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2.0

Whatever you say, boomer

seanrh's review against another edition

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funny informative medium-paced

4.0

A book full of info that is sketchy to know but interesting to learn

a_1212's review against another edition

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2.0

~2.75

bupdaddy's review against another edition

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2.0

I found this - I don't remember where. But its reputation preceded it, and I just had to read all those dangerous subversive things that were in it.

I never made a bomb, but I used the bread recipe once. It turned out pretty well.

tempamatic's review against another edition

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4.0

This was the cool book to read in 1971 when I was 15 years old. I was a young hippy and I thought this whole movement was exciting. I was looking at a future where I thought I was probably going to be drafted and forced to fight a meaningless war in Vietnam (which was over by the time I got my draft card and high lottery number in 1975), and I wanted to protest that. I also wanted to grow my hair long and continue my music career.

I thought we were living in a police state, and I still feel that way. I learned a lot from "Steal This Book," and it got me fired up to be active in politics and try to change things. I kept learning about how the political system works, and although this book was a harsh wake-up call for me, I was still an obedient suburban kid and stayed out of trouble.

The following year, I worked for the George McGovern campaign, trying to get rid of the tyrant and crook Richard Nixon. Although the campaign was not at all successful, I learned a lot.

My politics then were certainly not as radical as Abbie Hoffman, but I was not at all conservative, either. I entered the political world with the help of this book and continued learning about all sides of the political world as I grew older.

I got better at discussing political matters with my parents, and they were often startled at my extreme liberal views. I only wish they had respected my opinions and taken me more seriously in those years. But as 1974 arrived and Nixon resigned, I think they started to understand that everything I was arguing for was moral and sensible and that they had been woefully uninformed about Nixon, the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal. It was a victory for me and gained some respect from them, even though they never admitted that.