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A review by justmolliecate
Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties by Mike Davis, Jon Wiener
5.0
Set the Night on Fire is an in-depth and complex look at the history that created the sprawling city of L.A. It starts off by enumerating the factors that contributed to the uprisings that transformed not just life in LA but life in America during the sixties. Mike David does an excellent job of laying out the convoluted ties between the different players in the game and shows how each aspect of the cultural anathema evolved throughout the years until hitting a point of firm resolve. This book brings to light the dark history and realities of America in the sixties and forces readers to acknowledge the absolutely horrific ordeals that white right leaning Americans forced on minority communities.
While at times this book was as sprawling and twisted as L.A. itself is, the sprawling nature seemed necessary to encapsulate the complex factors of how L.A. came to be what it is now. It is a well researched and well written book and should be at the top of anyone’s list for a more nuanced look and realistic perspective of the social, cultural, and political landscape of L.A. in the sixties.
With new names and characters every few sentences, Set the Night on Fire really brings the human aspect of this time period to the forefront and tells and interwoven story by penning the lives of countless players, on every side of the game. The passion and raw emotion of L.A. in the sixties plays out in this book and really drove the narrative forward.
While at times this book was as sprawling and twisted as L.A. itself is, the sprawling nature seemed necessary to encapsulate the complex factors of how L.A. came to be what it is now. It is a well researched and well written book and should be at the top of anyone’s list for a more nuanced look and realistic perspective of the social, cultural, and political landscape of L.A. in the sixties.
With new names and characters every few sentences, Set the Night on Fire really brings the human aspect of this time period to the forefront and tells and interwoven story by penning the lives of countless players, on every side of the game. The passion and raw emotion of L.A. in the sixties plays out in this book and really drove the narrative forward.