Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson
by Corey Seymour, Jann S. Wenner
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Book Reviews of Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson
Book Review: So Good It's Scary!
Summary: 5 Stars
First and foremost, I have no idea what these reviews are taking about because this book is a very well-rounded and informed account of a man and his legendary life. Now, this book is an oral history and at first, I was skeptical but after reading it, I find it is the perfect fit for such a man's life.... there was so much going on and so many quirky things happening at a break-neck pace that an oral history seems to be the only way to do Mr. Thompson justice.
Furthermore, the book is very engrossing and extremely hard to put down. While I was still reading the book, I found when I would finally put the book down, I could not stop thinking about what I had read and when I finished the book, I felt as if I had known Hunter Thompson my whole life.
In this way, the book was very powerful and it exemplified how strong of a presence he had over the people he knew as well as those who he met in passing, the mark of his legend, to say the least.
Lastly, this book really struck a chord with me; I identified with Hunter in his early days in Louisville. It inspired me to pursue my own writing aspirations and to do something great with my life and as a long tiem fan, the book showed me the side of a man that very few people knew; of course he could be a wild one but for the most part, he was a good man and a tried and true gentleman.
This book is something any fan should read because it is very readable and enjoyable and will show you a side of Mr. Thomson you never knew existed. It was well worth my time and I wish there were more to read but unfortunately, he chose to leave us prematurely but it is safe to say, the legend of Gonzo lives on!
Book Review: Hunter: Warts and All
Summary: 5 Stars
This book presents Hunter Thompson, the good and the bad. Everything in this guy's life was extreme: his writing, his moods, his activities (drugs, alcohol, explosives, etc.). Frankly, my only negative comment about this extremely entertaining biography was Johnny Depp's overly saccharine introduction. Oh, how Johnny loved Hunter. I guess people don't want to speak ill of the dead, but, let's face it, someone who absorbs so many substances on a daily basis is not going to be Mr. Nice Guy all the time. Johnny all but canonizes the guy.
I'm sure Hunter Thompson was a party animal extraordinaire. I admit it - I've daydreamed about hanging with Dr. Gonzo. This book will cure you of those pipe dreams PRONTO. His long suffering wife Sandy goes into depth about how it was to live with this out of control individual for 17 years. She typed his stuff, made the phone calls and kept the writing machine running and put up with abuse along the way. When her own sanity was at stake and she had to walk away, Hunter turned on her like a rabid dog.
Hunter's son, Juan, also has a running commentary which is less explicit than his mother's. You've left with the feeling that there's a lot left unsaid. What struck me, as pointed out by his son, was how unusual (and from my view, selfish) it was for Mr. Thompson to shoot himself in the head while his family was in the house after he couldn't tolerate his pain and deterioration.
Book Review: Endearing, Quirky & Very Sad......
Summary: 5 Stars
"Gonzo" by Jann Wenner and Corey Seymour is THE biography of the late Hunter S. Thompson. Each page is written by a loved one or a friend (Jann, who owns, "Rolling Stone" magazine, was a great friend of Hunter's in their collaberations. "Rolling Stone" put Hunter on the map, per se, after Thompson wrote his beloved classic, "Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas"...where Ralph Steadman, the genius artist whose works became known as a part of Thompson's "Gonzo" persona. Basically, the term "Gonzo" was coined by Bill Cardoza, who said of Thompson's piece on the famous, Kentucky Derby piece. It basically means to go all out for journalism and pull no punches. It really doesn't have anything to do with Thompson's famous consumption with alcohol and drugs. Gonzo is a way of turning staid journalism around on its head. Thompson LIVED these pieces, and it is a truly endearing account of an eccentric who lived life (and ended it, sadly) on his own terms. A MUST READ FOR ANY HST FANS. I found myself laughing and crying with each account. Johnny Depp's introduction sums Hunter's life up perfectly. (Depp played Raoul Duke/Thompson in the film adaptation of, "Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas- with an eerie perfection. Just do what I did. If you love and miss Hunter, treat yourself to this book. "Buy The Ticket; Take The Ride! HST is sorely missed by me and millions of his fans.Book Review: This could have been a really good book. But it isn't.
Summary: 1 Stars
This is a book I wanted to like: a view of Hunter Thompson from the people who knew him. Unfortunately, this was edited by a man who apparently still holds deep resentments against Thompson and has no problem venting (and cashing in on) them now that HST cannot defend himself. Some nice moments can be found, but in general this book is, as HST once put it, a real hamburger job.
The best way to experience Hunter Thompson is his own writing in his own books. Wenner's book is just another shovel in the great and terrible onslaught of graverobbing and greedheaded necrosodomy that has followed Thompson's death.
Jann, rather than take cheap shots at your former writers, you really should pay more attention to making Rolling Stone edgy again, as it was when Hunter wrote for you. RS is now nothing but creampuff articles and tons of glossy corporate advertising, the direct intellectual equivalent of Tiger Beat. Rolling Stone is to journalism what the Ho-Ho is to cuisine, and it doesn't have to be that way.
Book Review: Hard Told Tale
Summary: 4 Stars
Hunter Thompson's books changed my life. He is probably my favorite writer. I've been reading him since 1975. I've read virtually everything he's published, more than once. I've read most of the previously published biographies about him. This book is quite simply the best biography I've read since Wired, Bob Woodward's biography of John Belushi. I disagree with the reviewers who want to write this work off as more humping on the leg of Thompson's literary corpse. (Wanna see somebody humping the corpse? Read Anita Thompson's lame Gonzo Way farce.) The voices in this book were of Thompson's closest friends and family. These are the people he wrote to and about. It took guts for the people interviewed to lay it all out, the good with the bad, for the rest of us to see. Hunter Thompson wrote about the truth, and this book is probably as clear a glimpse of Hunter's truth as any of us are ever likely to see. Until something else written by Hunter himself is published, this book completes his canon for me.