Nil Vila Vila থেকে Ūta 17119, Lithuania
Raoul Dukes, accompanied by his 300lb Samoan 'Attorney', embark on a drug-fuelled bender in Las Vegas as part of the former's journalistic assignment to find the 'American Dream'. What follows is a report of the pair's misadventure as they unleash their drug-induced insanity upon maids, tourists, Mint 400 racers, car rental workers and many more. The novel purports to be a composite of fact, fiction and fantasy based on Thompson's own real-life experiences on two separate expeditions to Las Vegas. There are occassional moments of brilliance and genuine amusment in the descriptions of the protagonist's mescal and acid-induced haze, but the novel quickly descents into a rather tedious and repetitive acccount of somebody else's bender. Much is made of the 'gonzo' style of the piece, but I feel there was little novelty or inspiration in this. Maybe this is due to the fact that 'Fear and Loathing...' is before my generation, and the importance of 'gonzo' is lost on me. Additonally, I neither identify nor sympathise with whatever ideals the novel purports to champion. If anything, as the novel progressed, I came to consider the protagonists as rather annoying and shallow, and if there was some intended irony it was far too blunt for my wit. If you're into drug culture you may find something of your self in this book, if not don't waste the 3-4 hours it will take to read this book (or try instead Huxley's much more intellectual and fascinating 'The Doors of Perception').