The Great Shark Hunt (Hunter S. Thompson in general)

Member Name: edie

Product:	Hunter S. Thompson in general
Date:	29/01/01 (28 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A weird time capsule from the 60s and 70s

Disadvantages: Maybe an acquired taste

As someone’s who’s more interested in American politics than drugs (weird, I know) I’ve always enjoyed Hunter S Thompson’s pieces on American political scene more than the LSD-addled autobiographical writings. And The Great Shark Hunt is my favourite of his books, being a collection of mostly political writings from his golden period in the 60s and 70s. While it still seems slightly pointless to compile a book of something as transitory as journalism, these articles are still enjoyable 30 odd years later and often work best as period pieces recording the turbulent events of the time as they were happening. (The article on the proto-hippy scene in San Francisco is especially insightful.)

The Great Shark Hunt is a brilliant all-round compilation, giving an idea of Thompson’s frenetic, inimitable style, including chapters from the more famous books Hell’s Angels and the Fear and Loathing double In Las Vegas and On the Campaign Trail and his first pioneering example of "gonzo" writing on the "decadent and depraved" Kentucky Derby. While the articles on skier Jean Claude Killy and the eponymous shark hunt itself, successfully pass the test of great journalism by holding your attention even if you’ve got no interest in the subjects being written about.

But its the pieces on Richard Nixon that are the stand-outs and classic HST. I’ve heard it said that Nixon defined Thompson in that same way that Moriaty defined Sherlock Holmes and while that’s slightly grandiose, Tricky Dick did seem to bring out the vitriolic best in him. Thompson’s writing reaches its fevered peak, during the lengthy Watergate scandal, something that as a life long Nixon-hater he admits he’d been waiting for a long time.

After Nixon’s political demise, without such a hate-figure to channel his anger, he does seem to lose his focus slightly. Though he has regained it in recent years
with his pieces on Bill Clinton and the 92 election, collected in Better Than Sex. But that’s a different book and time era entirely and The Great Shark Hunt is a comprehsive sampler of Thompson’s oeuvre for any one thinking of exploring further.

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