Hell's Angels

Description

THE PENGUIN MAGNUM COLLECTION With 'long hair in the wind, beards and bandanas flapping, earrings, chain whips . . . and Harleys flashing chrome', the Hell's Angels erupted into 1960s America paralysing whole towns with fear. Determined to discover the truths behind the terrifying reputation of those marauding biker gangs, Hunter S. Thompson spent a year on the road with the Angels, documenting his hair-raising experiences with Charger Charley, Big Frank, Little Jesus and the Gimp. Hell's Angels was the result- a masterpiece of underground reportage whose free-wheeling, impressionistic style created the legend of Gonzo journalism, and made Thompson's name as the wild man of American writing.

Hunter S. Thompson's research on the Hell's Angels involved more than a year of close association with the outlaws - riding, loafing, plotting and eventually being stomped. A native of Louisville, Kentucky, he began writing as a sports columnist in Florida. He has worked on newspapers and magazines, becoming South American correspondent for the National Observer. His other books include Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, 1972 and The Great Shark Hunt.

'There are only two adjectives writers care about any more - "brilliant" and "outrageous" - and Hunter has a freehold on both of them.' Tom Wolfe 'The first rock-star writer' Guardian