The Book Is Better Than The Movie! By Eggy on Nov 30, 2008 - Updated Oct 15, 2011

"Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" has been called by some critics the most important book of the twentieth century.

It is a story about the pursuit of truth and enlightenment in the aftermath of the tumultuous 60s.

Written in 1971, Dr. Thompson takes the reader on a wild ride from Los Angeles to Las Vegas to cover a motorcycle race and then a police convention for a popular magazine. The protagonist, Raoul Duke and his 300 pound Samoan Attorney fight their way through a number of challenges presented by the constraints of the civilized world.

Hunter Thompson, in reality a long time writer for Rolling Stone Magazine, created the whole genre of "Gonzo Journalism" - where the writer and the story become helplessly entwined. Thompson died by his own hand in 2005 and his remains were subsequently shot from a cannon in Woody Creek, Colorado.

The book is tastefully illustrated by Ralph Steadman, a famous Welsh caricaturist.

This book is not for everybody; The sensitive reader might be put off by some of the extreme behavior and language.