A Confederate General from Big Sur [Paperback]

Richard Brautigan (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Grove Press (1969)
• ASIN: B0018OZING
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rollicking Good Fun!, June 21, 2001

By 

Donald Ford ([e-mail]) (Lavina, Montana United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Confederate General from Big Sur (Hardcover)

If there's one thing the world lacks, it's a good supply of well-written, funny-as-heck books. Luckily, aside from A Confederacy Of Dunces, we have this little gem. The characters are drunks, druggies, skanks, prostitutes & nutzoids. The pace is brisk and the imagry vivid. Most of it seemed to be part of my own life, but just where do you find weed that's so potent that 4 people smoking 5 joints stay high for well over 2 hours?! If you want to spend a day or night having a good laugh over a great book, pick this one up. You'll laugh out loud. And as Martha Stewart says...."It's a good thing".

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Frogs, Dynamite, and Prostitutes - Brautigan at his finest, October 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Confederate general from Big Sur (Paperback)

If you read nothing else by Richard Brautigan, read "A Confederate General From Big Sur." Mere words are inadequate to properly describe this book, and the majesty contained within. Brautigan, master of the simile, is at his finest as he spins an off-beat tale containing (though not restricted to): frogs, dynamite, prostitutes, booze, and a man named Lee Mellon. Forsaking all possessions and the amenities of "civilized" life (a notion nearly inconceivable these days), Lee Mellon and the narrator, Jesse, embark upon an adventure in a place called Big Sur. An adventure not only in the physial sense, but in the metaphysical as well. Reading Brautigan in the context of our times, it is hard to imagine how the audience of the 1960's embraced his work. While his works may, to us, appear strange at times, we have grown accustomed to such eccentricities. But in the 60's it was fresh and new. One can only speculate if we have somehow missed out on some aspect of Brautigan by having read his books 30 years after they were written. But the mere fact that his work stands the test of time is a testament not only to his books, but to the man himself. But, alas, i stray from the topic of this missive. You want my review? It's a damn good book. Now go and read it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Into the Rabbit Hole, February 13, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: A Confederate General from Big Sur (Paperback)

Brautigan's excellent novel is definately worth the quick read, and then worth a second read to catch all his language play. Having grown up near Big Sur, this book was particularly funny as I believe Lee Mellon is still in residence there.

Brautigan's description of drugs, drinks, frogs and the commas of Ecclesiastes are all done in a straight forward style that made me laugh out loud.

One of my favorite paragraphs: "He broke the seal on the bottle, unscrewed the cap and poured a big slug of whiskey into his mouth. He swallowed it down with a hairy gulp. Strange, for as I said before: he was bald." A great read.