The Curse of Lono [Paperback]

Hunter S. Thompson (Author), Ralph Steadman (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1983

The Curse of Lono is to Hawaii what Fear and Loathing was to Las Vegas: the crazy tales of a journalist's ?coverage? of a news event that ends up being a wild ride to the dark side of Americana. Originally published in 1983, Curse features all of the zany, hallucinogenic wordplay and feral artwork for which the Hunter S. Thompson/Ralph Steadman duo have become known and loved. This curious book, considered an oddity among Hunter's oeuvre, has been long out of print, prompting collectors to search high and low for an original copy. Resurrected by TASCHEN in a bigger size with splendid, full-color illustrations and a foreword by Sean Penn, The Curse of Lono is now available in a special 1000-copy edition, numbered and hand-signed by Thompson and Steadman.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Resurrected by TASCHEN in a bigger size with splendid, full-color illustrations and a foreword by Sean Penn, The Curse of Lono is now available in a special 1000-copy edition, each copy numbered and hand-signed by Thompson and Steadman.

Hardcover + Box. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Hunter S. Thompson's books include Screwjack, Hell's Angels, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Proud Highway, Better Than Sex, The Rum Diary, Kingdom of Fear, and Hey Rube. A contributor to various national and international publications, including a weekly sports column for ESPN.com, Thompson lives in a fortified compound near Aspen, Colorado. Ralph Steadman is best known for his collaboration with Hunter S. Thompson in the birth of "Gonzo" journalism. He is also a printmaker (his prints include a series of etchings on writers from William Shakespeare to William Burroughs). His own books include the lives of Sigmund Freud and Leonardo da Vinci and The Big I Am, the story of God. Sean Penn, acclaimed Academy Award-winning actor, director, writer, and producer, wrote the foreword for the new TASCHEN release. A close friend of Hunter S. Thompson, Sean is currently developing a film based on The Curse of Lono. Steve Crist is the photography editor for TASCHEN, where he recently produced Marilyn by Andre de Dienes, Steve McQueen by William Claxton, and The Polaroid Book. He is currently working with Hugh Hefner on Hugh Hefner's Playboy, on William Claxton's forthcoming Jazz opus Jazzlife, and a book of photographs created by Hunter S. Thompson. A California native, Steve is based at the TASCHEN America offices in Los Angeles. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (October 1, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553343548
• ISBN-13: 978-0553343540
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,403,180 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thompson-Steadman harmony at its best, April 30, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Curse of Lono (Paperback)

From the blue-armed freak, to the demonic fire-glowing night in The Land of Po, this is essential HST. Throw in the Honolulu Marathon, and the good doctor serves up a characteristic glimpse of his own weird Americana that calls for all other social critics to throw down their pens in reverence and futility. This book is Thompson-Steadman harmony unparalleled. Steadman's illustrations are hallucinogenic masterpieces that complement the fury of Thompson's writing. If you call yourself a devotee, don't leave a hole in your library where this book belongs. It is pure visceral madness. The final scene stakes its claim with any of his best works and is nothing short of what those of us who care have come to know as life-blood joy and the frenzied understanding of more than a few generations of enlightenment. Read it. Now

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An unknown classic, October 27, 2007

By 

Beau Christensen (Alberta CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Curse of Lono (Paperback)

This books is probably the least well-known of HST's books. But it was a very pleasant surprise upon reading it. It is classic Thompson, self-destructive, paranoid, and hilarious. If you take his word for it, you might never visit Hawaii yourself!

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best description of marathon madness I have ever read., June 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Curse of Lono (Paperback)

Prior to reading this book, I had dismissed the author as someone who just got loaded and made up a bunch of stuff. However, the first few chapters of Lono represent the best description of marathon madness of those times that I have ever read (I finished 6th place at the 1983 Honolulu Marathon). His insightfulness into carbo-loading parties and the running divorce lead me to believe that he first did his research sober and then crawled off to finish the book.It has given me a lot of new respect for Gonzo Journalism.And Steadman's manic drawings of a perfect match.