Listening Is an Act of Love (2007)

A Celebration of American Life from the StoryCorps Project.

For those of you who have never heard of StoryCorps: You need to listen to NPR more often! Founded by Dave Isay (who edited this collection), the group's mission "is to provide American's of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share, and preserve the stories of their lives."

Traditionally speaking, history is written by the victors. And not just the victors, but usually only the wealthy and politically powerful victors. So, generations from now, what happens to us - the common man? We decay into statistics and vague generalizations correlating to our time period. And what happens to our private stories of personal triumphs and failures? No matter how wonderful, powerful, or teaching these stories might be, they dissipate into the ether.

Dave Isay set out to stop that vicious cycle. He and his StoryCorps cohort travel the country, giving anybody the opportunity to record a conversation for posterity. In this way, the folk heroes of modern America are given a chance to live forever when all the recordings are stored at the Library of Congress.

This book is a collection of transcripts of exemplary interviews recorded by the project. Although interview excerpts can be heard weekly on NPR (and via the group's podcast), reading these stories presented a new perspective - turning the interviews into true "stories." The nature of these stories ranges from the humorous (a man using a wooden leg to protect himself from a dog) to the powerful (a man returning a favor nearly 50 years later) to the tragic (a prisoner trying to overcome drug addiction). The last section is dedicated solely to tragic stories about September 11 and Hurricane Katrina.

While reading this book, I could not help remembering my grandfather. In retrospect, his experiences in the Great Depression and World War II would have made him an ideal folk hero. Yet, I was happy to read so many stories that paralleled his - people who made it through the hard times with dignity - people never complained about hard work - people who made this world a better place without consideration for individual egos.

I cannot recommend this book for the weak of heart or the emotionally sensitive; some of the stories are downright heartbreaking. But, I wholeheartedly recommend the book. Traced throughout these stories is the strength of the common man during uncommon times. It is a comforting feeling to realize that there are other people who, without glory or commendation, live upright and moral lives. And they live to tell the tale.

Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson

An Oral Biography by Jann S. Wenner and Corey Seymour (2007).

Jann S. Wenner, founder and publisher of Rolling Stone, explains in the foreword that this book is basically an extension of the magazine’s tribute to Hunter Thompson after his death. That issue (if you were lucky enough, like me, to grab a copy) was almost completely dedicated to personal reflections from friends and celebrities on the giddy highs and violent lows that defined Hunter Thompson. This book completes that issue in the way that a great bonus disc can complete a great DVD set.

The book is broken apart into many vignettes about Thompson, told in the first-person, by those who were with him. The stories themselves are organized foremost by chronology, and then sub-divided by themes. The contributors consist of people from many aspects of his life, ranging from his childhood friends and neighbors, to his editors and celebrity friends. The stories also range from describing the wild, public side of Thompson, to his more private – almost sensitive – personal side.

Considering that Thompson’s favorite subject was, in many ways, himself, I was surprised to learn so much more about him than I had previously known. Parts of his life which had previously been out of focus, such as his childhood, became much more illuminated. Of course, it was also funny to read some stories that are already legendary – such as his crippling inability to meet a deadline and his superhuman tolerance for alcohol.

This last aspect, though, is also part of the book’s weakness. A few too many of the stories are re-hashes of prior stories, and the same story is sometimes even repeated a few times within this tome. At a few points, it drags on interminably, almost without aim, but yet, at other points, entire decades nearly vanish without comment. Too much time, I feel, is spent on details that did not change or add any meaning to what is already known. Surprisingly (though pleasantly), there is no lengthy discussion of his literary legacy or impact on writing – the book merely ends after his death.

It is hard to give a blanket recommendation for this book. If you have no idea who Thompson is, “Gonzo” is not the place to start. But, if you are already a Thompson fanatic, this book does not add much to his mystique either. I enjoyed this book merely as a reminder of a great writer – a man with so much control over his words – who could have been so much more, if only he had been able to control other parts of his life as well.