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There are currently 12 member reviews
for Some of the Dead Are Still Breathing
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Jerry (Waxhaw NC)
Poetic, But....
Journalist Charles Bowden has written a book that is both lyrical and poetic. At the same time, the style of writing will not connect with a lot of people. The author is looking toward the future when plant life dies out, the earth warms, etc. Here is the rather pessimistic voice of an environmentalist. This is not a book I would normally read and for me it was a poor book. At the same time, others may be able to connect with the language and style better than I. That is why I give it a "3".
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Phoenix - Eclectic, AL (Eclectic AL)
Some of the Dead are Still Breathing
Bowden invites the reader to view his personal nightmares. As he guides us though these moments in time, we choose between reality or illusion brought on by his drug du'jour.
To Quote Bowden: " I am convinced all of my moments of risk were self-created in order to escape the deathly feeling everyday life gives me."
He is still searching for a future without so many obstacles. This book does make you think. It is an unusual read.
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Gwendolyn (Houston TX)
An ecologically sensitive Hunter S. Thompson
This is a collection of journalistic musings about the troubled state of the world and humanity's (mainly negative) impact on it. Bowden is a study in contraries. He lives in the world of drugs, whores, crime, and seedy motel rooms, but at the same time, he carefully observes the habits of a pair of cardinals living in his yard and worries about elephants in captivity. Bowden is an ecologically sensitive Hunter S. Thompson.
Readers who like structured essays or stories with direction will be frustrated by Bowden's free-flowing, seemingly random style. Those who embrace free association and haphazard thought experiments are likely to find Bowden to be a charming, if eclectic, tour guide to today's complex world.
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Ann (Shenandoah IA)
Some of the Dead Are Still Breathing
While the author evoked some stunning images, the disconnectedness and lack of any cohesion prevented me from appreciating it. Rather than "streams of consciousness" I would describe most of the book as "streams of unconsciousness."
Personally, once I begin reading a book, I finish it, but this one was one of the most arduous.
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Mary (Hilton Head Island SC)
Some of The Dead Are Still Breathing
The back cover of this work says that it is a "seminal book". The word pictures were beautiful and the author had a talent for writing. What he could not do is help the reader to understand what he was writing about! At first, I thought it was apocalyptic, then random essays. At last I concluded the book was a series of random jottings captured during a drug induced high. Not worth the small amount of time spent trying to determine what was "seminal".
