In his first book, Abbie Hoffman gave us an almost comical view of the revolution which he helped to jumpstart through the late 1960s. Through the humour, which has always been one of Abbie's strongpoints, you do see the sincerity of the man, and his cause (mainly civil rights, and anti-war) as well as his idea of what america (always spelled with a little "A") is supposed to be. I can't help but wonder though...what the movie was like.

This isn't just a book that wakes you up. It grabs you by the shoulders, throws you against the wall, and hurls a bucket of water over your head while shouting "Look! Look! Look around you and see all the amazing things that you can do with your life!" Aside from being an engaging account of the events leading up to and including the protests around the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968, "Revolution" is a shot in the arm and the head for anyone needing hints on how to jump-start their brain as well as the country. Some of the free tips are obviously out of date and no longer do-able, but Abbie Hoffman's humor and in-your-face criticism are both sadly missed and badly needed in these days of seemingly neverending corruption and governmental malignancy. Hoffman's sort of thinking will never go out of style, and "Revolution" is the perfect way to begin one's path down the road to the 60's under- and over-ground, which he tours with a flair and wit one could only hope all others acquire in the process.

The book's great. A complete account of the life and times of one of the 1960's New Left's major characters.

Believe it or not, Abbie Hoffman has written an inspirational classic. In his chatty boasts and anecdotes, Abbie offers a paean to a life spent seizing the moment and experiencing everything life has to offer. If you're attempting to do anything that goes against the grain, read this for a wealth of inspiration. It's really a wonderful testament to living up to what you want to be, regardless of society's expectations.

Take Otto Preminger, a well known director, mix in Peter O'Toole, Peter Lawford, Richard Attenborough and Robert Mitchum, add some exotic locations and what do you get? A multimillion dollar bad movie. How could this happen, with all this talent, energy and money to toss around? This book gives you the inside scoop on "Rosebud". The script was written and rewritten (by Otto Preminger's son). There were bomb threats, courtesy of the IRA. And more money thrown around and wasted than I'm likely to see in my lifetime.
But tho the movie wasn't so great, the book brings you inside of making a movie, how decisions are made, budgets developed and of course, the workings of Otto Preminger's mind. If you're interested in how movie are made, this is a great book for you.

"To America With Love: Letters From The Underground" is one of the most beautiful and personal books I've ever read. The book itself compiles a number of written correspondences between 60s radical Abbie Hoffman and his beautiful wife Anita after Abbie was forced to go underground as he was facing a guaranteed life sentence for drug related charges.

What the book shows is the frustration of Abbie himself being away from his wife, and young son america Hoffman (yes, his name is spelled with a small "A"), the rantings of a man who loved his country but not it's workings. With Anita we see the growth of a young woman -- and single mother -- coming into her own and attempting to build a life without Abbie for herself and america.

I highly recommend this great book to those who claim that revolution is cold, and uncaring, as it shows the love of a family who were on the frontlines of revolution during the 1960s. I would also recommend this to anyone who wants to know more of Abbie and Anita outside of the well-documented history the couple was known for...

I found a copy of this book in my attic, and it belonged to my dad. But now it permanently resides in my room. I loved everything about this book, from the way that it was written to the things that it had to say. I also like all the pictures as it gave me a glimpse into what woodstock and the country was like during 1969.

Hard to rate! As a substance abuse professional who has been doing drug testing for well over 25 years, I find this book helpful to find games people play to avoid detection. I use it heavily when doing training to show students what their clients learn from the "underground." One problem with the details is its lack of accuracy. His philosophy overrides his sense of science. The book goes far to point out a serious weakness in the collection process. That we do not do observed testing in the workplace places us in a position of testing stupidity rather than drug abuse.

This book should be required reading for all of those video-numbed and propaganda-filled young minds who came of age during or after the dark era of Ronald Reagan and Ed Meese, for whom urinating in a cup in order to get a job is "normal". Abbie gives us the real history of this insanity and solid information on the shortfalls of such testing, along with some practical advice on how to get around the lifestyle police. A great book by a great American!

I quote Abbie's research in this book everywhere I go. A good paraphrase to preface EVERY utterence is "no one would go to a doctor who simply said, 'Rest, vitamin-C and apple juice,' unless s/he also ordered the patient SOME kind of prescription. A magic pill." -abbie badly paraphrased by the prime anarchist, his humble nephew and "servant-to-cause."

Inspirational, funny, moving. A time machine to a place called the 60's. This will open eyes and minds, give new awareness. Not for the shallow or ignorant.

After seeing 'Steal this movie', I had no choice but to learn more about this incredibly crazy man. This book is amazing...it made me laugh out loud, think, ponder the idea of getting out there and causing a ruckus in the name of freedom. His writing flows...like old friends reminicing about their life changing experiences. What an insane, beautiful man. I can only hope that there will be more like him to come...our country needs a good jousting in the ribs!

Although I prided myself on being leftwing, I thought I understood everything there was to know about Abbie Hoffman. The final tribute by his brother is sympathetic without covering or making excuses for less than stellar behavior with various drugs.

Intially starting out as a clean cut middle class psychologist, Abbie Hoffman gradually morphed into one of the most recognizable revolutionaries in America during the 1960's and 1970's. This noteriety also placed him on the FBI's most wanted list, in court following the 1968 Democratic National Convention and eventually undeground in Mexico to evade a drug bust.

Although he was certainly eccentric (a string of marriages and divorces)and a proponent of free love, he also came across as an average guy who worried about his kids, liked sports and remembered his roots. In turn, his family stuck by him even when it was not easy to be related to Abbie.

I was also struck by how depressed Abbie felt when younger generations did not want to take on the system so vigorously. For somebody who prided himself on being hip and with it,realizing that young adults of the 1980s did not share his same moral righteousness must have been worse than fear of aprehension by the FBI and/or CIA.

It is this state that Hoffman spent his final years. Although he still organized, it was apparent the 60's were long over. Nonetheless, he was optimistic that Michael Dukakis would become president in 1988.

Although this dream did not become realized, it is interesting to theorize what kind of reaction he would have had to Clinton's election.

Even if this book is intended to be a personal tribute to another family member, it convinced me more than ever that, if the world is more democratic and open minded since the 1960's,Abbie Hoffman, (among others) deserves the credit for this victory.I do not remember Hoffman's death,but am certain that he will remain deeply missed by many of those who did.

I was compelled to visit the Emmaus Public Library by my renewed enthusiam for STEAL THIS MOVIE! in its video form, which I viewed last Saturday. Their collection didn't contain the biography upon which the film was based (AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY), but it did feature this 1994 biography of Abbie Hoffman by his brother Jack.

Last summer, I had seen a special sneak preview of STEAL THIS MOVIE! at the County Theater in Doylestown, PA (at which the film's director gave a short talk). I loved the film, and I was horrified when it received such little fanfare from reviewers and so little time in the multiplexes.

The video confirmed my enthusiasm: it's a great film which captures the hopes and chaos of the 1960's in America, as well as the struggles of one manic-depressive to keep those in power accountable to the American Public.

Jack Hoffman's biography of his brother Abbie fills in a huge quantity of details which the film ignored. It's the old tale of the blind men and the elephant: each man speaks the truth, but one needs the data of each individual in order to perceive the full picture. One needs the film AND this biography to begin to understand the complex person who was Abbie Hoffman.

I believe Abbie Hoffman was a hero, but he also was human. RUN RUN RUN reveals the importance of family in Hoffman's life and in his career as an anti-war activist (and then activist for various environmental causes). The film completely ignores Hoffman's first wife and two children with her, as well as Hoffman's close links with his younger brother and sister.

As I have read about Hoffman and watched his film biography, I have been struck by the idiocy of his harrassment by the American government, particularly the FBI. What a waste of taxpayer's dollars!

Readers wishing to better understand the history of America in the 1960's through the melancholy tale of one person who sought to change the System through satire and media activism would do well to read Jack Hoffman's thoroughly honest, engrossing, and empathetic portrait of his brother, of a family, and of an era.

I came to this book with only a cursory knowledge of Abbie Hoffman and his generation of the Yippies. I found this book very interesting and entertaining exposing Abbie for all his faults and successes as a peace/environmental activitist. The only problem I have is that the oral history format leaves holes in the story and makes some of the comments hard to put in context. More context from the author between the passages would have made it more enjoyable reading. Overall, this was a very interesting book.

This book is a pretty good overview Abbie Hoffman. It uses differing quotes to outline who and what he was about. For the real deal, however, readers should turns to Hoffman's own autobiography "Soon to be a Major Motion Picture".

Larry 'Ratso' Sloman has created a masterpiece with his oral biography of Abbie Hoffman. Not just the story of a fascinating, complex, American clown and activist, Steal This Dream is perhaps the first major book to put the sixties and seventies in perspective. Sloman knew Abbie and many of the other players intimately, and they open up to him with a forthrightness and honesty only possible now that the events are decades in the past. Hardly a homage to Hoffman, this excellent and highly readable book will make Hoffman worshippers cringe and Hoffman haters respectful. Larry Sloman deserves a Pulitzer.