A book like Bullies, the
debut memoir of writer Alex Abramovich, is sure to be compared to Hunter S.
Thompson’s famous book on the Hell’s Angels. Since I have not read that, I
cannot attest to any comparisons made between the two. All I can say is that this
book was an exciting, thrilling and informative jolt that I have needed for the
past month and a half, and the right kind of book to end on before my next
block of reading begins in a week. Knowing little about the subject matter,
minus a quick tour of the East Bay Rats Facebook page, I found this book that
dives headfirst into the violent and aggressive world of a modern day
motorcycle gang to be a pleasant mixture of many different kinds of writing,
and it exceled spectacularly at all of them. It begins in a rather familiar
place, than drops us in a world that is both scary and fascinating in its
intricacy and ends up being a rather tragic view of our times as well as the
psyche of people who find acceptance, tolerance and brotherhood in such a
place. That relatable beginning is right in the title: Alex and Trevor, “his
friend” who eventually became the president of the East Bay Rats Motorcycle
Club, begin as foes in the fourth grade. They get in fights in the middle of
class, and when they move away from each other, Alex is left with poor memories
of this boy, who grows into a rather big and rather violent man. They strike up
a shaky friendship as Alex moves from his native New York to the crime-ridden
city of Oakland, where the club is headquartered. Alex quickly establishes a
rapport with everyone, and immerses himself in the world of the Rat, which
include promoted boxing fights, one of which, is between a member named
Meathead Eric and Vice founder Gavin McInnes, as well as the random fights that
breakout in the club owned bar, The Ruby Room, with the most memorable one
being a rather sad outing where a crack head is chased and beaten. As Alex gets
to know this group better, he begins to do a little research on Oakland itself,
and the story he tells also becomes about the city and its violent sad history,
including its loose connections to the rise of outlaw culture (which in turn
gave rise to things as varied as Marlon Brando and The Beatles), which makes it
the perfect place for the East Bay Rat, and people like his childhood foe
Trevor, who he begins to suspect is a sociopath whose tough upbringing makes
him predisposed to like violence and chaos. I think Abramovich is trying to
make a statement about masculinity and its painful intersection with carnage,
but it is simply not as fascinating as the story he is telling, which I found
myself lost in, especially towards the tumultuous end, which includes a rather
grim murder trial connected with famous member of the Nation of Islam, and
finally, the Occupy protests, which, viewed through Abramovich’s passive lens,
is really just an excuse to let off some steam and cause mayhem, with it ending
in not only a senseless death, but oddly enough, a wedding and a scary image of
a guy carrying a broomstick with a claw hammer tapped the end. This is a book
that doesn’t proved lofty or concrete answers to the problems it presents, but
it is still a very intense and voyeuristic look at one of America’s most
folkloric subcultures.
Rating: 5/5
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