stonecharioteer's review against another edition
2.0
Kind of overrated. It is rather disjoint, and reads more like a hobo's introduction to South America. Maybe I didn't read it well, I should have paid more attention, but then again, you could say it failed to grasp my attention. Far from being a "transformative journey", all this showed was that Che and Alberto lied their way to sympathy just to find a bed. Also, spoiler: the "motorcycle diaries" is a rather stupid name. El Podorosa II vanishes in the fist 25% of the journey, and from there the journey is mostly "The Hitch-hiker's Guide to Being A Hobo and Leprosy, Comrade"!
Also, did I mention I the mate?
Also, did I mention I the mate?
ben_salad's review
4.0
Really really interesting stuff, especially as compared to the other essential "dudes go on a road trip" book - On The Road by Jack Kerouac. While both books were written in the mid 50s, on the road sucks ass and this one doesn't.
Why this book doesn't suck is in its negation of Truman Capote's criticism "that [on the road] isn't writing it's just typing". While this quote relates to OTR's writing style - without poetry, absolutely vacuous, it also speaks to its outlook - without compassion or self-reflection of any kind. The bros drive around and smoke weed and that's it.
The Motorcycle Diaries is also about two young guys who travel around and get wasted but importantly that's not it. The trip begins as an adventure, but as the two men meet those south Americans who are poor and suffering - miners, indigenous south Americans, those sick with leprosy - their response is to reject their formerly glib and bourgeois outlook and embrace an ideology of liberation and equality.
It's fitting that On The Road is considered one of the "great" American novels - it's vacuous in the same way as the American dream. The Motorcycle Diaries, on the other hand, represents one man's compassionate (south) American dream - the dream for a better future.
The movie is good too.
Why this book doesn't suck is in its negation of Truman Capote's criticism "that [on the road] isn't writing it's just typing". While this quote relates to OTR's writing style - without poetry, absolutely vacuous, it also speaks to its outlook - without compassion or self-reflection of any kind. The bros drive around and smoke weed and that's it.
The Motorcycle Diaries is also about two young guys who travel around and get wasted but importantly that's not it. The trip begins as an adventure, but as the two men meet those south Americans who are poor and suffering - miners, indigenous south Americans, those sick with leprosy - their response is to reject their formerly glib and bourgeois outlook and embrace an ideology of liberation and equality.
It's fitting that On The Road is considered one of the "great" American novels - it's vacuous in the same way as the American dream. The Motorcycle Diaries, on the other hand, represents one man's compassionate (south) American dream - the dream for a better future.
The movie is good too.
bajwt's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
leuvi's review
5.0
A socialist masterpiece that makes you want to leave everything, pack your bags and go on an adventure. As che himself points out in the beginning, that this memoir cum travelogue will make one think about everything : from the deepest philosophical questions to something as simple as an empty stomach. Written from the perspective of the people, the motorcycle diaries has a universal appeal to it as it makes one more empathic towards the human condition and misery perpetuated on people in the name of profit and progress.
valerief's review against another edition
3.0
Even though I am ambivalent about Che's political activities in Cuba. I enjoyed his account of his travels around South America. Sadly, it does not seem that any of the left-leaning revolutions have elevated the indigenous populations in the region.
saj_81's review against another edition
4.0
I was surprised by how much this was the journal of a young man getting into trouble, having fun and trying to figure out his life. Instead of being the journal of a wanna-be revolutionary, I mean. It made the stories a lot more approachable and intimate. Like all the people who made a difference in history (good or bad, that's sometimes a matter of interpretation), Che Guevara started out as a normal guy who looked at the world he was living in and decided that he wanted to do something about it. Inspirational!
innae's review
adventurous
medium-paced
3.0
Not really all that much on the actual places visited during the journey, lots on how they were hungry and dirty and poor. Lots of detail on how they got from one place to another (despite the title, the motorcycle was not throughout..in fact it died pretty early during the adventure). There are some funny lines, and the ingenuity of finding ways to travel cheap or free was interesting. Not my favorite book.
northernfleabag's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
slow-paced
2.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism, Animal death, and Colonisation