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dreamings's review against another edition
4.0
Witty writing, especially in the parts about Britain as Wheen is incredibly personal and does not hold back with his own political commentary.
linguisticali's review
4.0
A fascinating look at a decade I suddenly realised I knew next to nothing about. At times I found it a little rambling and hard to follow, but overall I really enjoyed it, and found it very engaging and memorable.
I would have liked more of a focus on non-Western countries (although the chapters about the UK and America were also very interesting), and in particular a broader perspective on African politics.
Overall, this was really interesting, and definitely worth reading.
I would have liked more of a focus on non-Western countries (although the chapters about the UK and America were also very interesting), and in particular a broader perspective on African politics.
Overall, this was really interesting, and definitely worth reading.
rogerb's review
5.0
Bill put me onto this.
I loved this - almost all the episodes he describes occurred as I was - in any sense - becoming "aware", and he reports various things I hadn't already known about the Big Events of the 70s decade. Wheen is a more than capable writer and so the accounts are very well communicated too.
It lurches from the planet-defining to to the local history. Nixon, Ford, Mao, Chou, Idi Amin, Thorpe, Wilson, Heath, Thatcher - what a bloody family. Together with the second string whose names were so familiar at the time but somehow more recently forgotten. Good to see Marcia Forkbender rubbished!
The back cover blurb seemed to imply a laugh-a-line, but that is wrong. Sometimes yes, but often no - these people were running the planet I was living on (still do). As the closing chapter says, there's a strong sense of "Here we go again".
I loved this - almost all the episodes he describes occurred as I was - in any sense - becoming "aware", and he reports various things I hadn't already known about the Big Events of the 70s decade. Wheen is a more than capable writer and so the accounts are very well communicated too.
It lurches from the planet-defining to to the local history. Nixon, Ford, Mao, Chou, Idi Amin, Thorpe, Wilson, Heath, Thatcher - what a bloody family. Together with the second string whose names were so familiar at the time but somehow more recently forgotten. Good to see Marcia Forkbender rubbished!
The back cover blurb seemed to imply a laugh-a-line, but that is wrong. Sometimes yes, but often no - these people were running the planet I was living on (still do). As the closing chapter says, there's a strong sense of "Here we go again".
otterno11's review
4.0
For some reason, I have found myself intrigued by the period of history known as the 1970s, the “me decade.” While dividing history into convenient decade long portions may be an oversimplification, as pointed out by Francis Wheen in “Strange Days Indeed,” particularly in a century of such drastic change, something about the “Seventies” seems to represent a turning point in the 20th century. While missing the decade personally by two years, I still have found study of this time of mixed crisis and banality to be oddly familiar.
Wheen’s book examines this ten year period through the lens of one it's, arguably, most defining features, paranoia, and paints a vivid and disturbing picture, yet one compelling in the similarities that can be found to the world today. Paranoia, according to Wheen, truly erupted onto the world scene at the time and his anecdotes involving Nixon, Mao, Harold Wilson, and Idi Amin illustrate how a deep fear of the future had haunted the halls of power throughout the world. In addition, he describes the emergence of fears of a doomed economy, terrorism, growth in occult and conspiratorial beliefs, and other interesting themes. I particularly enjoyed Wheen’s citing of various period literature and cinema to illustrate his points, which really help to evoke the thoughts and feelings of the time.
On the other hand, the variety of these diverse themes brought together in “Strange Days Indeed” under the overarching theme of paranoia can bury his arguments in these many interesting stories. While linked loosely by date, his chapter’s can seem a bit disorganized. Still, I found every subject described by Wheen to be interesting. His conclusion, linking many of these themes to conditions today, was something that I had noted throughout the work- there seem, culturally, to be many parallels between the 1970s and the 2000s that Wheen was able to hint at during the course of the book.
“Strange Days Indeed,” then, was one of the most interesting and thought provoking accounts of the 1970s I’ve read, even when it runs into problems tackling such broad topic. It is a very topical book as well, and a good read for anyone interested in the 1970s and its relation to the contemporary world.
Wheen’s book examines this ten year period through the lens of one it's, arguably, most defining features, paranoia, and paints a vivid and disturbing picture, yet one compelling in the similarities that can be found to the world today. Paranoia, according to Wheen, truly erupted onto the world scene at the time and his anecdotes involving Nixon, Mao, Harold Wilson, and Idi Amin illustrate how a deep fear of the future had haunted the halls of power throughout the world. In addition, he describes the emergence of fears of a doomed economy, terrorism, growth in occult and conspiratorial beliefs, and other interesting themes. I particularly enjoyed Wheen’s citing of various period literature and cinema to illustrate his points, which really help to evoke the thoughts and feelings of the time.
On the other hand, the variety of these diverse themes brought together in “Strange Days Indeed” under the overarching theme of paranoia can bury his arguments in these many interesting stories. While linked loosely by date, his chapter’s can seem a bit disorganized. Still, I found every subject described by Wheen to be interesting. His conclusion, linking many of these themes to conditions today, was something that I had noted throughout the work- there seem, culturally, to be many parallels between the 1970s and the 2000s that Wheen was able to hint at during the course of the book.
“Strange Days Indeed,” then, was one of the most interesting and thought provoking accounts of the 1970s I’ve read, even when it runs into problems tackling such broad topic. It is a very topical book as well, and a good read for anyone interested in the 1970s and its relation to the contemporary world.
summerofsoaps's review
2.0
This is an interesting, if somewhat uneven, book. It looks at the 1970s with the purpose of demonstrating that it was a weird and wild, extremely paranoid decade. I wasn't alive in the '70s, so I can't say how accurate Wheen's description is. However, I can say, that, being of a younger generation, I felt like a lot of his points went over my head. He spends a lot of time recollecting his specific experiences and expecting the reader to remember, too, which severely limits his audience. The book isn't constructed in any sort of linear fashion, so if you're expecting a straightforward, timeline style history, you're out of luck. There are some interesting parts, especially the bits about Nixon, Mao, and various dictators. A lot of time is spent on the UK's situation, which makes sense as Wheen is British, but a lot of the minutiae of British politics can be lost on the American reader (at least if the American reader is me). The germ of Wheen's idea (that the paranoia of the '70s lingers today) is interesting, as are a lot of the stories that are brought up as asides. But the book is a bit of a mess and doesn't live up to its potential. I am glad, though, that I read it right before David Peace's Nineteen Seventy-Four, because otherwise I would have missed a lot of the time period. I can't really recommend this book overall.
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