Can't You Get Along with Anyone?: A Writer's Memoir and a Tale of a Lost Surfer's Paradise

Allan Weisbecker treats nonfiction as nonfiction. That is, he names names concerning and provides detailed evidence about shady land deals and murder. He describes many sordid events of his life and the lives of people he knows well. His brutally honest approach to writing allows him to ask what writing really is, what integrity really is, and why most people think it's fine to bulls*** each other. Allan exposes his faults and fears and hopes to his audience more than any other writer I've read. If you want a transparent look at the chaotic and painful, but ultimately rewarding, creative process, please read this book.

If you try to read it when you have other stuff to do, this book will ruin your life. I ordered it, intending to read it "eventually", and when it came it I was already under the gun with three separate writing deadlines and multiple books the required reading queue. But I opened the damned thing and COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. It was clear early on that I wasn't going to get anything done until I FINISHED THIS BOOK. So I read it, 500 pages, in less than 72 hours. Keep in mind I'm an ADD case who has trouble sitting through a movie if it's more than two hours. Weisbecker is a master craftsman - he knows how to keep you wanting more. And thank God he has such an insane life, because once he's created the desire, he fulfills it. Like his other books, if you don't immediately put it at the top of your recommended list, well, it's probably not gonna work out between us.

I got through this book within two days of receiving it and immediately started to read it again. Weisbecker is the Real Thing. His witty prose and caustic style convey the torment and pain of his life so candidly, that the reader can only praise him for reminding us, in this age of sugar-coated media propaganda and Bush administration tautologies what real honesty actually feels like. As a reader, I could feel a palpable sense of catharsis knowing that the book actually made it to print despite the threat of censorship through litigation. For me one of the most interesting parts was reading about the emotional rollercoaster that was author's life in the summer of 2005. Weisbecker is one of those extremely rare authors whose writing truly influences the lives of his readers. After reading the author's previous book, In Search of Captain Zero, my brother and I embarked, with cult-like determination, on our own mini-version of the Zero Odyssey. Our goal: To go to Pavones, Costa Rica, overland, in the summer of 2005, in search of "Captain Weisbecker." After passing through five countries in Central America we finally made it to "the end of the road." We spent a few days in Pavones and although Weisbecker had been reported to be in town, replete with sightings of his green truck, we never had the pleasure of bumping into him. Although we were unsure that the note we left at Sea Kings Surf Shop, ever made it into his hands, after reading this book I now feel a sense of completion: In any other circumstance my brother and I would never know exactly why it was that he was not eager to take visitors that month, however because he wrote such an honest and detailed personal account, I am, two years later actually able to pick up his book and see, actually feel, what it was he was going through at that time. And knowing that, I know why events in my own life worked out as they did. So in an indirect sense, I was reading about my life in this book as seen from the author's perspective. How many authors are charismatic enough to literally draw their readers into their world? In short Weisbecker is a very compelling, brutally honest and completely refreshing read: the antidote to CNN.

Stunning piece of work. Scales the pinnacles and plumbs the abysses of the human condition with an unblinking eye that misses nothing. The main narrative is gripping, in and of itself, but the undertone examination of good and evil is even more gripping. Rich, ramified, recondite, with more than just a dash of Solzhenitsyn tossed in for good measure. Well worthy of multiple reads, and considered pondering.

I pre-ordered and read the UK version of this book when it came out a year ago. At the time, my son was 8 months old and teething, & let's just say that I hadn't had much real sleep in those last 8 months (or the year since)...sleep is a rather precious commodity in my world, & I had only stopped short of prying my eyes open with toothpicks to finish this damn book! I can't even remember the last book I read that had that effect on me. I have very little in common with Allan. I've never surfed, run drugs, dealt with Hollywood types, or even had anyone hire someone to kill me, but I completely identified with him as I read his memoir. Allan took me on a brutal journey through the truth of his life. I felt his pain when I read it, I felt like I was there with him, and wished I could do something to help. His unrelenting pursuit of truth, despite what it costs him, amazes me and has earned my respect. I wish I had the (figurative) balls to be that dogged. This book has Allan's heart, soul and guts poured into it. You'll love it, and you won't be the same after you read it. It will beat the crap out of you, make you think and you'll still be laughing throughout. Allan truly has a gift and this book is tangible proof. Buy this book, and get to know an honest, funny and real person. It will move you and you will not regret it.