Perspective

"Hell's Angel - The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angles Motorcycle Club" is written by Hell's Angels legend and founder Ralph "Sonny" Barger. The book is autobiographical and is a historical accounting of the Hell's Angels Motorcycle Club. It is written in the first-person narrative.

Since Sonny Barger was there from the beginning, he brings authenticity to the story of the outlaw club and its evolution from a "riding club" to a sub-culture of felons, substance abusers, and rabble-rousing men who relished living on the edge of society. The last section of the book is basically a three-page rap sheet comprised of Barger's arrests. There is a certain pride and esprit de corps within the organization that is misplaced. While they claim to be defenders of women and to be patriotic, their behavior tells a different story.

If it was Barger's intention to defend...