What is the author's style in The Rum Diary: The Long Lost Novel by Hunter S. Thompson?

The point of view of this novel is first person. The narrator is the main character, Paul Kemp. Paul reports to the reader his observations as well as the events that transpire around him. This point of view works because it gives the impression of reading a personal diary. The reader feels more deeply drawn in due to the intimacy of the point of view. Since the novel lacks other intimacies, such as in-depth character back stories, this sense of reading a diary helps the reader to become more emotionally attached to the characters in a way that they might not be able to otherwise.