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I'd rather drink muddy water | Turn your money green | Darkness on the Delta |
Wee Midnight Hour Blues | Solid Gone (Cannonball Blues) |
Books read, and films of note. Tishomingo Blues by
Elmore Leonard. There is a blues connection in the book, a black
mobster who comments on Robert Johnson and other blues illuminaries
while plotting to overthrow his boss. The story focuses on an
aging high diver, used to living on the edge, getting pulled into the
edgier world of the mob after witnessing a mob killing. The
author Leonard
is always a fast ride. One thing about his writing. Tends
to write short terse phrases. Doesn't worry about complete
sentences. Very effective for him. Lots of best sellers,
movies, etc. Get Shorty, The Big Bounce to name a couple. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. This is probably the third time I've read the book, well described in Wikipedia. I only learned from the Wiki article that the book received a Pulitzer Prize (posthumously, as the author had committed suicide 11 years before publishing). It is easy to hate the self absorbed obese lying protagonist, who jinxes every situation he is involved in -- the perfect antihero. But by the end of the book, he earned my grudging respect--even more for the author who so cleverly manipulates our sensibilities. On one level, the book is filled with sexual, racial, and urban stereotypes, and low humor. But there are many more levels to the book. The Wiki article says the outline of the book imitates a work by the oft cited philosopher Boethius, whom most of us have never heard of. "Whoa!" as Jones says frequently in the book... Ship of Fools
by Richard Russo. A sci fi novel of a wandering lost starship
encountering a derelict alien vessel. It focuses more on the
relational aspects than a typical sf novel. Well written, but a
bit slow on the action for us popcorn chompers. Sourcery by Terry Pratchett Hilarious fantasy is as rare as funny crime novels. Only one author did it as well as Terry Pratchett (Douglas Adams--Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), but he was far less prolific than Pratchett (who's now suffering from early onset dementia). Although the plot of this early Discworld novel, as in many novels, involves saving the (disc) world, no other novels require a wizard with no magical powers and an orangutan librarian who only speaks the words ook and eek). Good Behavior
by Donald Westlake Funny crime novels seem a contradiction in
terms, but no one does them better than Donald Westlake. Engaging
misfit burglars, clever plots... In this one Dortmunder and his
gang are blackmailed by an order of silent nuns to free one of their
order who's being held captive in a skyscraper by her wicked wealthy
father, who hopes to reprogram her to a normal vocation. The Mouse and his Child by
Russell Hoban. Probably the third time I've read this juvenile
novel intended for adults. Packed full of philosophy, laden with
gratuitous violence against small rodents, often by larger rodents.
There is no book as heartwarming in the end. Yes, it's hard
to reconcile these apparent contradictions, but there is no other book
quite like it... Fletch's Moxie by Gregory MacDonald. The Fletch novels, and Flynn novels, are great detective fiction with a good deal of satire imbedded. Fletch starts out as an investigative reporter, but by this novel he's become quite wealthy. The Flynn novels involve a Boston police inspector, with a touch of secret service built in. A couple Fletch novels were made into fairly good movies with Chevy Chase in the 80's. This was a reread for me--even with a bad memory I started remembering whodunnit, so I was more alert this time for the telltale clues... Film: The Black Swan 1942Tyrone Power, Maureen Sullivan. Every scene like an old masters pirate painting, classic swashbuckler, great sets, costumes, dialog, and action. Who could ask for anything more? Far superior to the Pirates of the Caribbean stuff. Film: Bullitt 1968. Maybe in the 60's police lieutenants ran around catching bad guys without backup or radios... It made for a good movie whether that was true or not--nice photography, great chase sequence, not overly talky. Film: Peeper Michael Caine and Natalie Wood are enough to keep this detective story entertaining. Available for free viewing (broadband, with many irritating commercial breaks) at hulu.com |
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