Thieves Like Us

This one's one of my favorites. it's written by Edward Anderson.

the novel begins with three convicts, T-Dub, Chicamaw and Bowie, escaping from a prison in Oklahoma. not only do they escape, they proceed to go on a bank robbing spree netting themselves a hefty lot of cash.

the story is taken from Bowie's point of view, although it is not a first person narrative by him. it primarily describes Bowie's thoughts throughout the novel.

well, things are running smoothly, except for Chicamaw drinking a bit too hard than is good for him. the three split up and decide to meet up in Gusherton for another robbery and go their respective ways, when Bowie's car meets with an accident. Chicamaw, who is right behind him, comes to his aid and is about to whisk him away before anyone comes along and finds Bowie's car loaded with guns and robbed cash, when suddenly cops come on the scene. left with no option, Chicamaw has to open fire. he does, and speeds off, with half the police force on his tail.

somehow, he loses the heat and drops an injured Bowie at Dee Mobley's, who is an old accomplice. then Chicamaw goes underground.

then, things start going wrong. firstly, Bowie gets his stupid self in love with Dee Mobley's daughter, Keechie. as if this isn't enough, they go off to some remote town down south, and start what they think is a new life. only Bowie knows that his old life isn't far behind, but refrains from saying it. he knows Keechie wants him to give up crime, and to be fair, he tries.

soon, the day of the meet draws near, and after a small argument with Keechie, Bowie heads to Gusherton to meet his two buddies. he has promised his lady he will not take part in the robbery.

things are still screwed up. Chicamaw is drinking more than ever, T-Dub's got his fool self married to a kid named Lula, and Bowie's in two minds as to the robbery.

however, the prospect becomes irresistible and the three go ahead and hit the bank in Gusherton.

things go mostly downhill after this. T-Dub gets killed by the cops, his wife is in police custody and Chicamaw is arested and whisked off to a prison in Bingham.

Bowie gets hell from Keechie for taking part in the robbery and makes another attempt at salvaging his "new life". but soon, he is making plans to get Chicamaw out of the Bingham State Penitentiary.

what happens after that is the climax, which leaves you cursing Bowie for getting involved with Keechie in the first place. at least that's how it happened with me. i got so involved with the story that i felt sorry for the three at the end.

the novel's got a feel of reality to it that, and the protagonists are well-portayed.

hats off to Anderson!!!

They Shoot Horses, Don't They?

before u go jumping to conclusions, lemme tell ya'll that's the title of the second book in the Crime Novels (Volume I) collection. it's written by Horace McCoy. and it's a great novel.

it primarily focuses on two main characters, Robert and Gloria, who run into each other, and become friends. soon, they enter a dance marathon.

the marathon is quite well-described, a drama within itself, but, at the same time, not too dramatic.

and all this time, slowly, but steadily, Gloria is quietly going into depression.

but the real fun begins when Robert gets affected by Gloria's moods swings.

slowly, inevitably, Gloria drives Robert towards an unexpected climax.

pretty good, but not all of ya may like it.

well, i start with the third novel tomorrow. it's titled Thieves Like Us. sounds cool, huh?

The Postman Always Rings Twice

a masterpiece from the 30s, this one's written by James M Cain. it is the first novel in the Crime Novels I series.

it begins with Frank Chambers, a bum, stumbling upon a gas staion and restaurant run by a Greek on a highway in california. he ends up working for the Greek, whose name is Nick Papadakis. one thing leads to another, and pretty soon, Frank is involved with Cora, the Greek's wife.

so the bum and the babe hatch a plan to kill the Greek, so that they can live happily ever after.

and then....the fun begins.

the narrative sucks u in like quicksand, there r plenty of twists n the tale to keep u occupied and the climax is a tribute to the concept of poetic justice.

like i said, it's a masterpiece.

Trying to Undrestand it...

hey all,

i finished Bullet Park by John Cheever a couple of days ago. and i can't i didn't like it. but i definitely didn't understand it.

i mean, it's pretty well written. potrays mental turmoil beautifully. but still, after reading it, my first thought was, 'did i miss something?"

guess i'll have to read it again. but later.

right now, i've started with the Crime Novels series. the first one is called 'The Postman Always Rings Twice'

the minute i finish it, i'll post a review.

well, what else shall i write about?

i had a whole week of holidays, due to our college fest. in top of that, last monday's lecture got cancelled, and tuesdays and wednesdays are holidays anyway.

i attended a wedding on sunday, so it took out some of the boredom. but i'll be going to college tomorrow, or i'll go crazy.

will let ya'll know if anything interesting happens to me tomorrow.

till next time,

Bearded Evil.

Death Is A Lonely Business

Ray Bradbury’s Death Is A Lonely Business tastes like a drink that is made just the way you want it. It has the right combination of violence, emotions; most of them dark, a well-written narrative and a climax that deserves resounding applause.

The setting is in Venice, California, in 1949. The story is a first person narrative by the protagonist, a writer by profession, who never mentions his name. So we have to make do with a nickname given to him by one of his friends: The Crazy.

The beginning itself sucks you into a dark web, with The Crazy having a frightening encounter with a faceless man who tells him death is a lonely business. From then on, there is no looking back as, one after the other, people start dying under circumstances that can only be described as scary, as well as lonely. Strangely, the victims all appear to have died natural deaths, but The Crazy is convinced they’re actually murders.

Now he has to prove his beliefs all the time trying to prove himself innocent to a detective who is alternatively suspicious and friendly towards him. As it happens, it is The Crazy who stumbles upon the dead bodies every time.

In the course of his investigation, The Crazy encounters a number of bizarre characters, including an overweight ex-soprano who never lies down, an incompetent barber who mercilessly slaughters people’s hair and a former actress who likes to spend her nights swimming and days sleeping.

Eventually, The Crazy works his way towards a shocking revelation at the end, aided by Elmo Crumley, the detective, and Henry, a blind man who needs neither cane nor dog to guide him.

the language is damn good, the narrative gripping. definitely worth a read.

i'm rather short of time right now. so i'll end here.

Till Next Time,

Bearded Evil.

Motherless Brooklyn

Motherless Brooklyn is another great novel. though it's not too violent, the way i wud have liked, it is a great read.

it is a first person narrative by the central character, Lionel Essrog, who's got Tourette's syndrome, a disorder that causes him to tic and scream out weird exclamations like "Eat Me, Bailey!" at irregular intervals. it also creates wild word associations in his mind. for example, if somebody says, " a place of peace, " his mind goes, 'prays of peach, plays of peas, press-e-piece...'

Lionel and his three friends, Gilbert Coney, Danny Fantl and Tony Vermonte are orphans from the same orphanage, and work for a car service, which is actually a detective agency. their boss is Frank Minna, the uncrowned king of Brooklyn: streetsmart, witty, smooth-talking and charismatic.

then, one fine day, Minna is murdered, Gilbert lands in jail, and Danny and Tony begin vying for Minna's position as the boss. it is left to Freakshow, as Minna affectionately calls Lionel to find out who killed the man who was much more than an employer to him. the rest of the story is about how Lionel uncovers the shocking truths behind the murder, all the time battling the symptoms of Tourette's syndrome, besides other, more tangible foes.

the title is symbolic, and its significance becomes clear as one reads on.

Lethem manages to dish out an impressive piece of literature, making the novel engrossing, dark yet hilarious at points when Lionel's Tourettic symptoms make him say and do the most unexpected things at the most unexpected times.

my humble advice: read it, please.

well, i won't spoil it by talking about me now. better i end here.

till next time,

Bearded Evil.

johnny got his gun

johhny got his gun is written by Dalton Trumbo during the post WW-I era. it ent on to become one of the strongest weapons in the hands of anti-war activists in America at the time of the Vietnam war and WW-II. it was also banned in the Us for some time as it had the effect of kicking the US government right where it hurts.

it revolves around one principal charcter named Joe. In the book, our hero, Joe, ends up in a hospital critically injured. how he was injured is revealed as the story progresses.

anyway, Joey's lost both his arms, both his legs and most of his face. the only reason he's alive is b'coz whatever hit him somehow missed his brain and his heart. so there he is, lying in a hospital bed, unable to move, unable to see, unable to talk and unable to hear., b'coz he's lost his eyes, ears and even his nose. he breathes and is fed through tubes stuck in his lungs and stomach.

as is evident, he has nothing to do except lie around all day and think. and his thoughts are what make up the content of the novel. the whole novel is literally a trip down Joe's memory lane, a peek into his thoughts.

his thoughts are all anti-war. there's one particular chapter, chapter no. 10. when the anti-war sentiment first begins to manifest itself. that, in my opinion, is the best piece of literature i have ever read so far. i seriously recommend every reading buff to read it.

well, i could write a goddamn thesis on this, but i don't want to be that merciless.

well, today was okay. no too dull, not too exciting. will let ya'll know the minute something happens.

till next time,

Bearded Evil.

Way Past Cool

ok, ppl, here's the review as promised. this one's called Way Past Cool. it's written by Jess Mowry, and it's the writer's debut novel.

it's set in Oakland,Mississippi. it revolves around two street gangs that have their own turfs in Oakland, or Oaktown, as they call it. these gangs consist of kids as young as 12 and 13 years. one of 'em is called the Friends, while the other one's the Crew. the Friends are led by fifteen year old Gordon.

well, as can be guessed, there's constant rivalry between the two gangs. both of them are always spouting curses against each other, and looking for an excuse to start a fight.

Along comes Deek, a drug dealer who makes big bucks supplying drugs to addicts in the neighbourhood. he's rich, and it shows. he has a car, which in itself is a privilege in those parts, and his fingers and torso are covered with gold ornaments. he never drives around without Ty, his bodyguard.

now, he wants to turn the two gangs wiped out, so that he can rule the neighbourhood. so he sets about turning the Friends and the Crew against each other.

how the gangs save their respective backsides forms the rest of the novel.

the narrative is gripping, the language great. it's an explosive novel and a must read. it successfully portrays the conditions in those parts in those times. the reality hits you, and hits you hard. and above all, it follows the principle i love the most: Screw Happy Endings.

Bottomline: Way Past Cool is way past cool!!

well, about me. today's day was dull dull dull. i hate holidays. i really do. sitting around at home with nothing to do gets to me. at least this review gave me something to write about.

well, i better go off now. gotta wake up early tomorrow.

watch this psace tomorrow for another book review. and keep the comments coming in.

till next time,

Bearded Evil.