Title: The Thin Man
Author: Dashiell Hammet
Published: 1934
Genre: Detective, Crime Fiction
So after reading Chandler's The Big Sleep, I moved back in time to some Dashiell Hammet. This was my first time reading a Hammet novel. I started with his last, The Thin Man. It's not very like me to start at the end of an artist's works. While I was in Barnes and Noble trying to decide which Hammet novel to start with, I noticed a DVD set also called The Thin Man. It turns out that Hammet's last novel was turned into a film in May, 1934, which was followed by five more consecutive comic detective films with the same protagonists, the lovely married couple that is Nick and Nora Charles. That was the deciding factor in purchasing the novel, plus the fact that I had no idea which of his works was the first (Red Harvest).
Everyone needs to read this book. It is a great read. From the moment I started turning the pages, I didn't want to put it down. All I wanted to do was find out what part of the mystery was going to be revealed next. Nick and Nora are two of the greatest detectives I've ever read or seen. You'll love the relationship they have with one another. They seem to be content with one another, and life is simple for them. Nick is a former detective who is slowly reeled into a murder case by the people around him, and Nora loves every minute of it. She enjoys playing the role of co-detective along her hubby. She also helps him with a few of her own clues along the way.
One stand-out characteristic of the perfect couple are their drinking habits. The bottom line is that they are basically alcoholics, especially Nick. The man is always asking for a drink, and he is never at a point where he admits that he's had too many. It's really interesting that Hammet decided to have them drinking so much, maybe he was trying to use it as a way of representing the period around the Roaring Twenties and the following decade. Either way, it only adds to the memorable fun that is brought about by reading The Thin Man, and the two never seem to get drunk either. They certainly know how to handle their liquor well. The Japanese would be mighty proud of them!
If you enjoy reading some excellent dialogue as much as I do, the works of Hammett are right up your alley. I sometimes feel less sophisticated because of preferring dialogue over longer passages in a novel, but a book like this makes me realize how silly that idea truly is. Hammet keeps the story moving at a great pace, filling his readers in with what's going on through the use of some top-of-the-line dialogue between the characters. Bottom line: I love this book, and I can't wait to read more of Hammett's stuff.
Dashiell Hammett is considered one of the greatest mystery writers of all time. Without characters like Nick and Nora, or Sam Spade from Hammett's The Maltese Falcon (1930), the characters of today's modern mystery writers would be nonexistent. Everybody should pay their respects and read some of his work. You won't regret taking my advice.
It wouldn't hurt you to check out the link at the top on Dashiell Hammett either. The guy had a pretty interesting life, and it might help in giving you the proper boost.
______________________________________________
Trailer for The Thin Man (1934), starring William Powell as Nick and Myrna Loy as Nora
The trailer is great!
No comments:
Post a Comment