Dashing, no Dashiell

The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett

The Thin Man is a famous series of movies staring William Powell and Myrna Loy from 1934 that my husband and I really enjoy so we decided to try reading the book. Wow! Was I ever shocked. This story was fantastic. There were lots of twists and turns in the plot (not all presented in the movie) and a complicated cast of people. In the book, Nick and Nora have a love that continues to defy conventional boundaries. Nora is an amazing strong woman that enjoys watching her husband work and can match him drink for drink. Nick is a classic hardboiled detective that has retired only to be drug back in while 'back east' with his new wife Nora. The focus of the story remains on the case, but the relationship between Nick and Nora shines through. Instead of being mushy and corny, they each maintain strong independence and opinions. I can imagine this story was a bit risque in 1934 and it is rare that a relationship represented so convincingly even in modern literature. All said, this book has something for everyone, mystery, suspense, romance, and a little murder.

Tough Guys screw around

Tough Guys Don't Dance by Norman Mailer

Well, I was a Norman Mailer virgin until now. The lead character, Tim Madden, fins himself in a sticky situation when he wakes up "on the 24th day after his wife Patty left him" to a car full of blood, a small pot farm with a head in a footlocker, and a call from the chief of police (now married to Tim's ex-girlfriend). Mailer creates robust characters in Tim and Chief Regency, the despicable drunk and the psycho cop. The tale is supposed to be an exploration of machoism and homosexuality, but I found it quite tame by today's standards. The plot, while claiming to be fast-paced mystery, is more about Tim's awkward worship of his tough guy father than the murder mystery. The climax comes too late and is so muddled (described by Wardley Meeks III and Captain Regency) that I wound up reading it twice just to be sure I had really understood the resolution. While Mailer's writing is well worth plodding through the book and he broaches some interesting topics, I won't be diving into the huge tomb, Executioner's Song, anytime soon.

I dedicate this post to one of my favorite tough guy movie characters, Patrick Swayze as Dalton in the movie Roadhouse. Swayze was great in this classic 80s flick. Just try to flip past it when it's on TV - I bet you'll wind up sucked in once again. I hope you're doing well Swayze.