The Maltese Falcon
 |
| Alfred A. Knopf |
Dashiel Hammett
1930
1930
"Cairo, speaking with difficulty because of the fingers on his throat, said: "This is the second time you've put your hands on me." His eyes, though the throttling pressure on his throat made them bulge, were cold and menacing.
"Yes," Spade growled. "And when you're slapped you'll take it and like it."."
My experience with classic crime noir literature is fairly limited; prior to reading this only to a selection of Raymond Chandler novels and Roger Simon's The Big Fix. I've read/watched a far greater number of parodies of the genre than I have the genre itself, which is somewhat silly considering the whole style is massively appealing to me. After watching and greatly enjoying the 1941 Bogart film, I happened to randomly find a copy of this book in an Oxfam charity bookshop (a place that has become my spiritual home recently) and had to pick it up. It was short, absorbing, and massively entertaining read and I'm very glad I did.
The phrase 'hard-boiled dialogue' is perhaps somewhat cliche, but Dashiel Hammett's quite brilliantly striking back and forth dialogue between his fantastic protagonist Sam Spade and the unfortunate characters who have to deal with him is surely the phrase's defining representation. Hammett crafts an intriguing tale of mystery, as private dick Spade is suddenly caught up in the middle of the proverbial storm; his partner shot dead, shady criminals and police trying to both bargain and threaten him, and an untrustworthy femme fatale of the highest caliber trying to use him to her advantage. It's fantastic stuff, genre fiction at its very best crafted and presented at a break-neck pace.
The Maltese Falcon is likely to appeal to anyone who's enjoyed any classic film noir, anyone who appreciates and enjoys incredibly sharp and witty dialogue, and anyone who isn't interested in a happily-ever-after ending. It's certainly a cynical novel, with a downbeat tone towards humanity in general, but this is offset by the sheer magnetism of Sam Spade and a healthy dose of intrigue and drama. It doesn't pretend to be high-literature, but revels in its own dirty pulp styling, and is all the better for it.
The phrase 'hard-boiled dialogue' is perhaps somewhat cliche, but Dashiel Hammett's quite brilliantly striking back and forth dialogue between his fantastic protagonist Sam Spade and the unfortunate characters who have to deal with him is surely the phrase's defining representation. Hammett crafts an intriguing tale of mystery, as private dick Spade is suddenly caught up in the middle of the proverbial storm; his partner shot dead, shady criminals and police trying to both bargain and threaten him, and an untrustworthy femme fatale of the highest caliber trying to use him to her advantage. It's fantastic stuff, genre fiction at its very best crafted and presented at a break-neck pace.
The Maltese Falcon is likely to appeal to anyone who's enjoyed any classic film noir, anyone who appreciates and enjoys incredibly sharp and witty dialogue, and anyone who isn't interested in a happily-ever-after ending. It's certainly a cynical novel, with a downbeat tone towards humanity in general, but this is offset by the sheer magnetism of Sam Spade and a healthy dose of intrigue and drama. It doesn't pretend to be high-literature, but revels in its own dirty pulp styling, and is all the better for it.
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