Raymond Chandler's Birthday

A belated happy birthday to Raymond Chandler, who would have been 120 on July 23. This tribute includes the thoughts of several authors influenced by the great one.

Why Don't You 'Go To Helena Handbasket'

Review of GO TO HELENA HANDBASKET (Point Blank 2006)
Author, Donna Moore

I'd heard that GO TO HELENA HANDBASKET was side-splitting funny, but when I saw the back cover blurb describing it as "Bridget Jones meets Raymond Chandler meets Jeffrey Dahmer," well, that gave me pause. The reference to Bridget Jones almost scared me off. I'm glad it didn't.

Helena Handbasket must qualify as one of the worst detectives in fictional PI history--even her cat has a better handle on the case (a sly reference to the crime-solving cat mysteries, I think). But the story is such a great send-up of the detective/serial killer novel, that her blundering and obliviousness become part of the big joke (a touch of Stephanie Plum, if you ask me).

With a secretary/sidekick named Fifi Fofum (every character in the book has an outrageous pun for a name) who spouts hardboiled banter that sails completely over Helena's head most of the time and the requisite cop who advises her throughout to keep "her big nose" out of the investigation (giving her quite the complex about the size of her proboscis, along with the one she already had about her "arse"), the intrepid protagonist manages to survive the case (despite suffering numerous fractured bones and other ailments from various attacks--a sly reference to the seemingly indestructible hardboiled investigator, no doubt) and even catch the killer, who is revealed, true to the tradition of the genre, in a final twist at story's end.

She does all this while agonizing over her weight, what dress to wear and which of the men involved in this sordid affair could be Mr. Right (thus, the Bridget Jones reference).

I will indulge myself in my own pun when I say the story ends with a bang (or at least seems to). And you can only fully understand what I mean by reading the book. Which, by all means, you should.

Around the World in 80 Crime Authors

This is pretty cool. I'm glad to see George Pelecanos was in there, representing Washington DC (and this article about him is great, BTW). But somehow Baltimore, Portland OR, Denver and Boulder CO, got left off the list. Well, when you have only 80 slots representing the whole world, I guess a few deserving cities (and authors) just won't make the cut.

Standup Teen Named Buddy Finds Himself in 'Finding Caruso'

Review of FINDING CARUSO (audiobook)
by guest blogger Star Lawrence
Author, Kim Barnes; reader, Scott Shina

As an animal lover, I almost didn’t review this because of the horrific opening scenes. So be warned. The images will haunt, but with her seamless, beautiful writing, Barnes will pull it together. Trust.

I don’t always love coming-of-age stories, but this one is special. Buddy and Lee Hope are brothers, seven years apart in age. They grew up on a hardscrabble farm in Oklahoma in the 1940s-50s, and when their mean-drunk father and long-suffering mother die in a car accident, they set off for Idaho and settle in Snake Junction. They live in The Stables, a bar where brother Lee sings in a band.

At 17, Buddy is sort of kicking around, not going to school, jabbering with Harvey, the bartender, and generally not going anywhere. Then Irene, a mysterious redhead twice his age, walks into the joint…and… Let’s just say, Mrs. Robinson had nothing on this gal.

The Caruso in the title is Enrico Caruso, a horse, not the famous singer. But the operatic reference evokes the wider world Buddy only begins to glimpse. I was almost in tears a couple of times over Buddy’s intelligence and how exposed he is to the horrors of the world. Even when you “come of age,” I guess those still come as a shock every time.

FINDING CARUSO is read by Scott Shina, a reader I have not heard before. He does the intonations and Oklahoma and then Idaho twangs perfectly. Often, it sounds like a “cast” is talking with each other.

This book reminded me of Hud, one of my favorite movies. Older brother Lee is a cynical womanizer like Hud, and Buddy is confused and tender like Hud’s brother.

But there are differences. Like in that movie (originally a Larry McMurtry book called HORSEMAN, PASS BY) Lee and Buddy eventually part ways, but it’s more like an inevitable drift to different agendas than a big moral lesson on “how to be” or “how to be a real man.” Buddy figures that out for himself.

Star Lawrence is owner of the health humor site, Health’s Ass, http://healthsass.blogspot.com

They Don't Shoot Horses With Eyestrain, Do They?

What do you think of this? Independent bookstores around the country have been invited to take part in a 24-hour read-a-thon to promote books and reading.

According to the announcement, "Booksellers are encouraged to work with their local community to get customers to participate. Participants are asked to have family and friends sponsor them to read for the full 24 hours, and prizes are then given out to the highest fundraisers. The profits are then donated to a local nonprofit of the bookstore's choice."

GalleyCat is less than thrilled about the event, characterizing it as a "gimmicky stunt" comparable to "goldfish swallowing or telephone-booth-stuffing." (And they make a good point about audiobooks.)

The cause sounds good and I love to read . . . but not that much. Sounds like less of a celebration than an ordeal (one a bit too reminiscent of cramming for finals). I wonder how many people will nod off in mid-page?

How many readers out there would really want to tackle this?

One Peace, Singleton 2008 Hippie Art

One Peace(c) Singleton 2008He rifled through theglove box,paper cups, scratched CD'sand registrations to six cars back,thumbing for something,anything,to put his fingers on,that said yesterday"I loved".....The sky changed into athousand gowns,dripping with jewelsand then suddenly,barren blue...almost black...and he grasped at nothing....laughterless...And remembered.....The one peace he had laid

The Straight 'Dope' from Sara Gran

Review of DOPE (Penguin Group 2006)
Author, Sara Gran

The best stories are the kind that linger in your mind long after you've finished them. For me, DOPE by Sara Gran was that kind of story.

Josephine "Joe" Flannigan is just the girl next door--if you happen to live in Hell's Kitchen, that is. Joe grew up there under the not-so-watchful eye of a single mother, so it was up to Joe to look after herself and her kid sister, Shelley. Both girls end up falling in with the wrong crowd and getting addicted to heroin, but pulling themselves out of "the life" in very different ways. When the story begins, it's 1950 and Joe is making a living picking pockets and "boosting" (to use the parlance of that time) jewelry and other valuables from stores. Shelley has become a successful model and aspiring actress.

When a suburban couple hires Joe to find their wayward daughter in the streets from which she came, it looks like easy money. But the investigation turns out to be a lot more complicated than she expects. And the further Joe delves into the matter, the more trouble she unwittingly creates for herself.

Apparently, this is Gran's first foray into noir writing. For my money, she gets it all just right. I love the 1950s setting (back when men wore hats and women wore gloves). There's even a mention of the Automat, which took this reader down memory lane. (Not all the way back to 1950, mind you, but I do remember Horn & Hardart.) I hope Gran will consider writing more crime fiction, especially hardboiled or noir--we can always use more female authors in that genre.