> We probably just need someone to egg us on. KILLER is
a great book,
> although I personally prefer POP.180, which is not
very different.
I just finished Killer and found it to be a bit different
from other
Thompson novels I've read. To me, it seemed to have a
pretty
straightforward narrative, following a predictable course
with few
surprises. The other half dozen Jim Thompson novels I've read
featured
byzantine plots that sort of turned inside out as they
lurched along,
especially books like Recoil, Getaway and, yes, Pop.
1280.
** potential spoiler warning: Pop. 1280 **
I agree that Pop. 1280 is similar in theme, but better. At
the beginning we
are unsure about the lead character and he is revealed as one
reads along.
Any one else think this character might have been the
prototype for the
sheriff in the tv show American Gothic?
** end spoiler **
One thing I really appreciate about Thompson is how easily
I'm able to read
his prose. It's plain, but gripping. He hardly ever uses a
three syllable
word or a 10 word sentence. I wonder what reading level it
would calculate
out to? Maybe sixth grade? If so, I'm amazed at how much he
can convey
with such simplistic writing.
Greg
swan@poboxes.com
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