Just finished this. Wasn't this the book of the month? Geez,
I actually read the assigned book! :)
Anyhow, this is an okay-not-great caper novel. Parts of it
are done well: I liked how Burnett handled the pov changes
(that sort of thing is often fuddled by authors) and the
conclusion was, I though, gracefully done. But it is an
utterly predictable book -- I defy any long-time readers of
the genre not to guess the plot about 1/3 of the way
through.
Of course, was this the first, or one of the first, caper
novels? In which case it has historical interest, I
guess.
The only other Burnett novel I've read is LITTLE CAESAR,
which is excellent. I'm not sure why I like that one better
-- it's as predictable a story as this
(rise and fall of a gangster). Maybe because it's more
character focussed than plot focussed. Or maybe I just have a
weakness for that story -- I've enjoyed innumerable
variations of it.(Anyone ever see the Blaxploitation classic
BLACK CAESAR)? I do think CAESAR is simply better written
than JUNGLE -- tighter, with more conviction behind it.
I haven't seen the movie versions of JUNGLE or CAESAR.
Someday.
doug
===== Doug Bassett
dj_bassett@yahoo.com
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