i liked shella too, but i couldn't read much along that
line... it was by far the most depressing book i've ever
read. makes sylvia plath seem like an optimist.
miker
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
DJ-Anonyme@webtv.net [SMTP:
DJ-Anonyme@webtv.net]
> Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2001 8:36 AM
> To:
rara-avis@icomm.ca
> Subject: Re: RARA-AVIS: Bleedin' Heart
Burke?
>
> Kevin asked:
>
> "Burke is major politically correct? You've just got
to explain that
> one."
>
> Although the question was addressed to Miker, I
thought I'd jump in. I
> can't read the Burke novels. I read the first and it
was more than
> enough for me; I tried to begin the second, but had
to put it down. And
> this was one of the reasons. As admirable as
Vachss's work against the
> exploitation of children is in real life, and as
much as I mostly
> applaud his politics, the Burke books become
agit-prop -- all about the
> empowerment of abused children and revenge fantasies
against evil
> abusers. He makes Spillane look subtle in his
political agenda,
> although Vachss is mostly on the left, even with his
biblical
> retribution. I guess self-righteous violence is not
limited to any one
> political position.
>
> However, the real reason I don't read the Burke
books is because I can't
> take the writing -- it is so overblown. First of
all, Burke's "I'm a
> loner bad guy in the revenge ode of Mike Hammer"
stance is so
> hypocritical. Every three pages he moans/brags about
being a loner with
> no ties to drag him down, but he has a surrogate
family as tight as any
> in PI fiction, including the women PIs. And that
family is so carefully
> liberally composed to represent the oppressed. On
top of that, if I had
> had to hear about how he trained his dog one more
time I was going to
> scream. An editor needs to trim the
redundancies.
>
> That said, I think his non-Burke work is great.
Shella is a classic
> novel which addresses all of his concerns, but makes
its point through
> getting you to almost empathize with a pretty scary
character, not
> through hitting you over the head, but through
getting you inside him,
> getting you to understand his warped motivations.
Even as you deplore
> the character, you wish the situations that helped
mold him could be
> eradicated. And his short work in Bad Blood is
terrific.
>
> Still haven't figured out how he could dedicate a
book to Iceberg Slim,
> though. With his strict anti-exploitation stance,
how could he endorse
> Slim's glorification of predatory pimps?
>
> Mark
>
> --
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