Rum Punch (1992)

Yet another fine Elmore Leonard novel. I don’t think he can write a bad story, but most people already know this. You’ll find the usual slightly discordant collection of characters, situations, twists and turns. Read it if you haven’t already, then read it again, just for fun.

Quentin Tarentino directed an equally fine film adaptation titled Jackie Brown, starring Pam Grier, Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Forster, Bridget Fonda, Robert De Niro, and others.

Published in paperback by Dell. ( )

I had this one hanging around forever. I'd tried to start it a couple of times and couldn't really get into it for some reason. Anyway, I made a go of it this time.

The book, as you may know, is the basis for the movie Jackie Brown. I apparently forgot/didn't know that (I didn't see the movie), and it wasn't until the end that I said to myself, "hey, isn't this the plot of Jackie Brown?"

In my defense, the main character in the book is named Jackie Burke, and her physical description is more Bridget Fonda than Pam Grier, but I probably still should have put it together before that.

Jackie is a flight attendant who moves money from the Bahamas for a guy named Ordell Robbie. She doesn't really know what he's up to, until she gets picked up by the ATF and strikes a deal with them to bring down Ordell in exchange for her own immunity.

There is a cast of colorful characters to help or hinder her along the way: Max Cherry, a bail bondsman, Louis Gara, an ex-con acquaintance of Ordell's who works for Max, Ordell's various women: Melanie, Simone, Sheronda, and an array of bit players.

Elmore Leonard certainly does keep things moving, and that's pretty important in this sort of book. You can picture the characters easily, practically hear their voices when you read their dialogue. I'm not sure why I had a hard time getting into it at first - it's a solid, quick-moving novel. ( )

Having read most US noir out there, I'd somehow avoided Leonard. I think I was put off by my disappointment at Tarantino's Jackie Brown. This is a fantastic novel, though. It has the punch of the best crime writers, but unlike, say, George Pelecanos, there's less of a generic feel to his work. You sense that his other novels will offer a slightly different narrative structure and that the storylines will stay with you a little longer than those of most genre fiction. Thus some weighty themes emerge from this work beyond those of criminality and justice: growing old, trust, race, fulfilment. The book also makes me want to revisit Tarantino's film. I suspect I might have misjudged it first time round and that the knowledge that Jackie was white in the novel might throw interesting light on the choice of a black actress in the movie. ( )

I kind of remembered the movie when I read this, but not enough to spoil the whole thing.
The scheme works perfectly. Jackie smuggles in more money than she tells the Feds she is and then with Max's help, gets it out from under Ordell's nose. The scene in the department store with the changing room is perfectly choreographed. In the end she gets her money and Max.
Leonard's style is to put you right in the middle of the action and let you figure things out on your own. There's not a lot of build up or explanation of anything or anyone. It took me a couple of chapters to feel comfortable with the characters and what was going on.

I read this book because I liked the movie Jackie Brown. It's the only Elmore Leonard book that I've ever read but if his others are like this one, I'll probably read more. ( )