Pretty Boy Floyd

Pretty Boy Floyd by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana was something of a random read for me but had been on the shelf for awhile. It was exactly as the title suggests: the story of Pretty Boy Floyd, the flamboyant bank robber who spent most of his life on the run. McMurtry portrays him as a charming family man who just happened to be a bank robber and philanderer. Here's the big thing I learned: it's amazing Floyd was able to escape the law for as long as he did because he was very bad at bank robbing.

McMurtry and Ossana had planned to collaborate on a screenplay but it didn't get approved so they wrote a novel instead. I think that accounts for the melodramatic style; I had the sense of being in an old black and white gangster movie.

I missed this book when it was originally released in the 90s, as I was reading McMurtry's back catalog at the time. I recently picked up a copy and enjoyed it. The team of McMurtry and Ossana polished their collaboration through the writing of many film screenplays, and this effort flows smoothly. The usual character development and insights present in so many of McMurtry's works are evident here. An enjoyable read that I recommend for McMurtry fans, I think you'll like it a bit better than the average rating would imply.

Book is telling about life, times, and travels of Charles - "Pretty Boy" Floyd - from his extended family, the brother and parents. It just seems that he cannot catch a break; of course, his impulsive actions always seem to catch up with him. He does have deep feelings for who he is with the times. He never forgets his son and the first wife throughout.

#952 in our old book database. Not rated.