High Sierra
by W. R. Burnett
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The tormented man at the center of W.R. Burnett's High Sierra is a notorious criminal whom the newspapers call "Mad Dog" Roy Earle. Earle is every bit the criminal the newspapers depict, but he is also a complicated soul. Earle, the tragic hero of the novel, is a horribly flawed man, a violent criminal who still retains a conscience.Earle is been moved by the plight of the physically impaired woman named Velma Goodhue, whom he resolves to help, imagining, somehow, that she will be his. show more After a holdup he plans with Red, Babe, and Marie (who has now fallen in love with him), Earle takes his share of the money to Velma for an operation to repair her clubfoot. But the holdup has disastrous results. Red and Babe are killed, and Roy goes on the lam with Marie. The runaway outlaws have nowhere to turn. Eventually, Velma leaves. Earle sends Marie away to meet him ultimately in a mountain pass in the High Sierras, a rendezvous in the sky in which all that occurs will not take place as envisioned.
The plot of High Sierrais remorselessly fast and multithreaded, but Roy Earle trumps our interest. Burnett manage to pain a rich and deeply compelling man without sentimentalizing him. Here is a plot with a tough, bleak, and unforgiving narrative that works a dark magic.
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High Sierra by W.R. Bennett is a classic crime story about a heist that goes wrong. After being released from prison, notorious, aging criminal Roy Earle is hired by his old boss to help a group of inexperienced criminals plan and carry out the robbery of a California resort that is the playground of the rich and famous. Earle is the last surviving member of the Dillinger gang and had been in prison for some time so this story is both a crime story and a character study of a man who has outlived his time.
It’s hard to divorce this book from the excellent 1941 film that starred Humphrey Bogart. His portrayal of Roy Earle was vivid and certainly colored my view of this book. The heist story was enhanced by a side plot that has Earle show more meeting and helping a young crippled girl but when he wants more from this girl than mere friendship he is denied. Instead he takes up with Marie, a floozy that his gang members brought along. He also ends up being adopted by a small white dog, Pard, who has a reputation for bringing bad luck to his owner.
High Sierra paints an excellent portrait of a tormented man, showing both his softer side and the harder outer shell that has the world calling him “Mad Dog Earle”. I found this slightly melodramatic noir crime story to be a very entertaining read. show less
It’s hard to divorce this book from the excellent 1941 film that starred Humphrey Bogart. His portrayal of Roy Earle was vivid and certainly colored my view of this book. The heist story was enhanced by a side plot that has Earle show more meeting and helping a young crippled girl but when he wants more from this girl than mere friendship he is denied. Instead he takes up with Marie, a floozy that his gang members brought along. He also ends up being adopted by a small white dog, Pard, who has a reputation for bringing bad luck to his owner.
High Sierra paints an excellent portrait of a tormented man, showing both his softer side and the harder outer shell that has the world calling him “Mad Dog Earle”. I found this slightly melodramatic noir crime story to be a very entertaining read. show less
Love this book. Fantastic, classic noir, and also the basis for a great film.
http://www.fireandsword.com/Reviews/highsierra.html
WR Burnett was a young guy from a pleasant corner of rural America who moved to Chicago back when it was wicked. Judging from High Sierra, Burnett always carried that bit of rural Americana with him, even when describing Chicago gangsters.
WR Burnett was a young guy from a pleasant corner of rural America who moved to Chicago back when it was wicked. Judging from High Sierra, Burnett always carried that bit of rural Americana with him, even when describing Chicago gangsters.
Inspirada en la figura del famoso pistolero de la Depresión, John Dillinger.
Jul 13, 2022Spanish
Inspirada en la figura del famoso pistolero de la Depresión, John Dillinger.
Nov 19, 2010Spanish
grand auteur
Sep 12, 2009French
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73+ Works 2,055 Members
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- El Último Refugio
- Original title
- High Sierra
- Original publication date
- 1940
- Related movies
- High Sierra (1941 | IMDb); Colorado Territory (1949 | IMDb); I Died a Thousand Times (1955 | IMDb)
- First words
- Early in the twentieth century, when Roy Earle was a happy boy on an Indiana farm, he had no idea that at thirty-seven he'd be a pardoned ex-convict driving alone through the Nevada-California desert towards and ambiguous des... (show all)tiny in the Far West.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Sic transit gloria mundi, or something.
- Original language*
- Inglés
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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- 355,119
- Reviews
- 6
- Rating
- (4.33)
- Languages
- 6 — Catalan, Danish, English, French, Italian, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 20
- ASINs
- 9
