From 2007
Pick-Up by Charles Willeford
When was the last time you read a book so compelling you couldn't put it down? What was it?
For me, it was this novel. It takes a long time in Pick-Up
for the reader to understand the protagonist and what he's all about.
Why he's in the fix he's in. Maybe you won't understand the full story
until the last line. And yet, Willeford is able to tell his story
lucidly, making even the most mundane details riveting.
This
is basically a story about two drunks. Why does it work so well? Better
for me even than Kennedy's drunks in Albany. Because the characters are
interesting, the narrative pull inescapable, the writing excellent.
Even when the plot turns a bit unlikely in the last third--the characters remain true to themselves, so you go along with it.This is a very different story than the one Willeford tells in Miami Blues.
7 comments:
Some books really are that compelling, Patti. And it is often because of the characters. They're interesting, or appealing, or have some sort of magnetism that draws the reader. Sounds like that's what these characters are like.
I've had a copy of this for years, yet still haven't read it, which is dumb because I like Willeford a lot.
Yes, very different than the Hoke Mosley books. I read this before those and the change in style, character, setting, tone was amazing.
Patti, I had the same reaction when I read PICKUP! Charles Willeford was a versatile writer. Like Jeff, I like Willeford a lot and I think I've read everything of his work that's in print.
I have read this and the four Hoke Mosley and a volume of his memoir.
Don’t know when I read not putdownable, but have never managed to finish anything by Willeford.
Oops, I was wrong, I did read The Burnt Orange Heresy, a long time ago.
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