Roughneck
by
Jim Thompson
The incorrigible Jim Thompson tells the true story of his literary education, as he retraces his wild swath across America during the great Depression and World War II. Whether he's outrunning railroad bulls or getting drunk in a funeral home, shaking down debtors or drafting a manuscript with the help of a bighearted prostitute, Thompson is a mesmerizing guide to hard tim...more
Paperback, 192 pages
Published
May 26th 1998
by Vintage
(first published 1954)
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Reviewed in conjunction with La Douleur
Sometimes you read a book that makes you feel ashamed of your life, every time you thought you were unlucky or that you deserve more or that you should get more. Whatever you have suffered, however genuine it be, suddenly becomes as nothing, its place clearly fixed in the universe as the measliest dot the world ever has seen. Roughneck does that. It describes a portion of his life in the pared down, straightforward way Thompson tells all his stories. Nothin...more
Sometimes you read a book that makes you feel ashamed of your life, every time you thought you were unlucky or that you deserve more or that you should get more. Whatever you have suffered, however genuine it be, suddenly becomes as nothing, its place clearly fixed in the universe as the measliest dot the world ever has seen. Roughneck does that. It describes a portion of his life in the pared down, straightforward way Thompson tells all his stories. Nothin...more
One of my weekly enjoyments is book shopping through the local thrift stores. Every now and then, I will find something good. I haven't found much to sell on Ebay; the competition for those finds are fierce. But it can be rewarding to locate some dusty paperback you've always wanted to read, just never had the time, money or inclination. I really need to actually pull the books out of the pile and start reading The Harrad Experiment, The Sterile Cuckoo, or Death Turns A Smile before they disinte...more
Part biography, part fiction, but it's tough to tell where he draws the line. This is pulp writer Jim Thompson's sort-of-life story, where he works in a variety of jobs (mortician's assistant, newspaper writer, oil fields, etc.) and trying to keep his and his family's heads above water while continually writing and trying to make it big. Engrossing, although the ending wasn't so much of a conclusion as just a dead stop. I think his out-and-out fiction is much better.
oh Jim Thompson you never seem to let me down. This collection of "semi-autobiographical" stories was a quick read. Thompson has a way of making the insane & absurd seem so normal, believable, and true, that I found myself wondering how much of this was actually embellished and how much of it was understated. It's interesting to see the seeds of other novels in these stories, as well.
The incorrigible Jim Thompson tells the true story of his literary education, as he retraces his wild swath across America during the great Depression and World War II. Whether he's outrunning railroad bulls or getting drunk in a funeral home, shaking down debtors or drafting a manuscript with the help of a bighearted prostitute, Thompson is a mesmerizing guide to hard times -- his country's and his own.
Jul 02, 2008
Andy
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
hard working stiffs
Shelves:
pulp-fiction
Kinda sorta the sequel to "Bad Boy" and reminiscent of Bukowski's "Factotum" where he recalls all the crummy jobs he had to toil at before penning his brilliant noir classics. I worked a lot of similar gigs that he did = misery loves company.
May 31, 2009
Patrick
added it
Random book I read #45768-B.
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Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
James Myers Thompson was a United States writer of novels, short stories and screenplays, largely in the hardboiled style of crime fiction.
Thompson wrote more than thirty novels, the majority of which were original paperback publications by pulp fiction houses, from the lat...more
More about Jim Thompson...
James Myers Thompson was a United States writer of novels, short stories and screenplays, largely in the hardboiled style of crime fiction.
Thompson wrote more than thirty novels, the majority of which were original paperback publications by pulp fiction houses, from the lat...more
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