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22nd out of 30 books
—
50 voters
The Big Blowdown (D.C. Quartet #1)
After World War II, two boys find work by providing muscle for the local boss, with one teaching the other how to be tougher on immigrants. When the boss assigns them a protection job, the buddies face off again. But this time they learn the true meaning of friendship and honor.
Published
(first published 1996)
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Joe Recevo and Pete Karras were friends since they were kids, until their boss decided he didn't like Pete and had him badly beaten, giving him a crippling knee injury. Three years later, their lives will soon intersect when their old boss decides he wants Nick Stefanos, Karras' employer at a diner, to start paying him protection. Who will be left standing after the Big Blowdown?
Here we are. Another great book by George Pelecanos, the first in his DC Quartet. In the Big Blowdown, Pelecanos paint...more
Here we are. Another great book by George Pelecanos, the first in his DC Quartet. In the Big Blowdown, Pelecanos paint...more
This would also be one that would stand as one of his "serious" novels because it paints a picture of the 1930s and the lives of immigrants in the DC area. James Sallis writes in the intro to the book: "He writes of immigrants, of blacks, of the young, of all the damaged and disadvantaged and discarded shut away in rented rooms or shuttled aside into bars and diners reeking of stagnant time till, their moment come around at last, they erupt, burn furiously, and expire." Wow-that's pretty much it...more
This is one of Pelecanos’ early books. The Big Blowdown was published in 1996. It already has many of the Pelecanos trademarks that you will still find in his stories 15 years later: camaraderie, cars, violence, smoking and poverty. It is part of the DC Quartet of Pelecanos books published from 1996 to 1999. Yes, that works out to one a year. The other three books are King Suckerman, The Sweet Forever and Shame the Devil. I am looking forward to reading them in that order. I often read Pelecanos...more
It is an gripping crime story from post-WWII Washington, DC, with a little bit pre-war. I found the beginning slow, describing the interactions of the protagonist with his childhood friends and his stint in the Pacific Theater of WWII. Once the story moved to Washington, DC, 1949, it picked up, turning into a story of rust belt kids finding their way in the big city and Greek restauranteurs trying to stay outside the province of local organized crime. Throw in a Jack the Ripper-style string of...more
Dieser Roman ist ein Juwel. Die Geschichte spielt im Washington der 1940er- und 1950er-Jahre. Im Mittelpunkt stehen griechische ImmigrantInnen bzw. Unterschichten der Post-WWII-Gesellschaft.
»Big Blowdown« (dt. im Dumont-Verlag erschienen, leider mit einigen Übersetzungs- und Druckfehlern) ist ein kolossaler Roman über Schattenseiten des »amerikanischen Traums«, so genannte kleine Leute und den Strudel organisierter Kriminalität. Pelecanos hat sehr glaubhafte und vielschichtige Charaktere entwor...more
»Big Blowdown« (dt. im Dumont-Verlag erschienen, leider mit einigen Übersetzungs- und Druckfehlern) ist ein kolossaler Roman über Schattenseiten des »amerikanischen Traums«, so genannte kleine Leute und den Strudel organisierter Kriminalität. Pelecanos hat sehr glaubhafte und vielschichtige Charaktere entwor...more
After being blown away by The Night Gardner, I wanted to go back and read some of Pelecanos's earlier novels. This is the first of his DC Quartet, and I'll refrain from passing complete judgment until I've read them all.
On its own, this book definitely pales in comparison to The Night Gardner. On the plus side, it oozes atmosphere. I have no basis to judge its accuracy, but I found the portrayal of post-war DC totally believable. Pelecanos tells the story of DC not from its worst-off, not from i...more
On its own, this book definitely pales in comparison to The Night Gardner. On the plus side, it oozes atmosphere. I have no basis to judge its accuracy, but I found the portrayal of post-war DC totally believable. Pelecanos tells the story of DC not from its worst-off, not from i...more
It took me a while to get into this novel but I ended up liking it as well as any of his Nick Stefanos books, which I read last year. Pelecanos tells a good, if violent, story but he also builds strong characters. Center to this story is Pete Karras, a WWII veteran who mixes with low-level mobsters after he returns from the Pacific and ends up with a bum leg and a job at a cafe. His efforts to save a co-worker's sister and protect his boss from gangsters leads him right back to the mob and an ol...more
Back in 1999 ( I think), I bought this book based on the cover (not the one pictured here). I needed some vacation reading and I took a big chance. One of the best books I've read in the last 15 years, I really loved the DC portrayed by Pelecanos. Yes this was the 40's, but you get a great sense of the non political DC. You see real people with real problems. The main characters are flawed, but it doesn't make them any less likeable. These are important traits of a Pelecanos novel. He gives you...more
This was my introduction to George Pelecanos - the first of his that I read. I was immediately hooked. There is something about the immediacy of his language and depth of characterisation that draws you in regadless of the quality of the plot. I think that was furtehr emphasised in the brillant series - The Wire- where his writing and that of Dennis Lehane, shone through. I have read everything he's written since - most recently The Way Home - and I think of all the modern Americal crime writers...more
Pete Karras is back home after his time as a Marine in the Pacific battlefields of WWII. Drifting, he ends up on the wrong end of the deal with bad men, and now is slowly coming back into the world. His is a gray exisitence, neither white nor black, good nor bad, but he is wounded in body and spirit, and as we shall see, it's not a sure thing that he will ever be whole.
Back story gives us a growing-up perspective, with childhood pals who are woven into Pete's life as an adult, some on the good s...more
Back story gives us a growing-up perspective, with childhood pals who are woven into Pete's life as an adult, some on the good s...more
I was not disappointed by my first Pelecanos book. The story was graphic at times, but not unreasonably so for a crime novel. I liked seeing the interconnectedness of the various immigrant communities and factions that made up the story. I found myself alternately sympathizing with the depression-era Pete Karras and feeling disconnected with the hardened veteran and absentee father that he had become. Yet the book weaved everything together - the Greeks, Italos, police, and the sympathetic/pitif...more
"The Big Blowdown" is one of George Pelecanos's earlier books (1996), which explores the lives of a number of boys, descendants of Greek and Italian immigrants, who are friends during the depression years of the 1930s and who then grow into adulthood. Most of the book takes place in the post-war years as these men, now young adults, search for their places in the world.
Some of them, of course, make better choices than others. Two of the principal characters, Pete Karras and Joe Recevo come home...more
Some of them, of course, make better choices than others. Two of the principal characters, Pete Karras and Joe Recevo come home...more
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A taut crime novel set mostly in postwar Washington, D.C.
I usually don't care for crime and suspense, but Pelecanos's style lifts the book above formula, with his fine eye for plotting and ability to sketch his characters quickly and effectively. His prose only occasionally lapses into the sentimentality or tough-guy-speak that one usually finds in crime novels. Overall, though, his portrait of Washington, D.C. in the 40s sings, with not a single detail ringing false. He builds suspense not thro...more
I usually don't care for crime and suspense, but Pelecanos's style lifts the book above formula, with his fine eye for plotting and ability to sketch his characters quickly and effectively. His prose only occasionally lapses into the sentimentality or tough-guy-speak that one usually finds in crime novels. Overall, though, his portrait of Washington, D.C. in the 40s sings, with not a single detail ringing false. He builds suspense not thro...more
George Pelecanos has steered me back to my life of crime. I love his work. And he loves his characters, which is what makes him such a wonderful writer. The Big Blowdown is astonishing in scope. Washington DC itself is one of the prominent characters, and the histories of the people whose families settled there drive the story. I can't force myself to say more. I just loved this book, and his other stuff as well.
This is the book equivalent of the Jet song "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" The first time you hear that song, you're like, "Haven't I heard this already?" Then you're like, "This song isn't very original." But then you're like, "F it, this song rocks, let's dance."
This book starts off slow, with the ol' "childhood friends from the neighborhood grow up and one is a gangster" gag. It doesn't miss many film noir cliches, and it's packed with so many 40's pop culture references that you wonder if Pelec...more
This book starts off slow, with the ol' "childhood friends from the neighborhood grow up and one is a gangster" gag. It doesn't miss many film noir cliches, and it's packed with so many 40's pop culture references that you wonder if Pelec...more
My first Pelecanos book - and it rocks. This guy captures the taste and feel of D.C. - his descriptions and characters feel authentic. This is a hard-boiled crime novel, but with a lot of anguish and heart. He knows how to turn a phrase - like when a guy gets shot in the groin, he "ejaculated blood." But the best part is the characters' struggle for making their way in the world. It's a brutal world out there.
Pelecanos has a character - Nick Stefanos - that he writes about in many of his books. They all take place in DC and are good mysteries of the old genre. This book is a standalone and a good read so far.
Upon finishing I liked the fact that Pelecanos uses this book late in the series to give us history on his characters from his Nick Stephanos series. Good read.
Upon finishing I liked the fact that Pelecanos uses this book late in the series to give us history on his characters from his Nick Stephanos series. Good read.
A slight shift from what Pelecanos normally writes (i.e. the era), The Big Blowdown is set in post World War II DC. It has all the regular trimmings of a typical Pelecanos affair, and as always, is well worth the read. I'd argue that this is akin to The Turnaround, for you fans out there.
In the middle of my tear through Pelicanos' catalog, I found this one to be particularly interesting. Not sure how accurate of a depiction this is of post WWII DC, but I'd like to think it is.
The gangsters in the Big Blowdown read like there should already be a movie about them.
The gangsters in the Big Blowdown read like there should already be a movie about them.
A dark, grim story about 1930's Washington D.C.street life. Two
kids, one Greek and one Italian, involved in a small time mob
have a falling out but their lives continue to cross. Interesting
story line and well written but not much fun.
kids, one Greek and one Italian, involved in a small time mob
have a falling out but their lives continue to cross. Interesting
story line and well written but not much fun.
I really, really, really need to watch The Wire at some point... I love the walking descriptions of DC and the multi-generational connections between the characters in these books. The tough guys are believable, and this particular story was able to somehow balance elements of Scarface and Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid without feeling contrived.
An exciting early novel of Pelecanos, set in the post-war period. Some of his devices show through the plot, as he hasn't quite mastered his technique. Still entertaining and worth reading
For Joey Recevo and Pete Karras, two kids from one of Washington's rougher neighborhoods, the easiest work to find after the War is all criminal---providing a little muscle for a local boss. But Karris is soft on his fellow immigrants, and the boss can't let his mob get soft, so one of his boys gives Karras a painful lesson.
Three years later, it's the same mob that figures big Nick Stefanos's grill needs protection---and this decision will once again bring Joey and Pete face-to-face. In this fin...more
Three years later, it's the same mob that figures big Nick Stefanos's grill needs protection---and this decision will once again bring Joey and Pete face-to-face. In this fin...more
The definition of literary crime fiction, this book explores a group of Greeks in post-WWII Washington, D.C. The plot takes a backseat to the characters, but neither one is neglected at any point.
Sad but satisfying. I hadn't read the blurbs, so I wasn't expecting this to be set in the 1930s and '40s, but once I got where it was going, I really enjoyed the ride.
I liked this DC crime novel well enough, although I was sometimes more interested in the details of life in DC in the 30s than I was in the plot. I'm going to stick with the quartet though as his books seem to jog along quite nicely.
The first of his serious D.C. novels, so we'll forgive Pelecanos for a few mannerisms and just enjoy the rhythm of the prose, the local color and period mood, and rich characterization. Does he ever learn how to write women, though?
Urp. Another afternoon lost to productive domesticity.
Didn't finish
A must read
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George P. Pelecanos (born 1957 in Washington, D.C.) is an American author of detective fiction set primarily in the capital of the United States, Washington, D.C. He is also a film and television producer and a television writer. He has worked extensively on the HBO series The Wire. His novels use an ensemble cast of characters, following their exploits across several generations. While there are...more
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Amen.
May 08, 2013 06:56pm
Amen."
Now go forth and spread the word to others.
May 09, 2013 04:49am
May 10, 2013 09:19am