Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
Not Comin' Home to You (Paul Kavanagh #3)
by
Lawrence Block (Goodreads Author)
He is Jimmie John Hall, "free and white and 22". Her name is Betty Dienhardt, plain, friendless, and oppressed by a bleak home life. In each other, they find a chance for love and fulfillment. But they are doomed. For Jimmie John has already embarked on a killing spree on the backroads of the Southwest that will leave 14 innocent people dead.
Paperback, 220 pages
Published
February 6th 1997
by Carroll & Graf
(first published 1974)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
This book is not yet featured on Listopia.
Add this book to your favorite list »
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
216)
Jimmie John Hall was a no good drifter and irresistible to Betty Dienhardt, friendless high school girl. It was just too bad about the killing spree...
First off, Lawrence Block is the man. His Matthew Scudder series is in my crime series top three, along with Richard Stark's Parker books and Joe Lansdale's Hap and Leonard series. When I stumbled upon this, a book of his I'd never heard of, I snapped it up.
Not Comin' Home to You, named after a line in a Waylon Jennings song, was inspired by the t...more
First off, Lawrence Block is the man. His Matthew Scudder series is in my crime series top three, along with Richard Stark's Parker books and Joe Lansdale's Hap and Leonard series. When I stumbled upon this, a book of his I'd never heard of, I snapped it up.
Not Comin' Home to You, named after a line in a Waylon Jennings song, was inspired by the t...more
31 likes · like · see review
view all 7 comments
Loosely based on the Charles Starkweather and Caril Anne Fugate case of the 1950's and written before the movie Badlands, Not Comin' Home to You tells the story of Jimmy John Hall and Betty Dienhardt in the 1970's. Jimmie John fed up with working for his father pumping gas, leaves home in Texas and hitches rides cross country from truckers. Jimmie keeps a pipe in his back pocket, just in case. A man with a Toronado and a gun gives Jimmie John a ride and before long, Jimmie John takes the Toronad...more
I wondered if there was any reason to read (listen) to this book beyond liking many of the other works by this author. In a word, "NO!". It was free from the library, so I thought I'd give it a try & hoped he'd put a spin on it like he did with Keller, his hit man.
I was creeped out from the dedication. Seriously, Block dedicated this to his 3 daughters & 'their mother'. Next is a poem titled the same as the book & basically says they took him for granted, so he's not coming home to...more
I was creeped out from the dedication. Seriously, Block dedicated this to his 3 daughters & 'their mother'. Next is a poem titled the same as the book & basically says they took him for granted, so he's not coming home to...more
Jimmie John Hall is 22, handsome, and a career drifter. He hitchhikes across the United States, stealing whatever catches his eye, assaulting people that get in his way, and generally riding high on a never-ending speed trip. Betty Deinhardt is a lonely fifteen-year old high school student from Podunk, Nebraska. Her father drinks, her parents fight constantly, and she keeps to herself, dreaming of one day escaping from her family and her little town and living a life of excitement like she sees...more
I think this book would be a fine read. The 'hero' reminds me very much of the bad guy in Steven King's 'The Stand', without the supernatural components.
The author has a very crisp style. Excellent characterization, doesn't bog down in trivial details & captures the mood of US desert highways well.
If you are looking for something black, with lots of murder, this is probably a really good bet. It would be for me, too, because I am sometimes in the mood for something as dark as this. But at th...more
The author has a very crisp style. Excellent characterization, doesn't bog down in trivial details & captures the mood of US desert highways well.
If you are looking for something black, with lots of murder, this is probably a really good bet. It would be for me, too, because I am sometimes in the mood for something as dark as this. But at th...more
This was a fascinating, tense, and sad read. I am a fan of the movie Badlands, so I decided to check this out. I am glad that I did. Betty and Jimmy John are such pathetic creatures, each in their own way. I was surprised to feel what I felt about Betty's actions at the end (no spoiler here), but being surprised by my own emotions is what I enjoy in a good book. I was sick today and had to spend an hour waiting for the doctor to see me, and I didn't even notice because I brought my Kindle with m...more
Depressing, fact-based 1974 novel written under the pen-name Paul Kavavagh.
Thriller - He is Jimmie John Hall, "free and white and 22". Her name is Betty Dienhardt, plain, friendless, and oppressed by a bleak home life. In each other, they find a chance for love and fulfillment. But they are doomed. For Jimmie John has already embarked on a killing spree on the backroads of the Southwest that will leave 14 innocent people dead.
Thriller - He is Jimmie John Hall, "free and white and 22". Her name is Betty Dienhardt, plain, friendless, and oppressed by a bleak home life. In each other, they find a chance for love and fulfillment. But they are doomed. For Jimmie John has already embarked on a killing spree on the backroads of the Southwest that will leave 14 innocent people dead.
I wouldn't call this enjoyable, nor would I say it's not enjoyable. It was uncomfortable to read because I wanted to hate the main characters, for various reasons, but they are the story's vented, it's hard not to pull for them. It further conflicts me to know they are based on real people.
It was a good read up until the very end when we changed perspective to one that hadn't been previously used. I thought that was pretty silly and could have done without it.
It was a good read up until the very end when we changed perspective to one that hadn't been previously used. I thought that was pretty silly and could have done without it.
The whole time I was reading this, I kept thinking of "Twilight." You have a dull, cloistered girl who meets an older, worldier guy and they fall madly in love and run into all sorts of danger. Except in this case the guy is a psychopathic killer instead of a superhero vampire. So it's really what "Twilight" should have been.
Aug 21, 2010
Steven
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2010,
detective-crimes
Lawrence Block is an excellent writer, and he has written an excellent book. The story reminds me of a movie Oliver Stone made years later, Natural Killers. I suspect they are both based on the same murder spree that occurred years ago out West.
Great book. I liked the pace of the story, hard to put down. One thing though, the book discription has a spoiler and I wish that I had read it in the book first. I really, really, really hate when they do that!
Very tricky and manipulative novel--in the best way. Makes you feel empathy for a psycho killer. Reading this is reminiscent of watching Bonnie & Clyde. Well done.
Powerful psychological tale of two young killers and their spree across the US, based on the Starkweather/Fugate case, Block makes it uniquely his own.
the fictionalied story of mass murderers Charles Starkweather and Caril Anne Fugate. just a little light reading for a sunday afternoon.
Good book overall. Rather sad throughout and I thought it being fact based was interesting.
AKA: Sheldon Lord, Jill Emerson, Paul Kavanaugh, Chip Harrison, Lawrence Block
3.5 stars.
An interesting and compelling story, but some unusual choices in the form of the narrative didn't work for me.
An interesting and compelling story, but some unusual choices in the form of the narrative didn't work for me.
Satisfactory crime drama. Book candy.
I really liked this book but I wanted more....
He is Jimmie John Hall, "free and white and 22". Her name is Betty Dienhardt, plain, friendless, and oppressed by a bleak home life. In each other, they find a chance for love and fulfillment. But they are doomed. For Jimmie John has already embarked on a killing spree on the backroads of the Southwest that will leave 14 innocent people dead.
Well written, but definitely not what I expected. Also not a typical book for Lawrence Block, as there is no mystery involved.
This book in a nutshell, is the movie Natural Born Killers.
This book in a nutshell, is the movie Natural Born Killers.
Jun 17, 2013
Cristine
marked it as to-read
Jun 07, 2013
Steven Wojcik
marked it as to-read
May 02, 2013
Tania Fletcher
marked it as to-read
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 2002.
From his web site:
I'm told every good author website needs a bio, so here's mine:
"Lawrence Block's novels range from the urban noir of Matthew Scudder (A Drop of the Hard Stuff) to the urbane effervescence of Bernie Rhodenbarr (The Burglar on the Prowl), while other characters include the globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanne...more
More about Lawrence Block...
From his web site:
I'm told every good author website needs a bio, so here's mine:
"Lawrence Block's novels range from the urban noir of Matthew Scudder (A Drop of the Hard Stuff) to the urbane effervescence of Bernie Rhodenbarr (The Burglar on the Prowl), while other characters include the globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanne...more
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
