R.A. Newman (ran24@hermes.cam.ac.uk)
Wed, 24 Nov 1999 15:31:43 +0000 (GMT)
> I haven't read any of the
> continuations by the new guy, Raymond
Benson.
They're dreadful. Lots of 'Bond got on red bus outside
Buckingham Palace and rode it as far the Tower of London'
type Britishness.
> As has been pointed out, Bond, though tough as old
shoes, lacks the
> "common-touch" colloquialism that I think is
essential to be classified as
> hard-boiled (something that Adam Hall's British
agent, Quiller, *does*
> have). On the other hand, Fleming did consider
himself to be a member of
> the Hammett-Chandler school and said so in
interviews.
In 'Goldfinger' he even has Bond purchase 'the latest Raymond
Chandler' to read on the plane! Whether Bond is hard-boiled
or not is a matter of some debate, but he's sufficiently
martyrs himself, and takes enough punishment, to be
considered so in my mind. Fleming is a terrible writer,
though...
Ray Newman.
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