Most of the time, I'm a lurker on this list, vicariously
taking part in all the great discussions, writing down the
titles of books or names of authors I need to look for, etc.,
but not really reading the kinds of mysteries that really
define this list. Well, just recently, I finally read a
noirish, hard-boiled, Rara-Avis kind of book, Newton
Thornburg's _Cutter and Bone_, and what a book it was. It
took me awhile to get into, the characters being rather
unsympathetic and hard to relate to. But the mystery of just
what Rich Bone might have witnessed the night his car broke
down and he was forced to walk home gradually became very
compelling. I thought the road trip to middle America and the
threatening Midwest types was very well-handled--sort of
reminded me of the milk-drinking killers hunting Lee Marvin
through the wheat field in the movie _Prime Cut_. And the
ending was a real punch in the stomach.
I know I saw the movie _Cutter's Way_ many years ago, but I
had to move it to the top of my Netflix queue and compare it
to the book. I have to say that, even though I know this film
is well-regarded, it was a real disappointment after reading
the book. So much of the story was changed, that the movie
really bears little connection to the book and it was a
really dissatisfying experience. The book was so much
stronger, particularly that ending, that the film version
pales by comparison. This was the first Thornburg I'd read,
but I have several of his books in my TBR pile, so I'll have
to give him another try.
Craig Larson Plymouth, MN
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