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3.31 AVERAGE
3.31 AVERAGE
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Saw an interview ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsfWO5eJtm4 ) recently with the guy who adapted this into a screenplay and was like "oh shit, Drive was based on a book? I'd read that". So I did.
Really liked it. Propulsive and interesting and weighty and stylish. Exactly how I like my Hollywood Noir (which I'm slowly learning might be my favorite genre?).
Biggest complaint is the format. I typically love experiments in form and shuffled timelines, and can almost always decipher the intent behind those choices. The choice to cut and shuffle the narrative didn't feel a choice made to evoke anything in particular as much as it felt like it came from a place of insecurity. Like Sallis wasn't super confident in the content and wanted to mask the fact that it's basically a series of loosely connected vignettes.
It's sad because I think that that's actually the biggest strength of the book. Loved the vignette format. Loved every single story (especially the truck driver vignette!). Loved the writing style. Absolutely adore Driver as a character. Just sucks that every time momentum starts to build Sallis slams on the brakes and forces you to reorient. Something something something car stalling pun, good book etc.
Really liked it. Propulsive and interesting and weighty and stylish. Exactly how I like my Hollywood Noir (which I'm slowly learning might be my favorite genre?).
Biggest complaint is the format. I typically love experiments in form and shuffled timelines, and can almost always decipher the intent behind those choices. The choice to cut and shuffle the narrative didn't feel a choice made to evoke anything in particular as much as it felt like it came from a place of insecurity. Like Sallis wasn't super confident in the content and wanted to mask the fact that it's basically a series of loosely connected vignettes.
It's sad because I think that that's actually the biggest strength of the book. Loved the vignette format. Loved every single story (especially the truck driver vignette!). Loved the writing style. Absolutely adore Driver as a character. Just sucks that every time momentum starts to build Sallis slams on the brakes and forces you to reorient. Something something something car stalling pun, good book etc.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It’s a great short read and I can definitely see why they made it into a movie! Being a PHX resident, it was cool to imagine a neo-noir crime story happening here on the streets I lived on
I wanted to really like it but in the end it was just ok. Yes its dirty quick and engaging but I found myself wanted more, I think the biggest issue I had was when Driver changed from just diving to killing and righting supposed wrongs the motivation for this just didn't seem justified. I also had a lot of trouble with the non linear nature of the story, I did however like the voice and poetic descriptions it just feels it could have been a whole lot beter.
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
I'd been wanting to see the film version of this novel for quite some time, but I'd never gotten around to it. Finally, I picked up this short book and read through it in one sitting, then watched the film immediately after. It's a brisk, engaging little read, even if it does seem to be a bit all over the place, lacking proper focus. I don't think I'll ever read it again, but I would be interested in finding its sequel, Driven, to find out what happens next. All in all, I feel the film is an improvement over this book. The story centers around a film stunt driver who moonlights as a getaway driver.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Short book which feels almost noire. Love the movie, book was just fine. Worth a read if you wanna deep dive into the characters.
This book is a real fast read. There is a fair amount of action, but it is also punctuated by funny insights and some beautiful passages and vignettes. To have the rather taciturn protagonist express himself so well with the narration, provides an interesting contrast.
Saw the movie and enjoyed it, so I decided to read the book. The only problem being that I couldn't imagine the characters myself, but thankfully the movie was cast fairly well.
Saw the movie and enjoyed it, so I decided to read the book. The only problem being that I couldn't imagine the characters myself, but thankfully the movie was cast fairly well.
Let's start with what this book does well. Sallis does a great job of building a 'noir' atmosphere in his writing, which is accompanied on many occasions by moments of truly poetic turn of phrase. In isolation, there are elements of his craft which I certainly admire.
However, problems arise when Sallis is tasked with weaving those moments together. Personally, I found the 'jumpy' structural nature of the book to be more jarring than enthralling. By the end, I did have a good grasp of what was going on, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that I enjoyed the experience. That word, 'enjoyment', is the key here. In theory, this book's premise has all the pieces to suggest it'd make for a great story, but in practice not much of that potential was realized.
At no point did I feel any sort of connection to the characters. The main protagonist has plenty of backstory but not enough personality for me to care. His various acquaintances appear too fleetingly to build any sort of emotional connection to either, and as for the antagonists - they're arguably even worse. The two 'big baddies' are dealt with abruptly, with minimal build-up and practically zero pay-off. If I was being charitable, I might say that this is a side-effect of the blunt, noir narrative style. But, surely a well-executed noir novel would manage to balance its dark simplicity with actual narrative substance. That, unfortunately, is something which I feel 'Drive' truly lacks.
As the final nail in the coffin, our protagonist is seen driving off into the sunset in a "nineties Datsun". Yet, the last Datsun-badged car (before the brand's ill-fated 2010s revival) rolled off production lines in 1986. Surely cars are the one thing this book shouldn't be getting wrong...
However, problems arise when Sallis is tasked with weaving those moments together. Personally, I found the 'jumpy' structural nature of the book to be more jarring than enthralling. By the end, I did have a good grasp of what was going on, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that I enjoyed the experience. That word, 'enjoyment', is the key here. In theory, this book's premise has all the pieces to suggest it'd make for a great story, but in practice not much of that potential was realized.
At no point did I feel any sort of connection to the characters. The main protagonist has plenty of backstory but not enough personality for me to care. His various acquaintances appear too fleetingly to build any sort of emotional connection to either, and as for the antagonists - they're arguably even worse. The two 'big baddies' are dealt with abruptly, with minimal build-up and practically zero pay-off. If I was being charitable, I might say that this is a side-effect of the blunt, noir narrative style. But, surely a well-executed noir novel would manage to balance its dark simplicity with actual narrative substance. That, unfortunately, is something which I feel 'Drive' truly lacks.
As the final nail in the coffin, our protagonist is seen driving off into the sunset in a "nineties Datsun". Yet, the last Datsun-badged car (before the brand's ill-fated 2010s revival) rolled off production lines in 1986. Surely cars are the one thing this book shouldn't be getting wrong...
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated