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A review by matthewcpeck
The Friends of Eddie Coyle by George V. Higgins
4.0
This iconic 1970 Bostonian thriller made for one of the most engrossing and purely enjoyable fiction experiences I've had in months. Eddie Coyle is the its character but not its MAIN character in any typical sense, just as his "friends" aren't really that. Higgins' debut novel is about a network of petty criminals, mobsters, law enforcement, and spouses, and no single character is granted significantly more time than any other in the fast-paced, ultimately tragic storyline.
The book is exalted for several reasons. One of those is obvious from page 1: its de-glammed, authentic, extremely profane dialogue. 'The Friends of Eddie Coyle' is of a piece with the gritty and morally ambiguous American cinema of the 1970s, and you can sense its influence when you watch the loquacious psychopaths populating the films of Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino (in the last 10 pages, there is a meticulous conversation about the dos and don'ts of cheese sandwich preparation, and it would make Tarantino envious).
The book was in fact adapted for a well-regarded Robert Mitchum film in the early 70s. I have yet to see it, but it segues into one of the other standout qualities of Higgins' novel: its formal strangeness. Like 'No Country For Old Men', 'Eddie Coyle' reads like a screenplay. It consists almost entirely of brilliantly crafted conversations, while the dialogue-free sections are as terse as stage directions. Apart from a brief flashback in the mind of a banker held at gunpoint, there is absolutely no exposition, psychology, or musing that exists outside of the characters' speech. This enhances the sensation of watching something relentlessly progress before ones eyes, instead of reading a normal story. And that's ideal for a crime thriller.
'The Friends Of Eddie Coyle' is pretty obligatory, at this point, for Boston Metro residents and for connoisseurs of crime fiction. But it transcends the genre and setting through its style and perfect structure, and, at 183 pages, it's short enough that you don't have an excuse not to read it someday.
The book is exalted for several reasons. One of those is obvious from page 1: its de-glammed, authentic, extremely profane dialogue. 'The Friends of Eddie Coyle' is of a piece with the gritty and morally ambiguous American cinema of the 1970s, and you can sense its influence when you watch the loquacious psychopaths populating the films of Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino (in the last 10 pages, there is a meticulous conversation about the dos and don'ts of cheese sandwich preparation, and it would make Tarantino envious).
The book was in fact adapted for a well-regarded Robert Mitchum film in the early 70s. I have yet to see it, but it segues into one of the other standout qualities of Higgins' novel: its formal strangeness. Like 'No Country For Old Men', 'Eddie Coyle' reads like a screenplay. It consists almost entirely of brilliantly crafted conversations, while the dialogue-free sections are as terse as stage directions. Apart from a brief flashback in the mind of a banker held at gunpoint, there is absolutely no exposition, psychology, or musing that exists outside of the characters' speech. This enhances the sensation of watching something relentlessly progress before ones eyes, instead of reading a normal story. And that's ideal for a crime thriller.
'The Friends Of Eddie Coyle' is pretty obligatory, at this point, for Boston Metro residents and for connoisseurs of crime fiction. But it transcends the genre and setting through its style and perfect structure, and, at 183 pages, it's short enough that you don't have an excuse not to read it someday.