A review by xanderlaser
The Man With the Golden Arm by Nelson Algren, Daniel Simon, Kurt Vonnegut, Studs Terkel, William J. Savage Jr.

5.0

A beautiful elegy to the down-and-out. Algren's work lies somewhere on the spectrum between Ashcan naturalism of the early 1900s and the hyperrealism of the 1980. His ability to lend dimension and patronizing-free empathy to the hustlers and con artists of West Side Chicago, while inverting cops from would-be saviors into wretched guilt-ridden philosophers, makes this book a forerunner to works as diverse in genre as the literary nonficiton "In Cold Blood", the songs of Lou Reed & The Velvet Underground, and the television drama "The Wire". Most of all, beyond the linguistic talents, this book is just a damn good story, complete with plot twists, hooks and humor. Algren blends midwestern simplicity and sensible storytelling with big city majesty and ambition. The book roars with the audacity of the "El" train looping dirty skyscrapers and illuminated dive bars indiscriminately. This is a true Chicago work through and through.