Review: "LaBrava" by Elmore Leonard

With the exception of Stephen King, no other author in the later part of the 20^th century is better known or more widely read than Elmore Leonard. Countless films have been made from his books and stories, and his famed dialogue has inspired countless imitators. For all his notoriety and commercial success, he really deserves the success he has had, writing well even into his later years. Even though this book LaBrava, did not hit me like I thought it was going to, I still think everyone who calls him or herself a book lover should read at least one of his books in their life. These stories are destined to become canon decades from now (because of his immense popularity, like King, he probably won’t get the critical recognition that a Franzen or Chabon has now), and they just represent talent so great and stories so simple and good, no amount of literary theory can make them better. This particular novel, we meet an amateur photographer, Jo LaBrava, who is propositioned by hotel owner and friend Maurice, to escort former Hollywood starlet, Jean Shaw, to Miami, show she can clean up from a bad relationship and drug abuse. Hot on her tail, are Richard nobles, Jean’s handsome, yet violent ex-love, and Cundo Rey, a Cuban male exotic dancer, who transforms into a deadly threat for all in this web of deceit and betrayal. Rarely does this story get too dark it is not fun, and everything you hear about Leonard’s dialogue is 100% true; it is like music, and the way he uses it to describe people, which lets the reader’s imagination build their version of characters, is an awesome ability. I am reading a bunch of naturalist writers in one of my classes, and Leonard could to do more for a character with a few lines of dialogue, than Dreiser or Crane could do with giant paragraphs and useless adverbs. The only bad thing about this book is the plot is a little weak, and very little time is spent recapping things, which is hard for a book that moves so fast. But this is just one in the many books by a true American writer, and I plan to read as much as I can.

Rating: 4/5