tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post7418542378173006984..comments2024-01-19T13:24:15.734+00:00Comments on ::Acquired Taste: Tim Strettonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08598897603628943741noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-32413511968143214802009-02-04T07:45:00.000+00:002009-02-04T07:45:00.000+00:00Very sad news. At 75 he was still knocking out go...Very sad news. At 75 he was still knocking out good stuff, so a real untimely death.<BR/><BR/>Reading Westlake in his different guises was a real illustration of the craft of writing. A professional in the best sense.Tim Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08598897603628943741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-37483509996944276542009-02-03T20:59:00.000+00:002009-02-03T20:59:00.000+00:00I was out the other day raving about Richard Stark...I was out the other day raving about Richard Stark, aka Donald Westlake, and was told he had died.<BR/><BR/>It was one of those "No, it can't be" moments.<BR/><BR/>He had been writing more Parker novels, which I have been making my way through, and sadly no more.Swainsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12868686527341125913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-60827301785316961982008-06-19T16:45:00.000+01:002008-06-19T16:45:00.000+01:00I've never seen a film of any Parker book. It wou...I've never seen a film of any Parker book. It would be a real challenge, since so much of the meat is in the tone. I can imagine Lee Marvin in the role, though.<BR/><BR/>Hope you enjoy the book when it comes out!<BR/><BR/>~TimTim Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08598897603628943741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-63400207247391558432008-06-18T22:17:00.000+01:002008-06-18T22:17:00.000+01:00Sorry I forgot to comment that I thought the John ...Sorry I forgot to comment that I thought the John Boorman's version of Point Blank was spot on. Lee Marvin as Parker was Perfect, with a capital P.<BR/><BR/>The last Stark book I read was called 'Ask the Parrott'. There's a joke in that itself.<BR/><BR/>On another note, I can walk into a bookshop and go to the sfi/fantasy section and say to myself, "Got it, don't want it". <BR/><BR/>I'm looking forward to reading a new author.<BR/><BR/>Sale one!!Swainsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12868686527341125913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-9909498771936222492008-06-17T08:24:00.000+01:002008-06-17T08:24:00.000+01:00Thanks for your post, Swainson.Stark doesn't do jo...Thanks for your post, Swainson.<BR/><BR/>Stark doesn't do jokes, but I agree there is plenty of dark humour arising from the ill-assorted associates Parker finds himself working with. Because Parker doesn't have a sense of humour, the situations aren't presented as funny--but nonetheless the undercurrent is there.<BR/><BR/>In some of the novels Stark also uses Grofield as explicit comic relief (and I believe he wrote a handful of Grofield novels although I haven't read them).Tim Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08598897603628943741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-27904972252829497882008-06-16T19:48:00.000+01:002008-06-16T19:48:00.000+01:00I know it's an old post, but hey.I've read most of...I know it's an old post, but hey.<BR/><BR/>I've read most of the Parker books and what I found I like is the absurdity of the situations that develop. There seems to me to be a fairly morbid humour running through the novels that take them away from being too 'Stark'<BR/><BR/>Please excuse my awful pun, I couldn't resist!Swainsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12868686527341125913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-41462719959572337062007-10-28T21:03:00.000+00:002007-10-28T21:03:00.000+00:00I've never seen any of the universally panned film...I've never seen any of the universally panned films. Several sources cite Reservoir Dogs as Stark-influenced--but while I love that film, it's essentially a black comedy, with none of the bleakness at the heart of Parker.Tim Strettonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08598897603628943741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21671128.post-42391423717080959372007-10-28T19:15:00.000+00:002007-10-28T19:15:00.000+00:00You're absolutely right about the narrative voice-...You're absolutely right about the narrative voice--which may explain why the various films based on the Parker novels never seem to work very well. They need Westlake.David Isaakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04928598446742324391noreply@blogger.com