Cadillac Jack : A Novel [Paperback]

Larry McMurtry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 26, 2002

In Cadillac Jack, Larry McMurtry -- Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Lonesome Dove -- proves his unique talent for conjuring up the real, often eccentric people who inhabit the American heartland and for capturing the peculiarly American search for new frontiers and adventure.

Cadillac Jack is a rodeo-cowboy-turned-antique-scout whose nomadic, womanizing life -- centered on his classic pearl-colored Cadillac -- rambles between the Texas flatlands of flea markets and small-time auctions and Washington, D.C.'s political-social life of parties, hustlers, vixens, and spies. Along the way he meets a cast of indelibly etched characters: among them, the strikingly beautiful, social-climbing Cindy Sanders; Boog Miller, the tackily-dressing millionaire good ole boy who patronizes Jack's business and who has more political muscle than a litter of lobbyists; Khaki Descartes, the pushy, brain-picking, Washington woman reporter; Freddy Fu, an undercover CIA agent working out of a greasy barbecue joint called The Cover-Up; and Jean Arber, the mother of two and a fledgling antique-store owner who can't quite figure out if she'll marry Jack or not.

Wild, touching, and hilariously funny, Cadillac Jack is Larry McMurtry's raucous social satire of sex, politics, and love in the fast lane, peopled with Americans only he could render.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Newsday Superbly comic...Cadillac Jack, in its wedding of voice and subject, is nearly perfect.

San Francisco Chronicle McMurtry is among the most imaginative writers working today.

From the Publisher

10 1.5-hour cassettes --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (March 26, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684853833
• ISBN-13: 978-0684853833
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #664,115 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Larry McMurtry is the author of twenty-nine novels, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Lonesome Dove. His other works include two collections of essays, three memoirs, and more than thirty screenplays, including the coauthorship of Brokeback Mountain, for which he received an Academy Award. His most recent novel, When the Light Goes, is available from Simon & Schuster. He lives in Archer City, Texas.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Life was meant to be lived;and CJ sure knew how...., November 9, 2003

By 

J. Guild (Toronto,Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cadillac Jack (Hardcover)

This was the first McMurtry novel that I read.I like earthy stories;and boy was this a dandy.If you enjoy novels like Cannery Row,Tobacco Road or anything by Kinky Friedman you should like Cadallic Jack.I enjoyed it so much,I started reading the rest of McMurtrys novels.So far, I found it the most humorous,entertaining and lighthearted of the ones I've read.He has written the episodes so well you feel you are travelling right along with him and loving every moment of it.
I assume a lot of these stories are fictional ,in whole or in part,but are probably based on some of the authors experiences.
What I have come to like about McMurtry's books is that they are all so different from one another;and I think this one is the most different.
If there is any truth about this character,there should a law against it;nobody should be allowed to have that much fun--not one person.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sharp writing, wonderful insights, a period piece..., August 2, 2003

By 

Richard L. Pangburn (Bardstown, KY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cadillac Jack : A Novel (Paperback)

A wonderful character study, a period piece first published back in 1982, filled with wit and satire and mighty fine writing. Best book/antique scout book I've read since John Dunning's BOOKED TO DIE. It also reminds me of Paul Theroux's more recent HOTEL HONOLULU in tone, and as in that funny novel, some of the chapters here could stand alone as short stories.

I picture Cadillac Jack as looking like Kinky Friedman or Richard Boone, narrating the story in a Texas accent, boots propped up on the liar's bench, eyes arcing under the cowboy hat in a bet-you-can't-top-this-one slant.

What a pleasant surprise! An amazing character. An amazing yarn.

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars When offered a coffeecup do not expect to find a beer inside, May 11, 2000

By 

Alexander Suraev - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cadillac Jack (Paperback)

These are the words of our classic Anton Chekhov. Does McMartry advertise Cadillac Jack as another Terms of Endearment? Why it's wrong to be entertained and ask yourself - So what?- when the book is finished? The book is funny,unpretentious and concise. I made myself finish Moving On, dropped all these prequels & sequels to Lonesome Dove and Terms of Endearment halfway through, gasping at McMurtry's productivity, enjoyed his Pulitzer Prize winner and the book the Oscar winner is based on. But it's the books like Cadillac Jack and Anything For Billy that gave me a few precious hours of enjoyment and relaxation. They are well above the mass market fare but they do not plan to enter the Booker's shortlist, perfectly satisfied with being what they are.