Dog Eat Dog [Paperback]

Edward Bunker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 5, 2008

The tale of three unremorseful criminals with two felony convictions apiece and no more chances. Under California's 'Three Strikes' law, one more conviction - even for shoplifting - carries a mandatory life sentence with no prospect of remission. But a law intended to deter career criminals has the opposite effect on these three. Combined they have spent a lifetime behind bars and have no idea, or intention, of leading a straight life under rules set by a system they have never belonged to.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ex-convict Bunker proved he could write a strong, dark thriller with his first book, No Beast So Fierce. For his latest effort, he returns to the same kind of story -- smart but doomed ex-cons doing the only kind of thing they know how to do. Troy Cameron came from a wealthy Beverly Hills family before reform school and San Quentin knocked off some of the polish. Now he has linked up with a pair of psychopathic colleagues to prey on other criminals. In Bunker's hands, the material takes on a great deal of energy and even sympathy for the devils. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Based on the suspense he generates in his fourth novel, it's easy to see why Bunker, an ex-con, has acquired such diverse admirers as Quentin Tarantino (who cast him as Mr. Blue in Reservoir Dogs) and William Styron (who contributes an introduction to this novel). This time around, the narrator is Troy Cameron, an upper-class Beverly Hills boy turned hardened criminal, who emerges from stints at reform school and San Quentin to join up with his buddies, Gerald "Mad Dog" McCain and Diesel Carson, in a haphazard scheme to steal from pimps, hustlers and other fellow criminals. Their first crime, a robbery in which they shake down a major L.A. drug dealer, goes smoothly, but the heat increases on their second assignment, a revenge crime in which a Mexican prison lord offers them a fortune to kidnap the baby of a former companion who has shown him disrespect. The kidnapping is complicated by Troy's growing discomfort when he discovers that the erratic Mad Dog has murdered his former girlfriend and her child in cold blood. Bunker's plot bears some resemblance to those of his earlier novels (No Beast So Fierce; Animal Factory), but his storytelling is once again first-rate as the botched kidnapping leads to a series of violent confrontations that produce a dark but satisfying ending. What distinguishes Bunker from other crime writers is his ability to convey the compassion dormant within his violent criminals without resorting to excess luridness, sympathy or moralism. Bunker has a top-notch screenplay to his credit (Runaway Train); this powerful tale seems tailor-made for Hollywood success as well.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: No Exit Press; paperback / softback edition (February 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1842432699
• ISBN-13: 978-1842432693
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 4.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,112,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Flawed but Real, May 11, 2000

By 

A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Dog Eat Dog: A Novel (Paperback)

Edward Bunker is the real deal when it comes to crime writers, having served hard time in the California penal system, and it shows in this bleak work. A trio of reform school friends are reunited many years later, when the leader is released after 12 years in jail. One is a Teamster thug/family man, the second is a junkie psychopath, and the leader is the brains and charisma. The tension builds, and the threat of violence is everywhere as they embark on a few scams together and dislike between the family man and junkie becomes more and more open. In a story like this, there is only possible outcome, so the bleak ending comes as no surprise. It's reminiscent of the movie "Heat", where the reader starts to like some of the criminals and then sees them topple for almost absurd reasons. One small caveat about this book is that Bunker is none too subtle in preaching his critique of the criminal justice system. Points that are made over and over through the character's mouths are: (1) They were bad kids, but the system made them into adult criminals; (2) There is no such thing as justice; (3) In the criminal world your best friend can turn on you at the drop of a hat; (4) The "3 strikes" law only serves to make career criminals more desperate when down tot he last strike. If you don't mind the proselytizing, this is a great, nasty, page-turner.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars non-glamorous crime masterpiece, October 16, 2000

By 

Joshua David (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dog Eat Dog: A Novel (Paperback)

Edward Bunker's "Dog Eat Dog" may lack the sophisticated prose and style of a more seasoned crime writer, but its realism more than makes up for it. These men are real criminals with real evil in their hearts. They are not cartoonish buffoons like they would be in an Elmore Leonard novel. Bunker knows the hell of cocaine addiction, he knows the desperation that drives men to commit robbery, he knows the allure of the criminal life, he knows there is no true "honor" among thieves. This book is like a kick in the teeth. Unlike some cartoonish crime novels, "Dog Eat Dog" is not meant to entertain. It is an uncompromising portrayal of what it really is like to be a criminal, and how difficult (almost impossible) it is to distance yourself from the criminal lifestyle. It's not surprising that Bunker is a reformed ex-criminal. It's doubtful anyone else could have written such unflinching realism.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling, December 10, 2001

By 

Christian Jorgensen (Denmark) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dog Eat Dog: A Novel (Paperback)

With Dog Eat Dog Edward Bunker shows us his talent for writing down-and-dirty, there are no keeping the punches in this shocking novel about three friends and ex-cons that come up with a plot to rip off other criminals. The book does side slightly with the criminals, but it does not glorify them as misunderstood good guys, it shows them as mean and evil at times, but also let us see that they are human, and that not all the bad that is inside them is of their own doing. Bunker might not master the language as well as seaseoned crime-fiction writers, but this adds to the authenticity of the book too, making it seem more "there", while it leads us towards the ending. The book is a character study too, and we see some truly terrible characters here, even a few without any "good" sides. It is a brutal and shocking book, and not for every one.