A Dog's Ransom (Penguin Crime Fiction) [Mass Market Paperback]

Patricia Highsmith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1981 | Series: Penguin Crime Fiction

Long out of print, this Highsmith classic resurfaces with a vengeance.

The great revival of interest in Patricia Highsmith continues with the publication of this novel that will give dog owners nightmares for years to come. With an eerie simplicity of style, Highsmith turns our next-door neighbors into sadistic psychopaths, lying in wait among white picket fences and manicured lawns. In A Dog's Ransom, Highsmith blends a savage humor with brilliant social satire in this dark tale of a highminded criminal who hits a wealthy Manhattan couple where it hurts the most when he kidnaps their beloved poodle. This work attesets to Highsmith's reputation as "the poet of apprehension" (Graham Greene).

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Patricia Highsmith (1921-1995) was the author of more than twenty novels, including Strangers on a Train, The Price of Salt and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as well as numerous short stories. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (November 1, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140039449
• ISBN-13: 978-0140039443
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,652,467 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patricia Highsmith (1921-1995) was the author of more than twenty novels, including Strangers on a Train, The Price of Salt and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as well as numerous short stories.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars should have used a leash..., December 13, 2001

By 

lazza (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Dog's Ransom (Hardcover)

A Dog's Ransom is classic Patricia Highsmith - that is, it is a study of how feelings of apprehension and fear overwhelm the guilty (or persons suspected of guilt). Despite its title, the book has little to do with dogs or ransom really ... although this is where the story begins.

In this novel we have a middle-aged couple in Manhatten whose little poodle is kidnapped by a mentally disturbed loner. Having reported the crime, the police are unattentive with the exception of a "do gooder" rookie. However soon this rookie, due to incompetence and personal weaknesses, gets over his head ... and soon finds himself in big trouble. Despite its slow (and somewhat contrived) beginning, the tension builds very nicely. And the ending is rather ... upsetting.

Bottom line: amongst Highsmith's better works despite a relatively low "wow!" factor. Strongly recommended for Highsmith fans. Highsmith neophytes are advised to first read her more famous works (The Talented Mr Ripley, Strangers on a Train, ..).

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just Highsmith's best, it's the best novel period., November 30, 2003

By 

Jeffrey T. Kane (Forest Hills, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Dog's Ransom (Paperback)

This book tricks you into thinking it's the story of a grouchy old man who cruely kidnaps and murders a grieving Manhattan couple's poodle and the couple's efforts to get help from an apathetic police department following the loss of their dog. Early on but completely out of nowhere the book shifts it's focus to a dedicated and heroic young cop, Clarence, who decides to help the couple out of pure kindness, a kindness that leads to Clarence's destruction.

I loved the portrayal of Clarence as an obsessive do gooder who's fear of doing the wrong thing causes him to commit evil acts in the name of justice. The villain, Rowajinski, is one of her most hateful since the lawyer in A Suspension Of Mercy or David Pritchard in Ripley Under Water.

I reccomend this book highly to anyone who loves a good read and a story where the characters don't always act rational but the story stays true to life. This book shows there truly is no such thing as good or evil, it's just a matter of perception.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Clear your schedule!, January 20, 2001

By 

Joseph W. Smith III - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Dog's Ransom (Penguin Crime Fiction) (Mass Market Paperback)

The Sunday Times said of Highsmith, "She makes books that you really can't put down." This is one of them. After 25 or 30 pages, I defy any crime & suspense fan to stop reading.

All the usual Highsmith elements are here -- smooth, accomplished writing, an absorbing plot, eerily believable characters, and an authentic feeling for locale (in this case, 1970s Manhattan); on the whole, however, the book isn't nearly as successful as many other Highsmith works. The ending is something of a shock, and leaves one wondering just what she was trying to say and accomplish; the thematic material also -- though never overt in Highsmith -- is especially hard to assemble, and creates a suspicion that, in this book, there wasn't any.

Though it's well worth reading for the page-turning suspense, I wouldn't pay too much for some rare copy -- esp. as there are plenty of other Highsmiths that are very exciting and work quite well on other levels too ("Cry of the Owl," which is still in print; "This Sweet Sickness," which isn't; and "Strangers on a Train," which has been out of print for years but will be re-issued by Norton in August 2001).

Not bad, but if you're not a Highsmith fan, trying something else first.