Customer Reviews

Dress Her in Indigo

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It really doesn't matter which Travis McGee book you are reading because they are all so pleasureable that it is like slipping into a warm bath. They possess great narrative drive and a character that is at once bigger than life, self-deprecating, philosophical and all too human.

Travis Mcgee is a great figure in literature. Over the 20 years or so that MacDonald wrote these 21 novels(all with a color in the title and all with the title somewhere in the novel), McGee aged by about a year for every three that MacDonald wrote. His insights grew sharper, his cynicism and self loathing battled with his heroic life and his incredible pleasures. His reliance on his physical dexterity and strength diminished as his cunning increased.

The books were written between approximately 1964 to 1984. This particular book was written in 1969. Relatively early in the saga, and one of a handful taking place in Mexico. Most took place in South Florida where he lived on a houseboat. Where else could he live?

He went to Mexico to find out what happened to a friend's daughter. Traveling with his frequent companion, Meyer, he uncovers some sinister plot and we are introduced to some great memorable characters, and always fabulous women including Elena from Guadalahara and Becky, a sexual machine. Since it is the late 60's, you get to see the hippies in Mexico and McGee's relation to them.

The wonder and greatness of these books lies in the writing and the creation of a world and a being that you are lucky to tag along with during your time together.

If there is a weak link in the chain of Travis McGee novels, I have yet to find it. MacDonald's "Dress Her In Indigo" is yet another great tale in the long list of books of the McGee cycle, and I have read more than a dozen of them. This one has the same driving pace, magnetic and realistic characters, and acerbic wit as any other in the series.

A classic commentary on the 60s counterculture by John McD. A group of flower children are scattered across Mexico and have information concerning Bix Bowie's last days. As Meyer and McGee unravel the story, the gang starts dropping like flies. Several neat twists and a jawdropping finale. Reading this book brought back memories of old Dragnet and Adam-12 shows featuring the degenerate hippies. Trav gets more work in the bedroom than in any other I've read. Along the way he gets to pummel a homosexual AND a lesbian(not that there's anything OK with that, they just had it comin' to them).

If I recall, John D. MacDonald considered this novel a "failure." But a failure by MacDonald would be a success for most other writers. It's not the best in the McGee series but still has much to recommend it. The prose remains superb, there are quirky and interesting characters, a very, unlikely villain and a few surprising twists and turns. It was written in 1969 and the social upheaval of the times is in the background of the novel, even though it takes place in Mexico. As such, there are sections that can be read as an insightful sociological treatise on the times.
I think you have to rate "Gold," "Silver" and "Green" as the best of this series, but don't overlook "Indigo" either.

I am rereading all of John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee books. It's amazing how well these hold up after all these years. Give him a try if you never have.

Dress Her in Indigo is one of the best of the Travis McGee series. The plot, while complex, flows smoothly as author John D. MacDonald makes the most of the rich Mexican settings against which the lion's share of the narrative unfolds.
Sent south of the border by a grieving father, desperate to know what led to the tragic death of his daughter in the remote mountains of Oaxaca, McGee and Meyer encounter a sordid world of drugs and exploitation with multiple innocent and not so innocent victims.
Contributing to the considerable appeal of Dress Her in Indigo are the presence of a number of interesting plot twists and the fact that McGee's well known tendency to regale the reader with his unsolicited opinions on multiple topics is kept to a non-annoying minimum.
Highly recommended.

Beautifully narrated by Darren McGavin, a master of the craft: John D. MacDonald's words are delivered in a vividly dramatic manner - the tension is palpable, the images and emotions are sharp and clearly defined . . .

As another reviewer stated, too much violence. Must have wanted to do a bit of hippie bashing(also a bit too sensational grabbing). Still it is McGee and not a totally bad read. Green Ripper is the best one I've read.

I have read several of the McGee series with my favorites the ones that aren't so erotic or violent. This one seems to have a lot of both in it and I'm not sure why. I guess as time went by for McD it seemed more necessary or maybe it was a reflection of the times that the vlolence and sex became more diviant, cruel and prominant. I much prefer the earlier books when there was more of a campy necessary point to the violence and more of a visual behind closed doors than a full out play by play bedroom scene. This book was awfully heavy on that stuff and took up many pages. It's sort of depressing. But I did find this book very intriguing especially as McD really paints a scene and you feel as though you can not only imagine the sights but hear the background noise of the busy city. I lived this era although on the younger side of when this was written compared to the characters I am glad that era is over. I really did not like the hippie era and was sorry that it was my generation's contribution. I felt scared in my own time of all the drugs and strange opinions running counter to all that had been safe and secure in society. They didn't really have an answer just wanted to "drop out" but made nothing any better by doing so. It's interesting to note this era was followed by the yuppie and preppy eras, lol.

I did feel that there may have been too many characters in this book and that the problems of the "girl" the story centers around were never really made clear. Why was she the way she was and to the extent? Many people have tragedy in life but don't resort to such self destruction. All in all a good book a little out of character for JDM in some of the more graphic areas.