The LITTLE SISTER: RAYMOND CHANDLER'S PHILIP MARLOWE (ILLUSTRATED) [Paperback]

Michael Lark (Author), Alex Wald (Author), Raymond Chandler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 13, 1997

In this innovative, graphic adaptation of Raymond Chandler's The Little Sister illustrator Michael Clark captures the film-noir vision of Los Angeles that Chandler brought compellingly to life in this classic novel. Full-color illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Remember those great film adaptations of Raymond Chandler's work? Who could forget Humphrey Bogart as Philip Marlowe in The Big Sleep or Dick Powell playing the same character in Farewell, My Lovely? In Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe: The Little Sister, illustrator Michael Lark has given us a brand-new incarnation of Chandler's famous fictional detective, a "comic book" version of Chandler's 1949 mystery. When Orfamay Quest hires Marlowe to find her missing brother, the case at first seems pretty straightforward, but--beset by mobsters, blackmailers, and murder--Marlowe soon discovers that a missing person is the least of his troubles.

The Little Sister was not one of Raymond Chandler's best efforts, but Michael Lark has effectively tailored the text to clarify the original story, emphasizing through his "comic noir" artwork the dark, dangerous environs, both physical and psychological, in which Philip Marlowe still moves.

From Library Journal

A great deal of Chandler's work has been transposed to films, and now we're seeing the first graphic novel adaptation of his 1949 mystery novel, The Little Sister. Illustrator/adapter Lark, who has authored various comic-book series, has done a credible job translating Chandler's story from one medium to another. Large chunks of Chandler's original text complement the pleasant and eerie illustrations, which succeed in giving the book a 1930s cinematic look. It's questionable whether the graphic-novel version has the impact of Chandler's original, and it's not clear whether graphic-novel readers enjoy the mystery genre. Still, this book is a good companion to the adaptation, Paul Auster's City of Glass (Avon, 1994) and will be useful where similar books are popular. For public libraries.?Stephen Weiner, Maynard P.L., Mass.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Fireside (May 13, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684829339
• ISBN-13: 978-0684829333
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 6.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,828,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illustrated Mystery - Love IT!, April 16, 2000

By 

"maxlambert" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The LITTLE SISTER: RAYMOND CHANDLER'S PHILIP MARLOWE (ILLUSTRATED) (Paperback)

I've always been a fan of Raymond Chandler's books - they are so twisted and convoluted. Michael Lark has really brought that sense of being "in the dark" to his adaption of "The Little Sister". Both in terms of plot development and the artwork.

The artwork is dark and differs from most comic book art in that it uses crisp lines, very few color gradients in conjunction with heavy inking. Michael Lark and Alex Wald hit upon an dark, art-nouveaux style that works really well for this genre.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Detective Thriller!!, July 30, 2002

By 

Daniel Firli (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The LITTLE SISTER: RAYMOND CHANDLER'S PHILIP MARLOWE (ILLUSTRATED) (Paperback)

Private detective, Philip Marlowe, has been hired to find a missing brother of a concerned sister for a measly sum of twenty dollars. Little does he know that he will soon be drawn into a dangerous situation involving mobsters, blackmail, beautiful women and murders.

This is a graphic adaptation of the classic Raymond Chandler novel. You will find Michael Lark's artwork to be a little rough and dark but you will soon get drawn in and find that it does fit in superbly with the noir/pulp styling of the novel. As this is based on a novel you will find that the story revolves around the writing so don't expect any action sequences, but this will make the experience of `The Little Sister' better, longer and more memorable, especially the sarcastic comments from detective Philip Marlowe, who is a likeable ...P>Recommended for a change from the overwhelming superhero graphic novels, this classy detective thriller will satisfy you with both is storytelling and artwork.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Captures Chandler's world perfectly, January 8, 2010

By 

Michael K. Lyman "Magnum0766" (Burlington VT) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The LITTLE SISTER: RAYMOND CHANDLER'S PHILIP MARLOWE (ILLUSTRATED) (Paperback)

Chandler is my favorite author, and this graphic novel captures Marlowe the way he is in the books: a solitary figure without the movie star detective pizazz Humphrey Bogart gave Marlowe in The Big Sleep. Bogart's a great actor but he didn't capture the true essence of Marlowe the way this work does. When I read this, it's exactly the way I have always pictured Marlowe. A tired, unflashy, cynical gumshoe.

The artwork is crisp and expertly rendered without being to Marvel-esque, the shadows are deep and black creating a true noir environment, and the convoluted storyline is masterfully condensed. This graphic novel captures Marlowe the way he was written. I wish the authors of this gem would do another Chandler adaptation, maybe of Red Wind, probably one of the best hard boiled detective stories written. The opening paragraph of that story is worth the price of admission alone. If you are unfamiliar with Raymond Chandler, reading his works will spoil it for you with other crime writers, he's that good. This work does Chandler justice.