Customer Reviews

Made in Miami

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

 

 

Lurid, semi-pornographic and schlocky, Made in Miami is a prime example of 1950s pulp fiction in its most inartistic, mediocre form. Written by the great Charles Willeford, this book lacks all the appealing attributes on which the author's reputation is based. Willeford's wit, irony, unselfconscious honesty and iconoclastic spirit are all missing from the pages of this lackluster and forgettable work, originally titled Lust is a Woman.
The great thing about authors like Charles Willeford and Jim Thompson is that they took the less than reputable medium of pulp fiction and used it to sneak good, thoughtful writing into the consciousness of an unsuspecting public. Unfortunately with Made in Miami, Willeford used his prodigious talent to simply replicate the unimaginative but titilating writing so popular at the time. Had this book not been written by Willeford, it would have deservedly remained out of print for another fifty years.
Clearly, Made in Miami was hastily thrown together by a cash strapped artist in order to turn a quick dollar. I can't recommend this book. It's the equivalent of hiring Picasso to whitewash a barn.

Though described as written "in white heat" on the cover, I suspect Willeford put more care into this highly readable addition to his fatalistic oeuvre. This one is a solid page turner. All of his hallmarks are here, the casual sociopath, elements of black comedy, highly detailed descriptions of food and locale, as well as the shocking, ironic ending that characterized some of his early books. I've read 'em all, and this one is no less compelling. It reminded me of Donald Goines' "Dopefiend"in the beat by beat "turning out" of a beautiful and vain young women into prostitution. I found it very unsettling and creepy, because it's rendered with the utmost authority, similar to Goines' grittier trajectory's, though no less authentic. As usual, the quality of writing here transcends its humble pulp origins ... as does Willeford, in talent, vision, humor and absurdist world view. As the years go on, I am more impressed with the man's work -- I just wished there was more of it.

I am a certified Willeford freak! I have read other early Willeford and this does not compare to other works from Mr. Willeford. If it wasn't one of his books, I don't think I would have finished it. It was not up to the standards I expect from his work. The writing style isn't up to par although the story is pretty interesting. If you're new to Willeford, I would recomment looking for other works by him. If you're into Willeford, you'll probably get it anyway.

As famed crime fiction author Elmore Leonard is often quoted as having said about the man: "No one writes a better crime novel than Charles Willeford." I would agree with that. However, I believe it can be stated more simply as "No one writes a better novel than Charles Willeford."

Charles Willeford, in my view, is the greatest American novelist of the 20th century, at the very least. Not since Mark Twain has there been a more important American author so adept at making meaningful and entertaining reads. Although often classified as a crime novelist, he is actually more of an existentialist novelist of the highest order.

When it comes to turning a sentence, no one compares to Willeford. His characters, no matter how crazy or odd, jump out of the page and seem utterly believable. He is simply a master writer. He could make a cook book interesting to read. Every book he writes is a page-turner. Every book he writes is a masterpiece.

Made in Miami was a book Willeford wrote somewhat early in his career for a publisher who had a bit too much of a hand in the final editing, but the characteristic Willefordian humor, characters, and sentence structure is very much present, and, as a result, this is a fine novel. For those who are spoiled by having read the other brilliant work Willeford completed before his death, this will not seem quite as good, but will still be a fun read. If you don't yet know Willeford, this is a fine introduction, and it only gets better as you explore his work further.

Before this re-print, it would have cost you at least $100 to obtain this book (you would've had to obtain a rare out-of-print version under its former title "Lust Is a Woman"). It is truly a blessing that this fine novel is now available for a reasonable price.

I highly recommend this and everything else Willeford has ever written. Although most of his fans almost universally rank Willeford at the very top of their lists of authors, he remains one of the most underappreciated novelists, relative to the quality of his work, in history.

If you want more of an introduction to the man, or a verification of what I'm saying, check out what this article in the Washington Post, one of our nation's finest newspapers, has to say about him: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38004-2004Dec30.html

I'm an avid pulp fiction reader who isn't quite sold on Willeford. I think his novel "Pick-Up" is one of the 50 or so best hardboiled novels out there, but outside of that one I haven't found a lot to like in his stuff. There's a kind of pretentiousness in some of his books, particularly when the characters start talking about Art, that just kinda gnaws away at me, until I finally have to put the book down. Made in Miami, while not quite tup to the level of "Pick-Up" is well done and is free of the pretension. This is just a gritty, well-paced, compelling story. The protagonist a college student who is working as an elevator operator at a seedy Florida hotel over the summer. He meets a good-looking secretary who is on her vacation and immediately falls in love with her. But before the boy can successfully woo the girl, she is dragged into a world of prostitution by one of the hotel's owners. The boy will have to take drastic measures if he wants to save his would-be love from losing herself in a life of depravity. This is not a great novel but it's a very good one, something I would recommend to anyone who loves a good pulp novel.

I've read quite a few fun old 1950s sleaze paperbacks (stuff by Orrie Hitt, Bruno Fischer, Gil Brewer, etc.--see my reviews) and also many of Charles Willeford's later books. He's a great writer, and transcends the sleaze genre Made In Miami (aka "Lust Is A Woman") was originally written for. As the back cover claims, it's definitely "a textbook example of lurid 1950s paperbacks" that served as a springboard for the author's later, better books, like Miami Blues, Sideswipe: A Hoke Moseley Detective Thriller, The Woman Chaser, and The Black Mass of Brother Springer. I enjoyed Made In Miami, but where it falls apart is in the last three chapters, which feel rushed, and serve up an unsatisfying, hackneyed "shock" ending. There is little to no attempt to even hint at the main character's psychopathy before it is introduced three short chapters before the end, and it just doesn't ring true. At his best, Charles Willeford created some of the most colorful, endearing psychopathic misfits in the history of crime fiction (right up there with his fellow paperback god, Jim Thompson), but the psycho here sadly isn't one of them. Give the other books I referenced above a try, get hooked on Willeford, then come check this one out to see his beginnings.

If you're into lurid old sleazy crime paperbacks, I recommend Solomon's Vineyard, So Wicked My Love, House of Flesh, The Vengeful Virgin (Hard Case Crime), and Hot Cargo. Also of interest is Sin-A-Rama: Sleaze Sex Paperbacks of the Sixties, a history of the genre, its writers, and publishers.