Customer Reviews

Pop. 1280

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

It would appear at the start of this book that Nick Corey, the sheriff of the town of Pottsville, is to be the hero of the story. He seems like a gentle, somewhat simple man who believes that inaction is always the most prudent course of action. He feels it "just wouldn't seem right" to have to arrest people, so generally, he doesn't. But slowly it began to dawn on me that this is a Jim Thompson book and there simply aren't heroes in his books.

It turns out that Nick Corey is quite similar to another Jim Thompson character, Lou Ford from The Killer Inside Me. In fact, it's worthwhile reading both books to compare these two characters. They are so different, yet incredibly similar.

The chilling thing about this book lies in how deeply convinced everyone is that Nick is a simpleton who is a harmless, lazy man. But the truth is apparent to the reader how rat-cunning he actually is. The desire to be re-elected to his post as sheriff drives his day-to-day activity and everyone underestimates just how far he'll go to ensure his re-election, myself included.

Apart from the sinister actions of Nick Corey, the story is actually quite amusing, told in the first person in a light and witty tone of voice. Nick manages to put an amusing spin on all aspects of his day-to-day life, most especially the parts in which he's doing absolutely nothing at all.

This is a typical Jim Thompson story. There are no heroes, as a matter of fact; there are few, if any, likable characters in the book. The main character narrates in a style that feels as though he's saying: here are the facts, make of them what you will. It's a chiller rather than a mystery and events took me by surprise more than once.

POP. 1280 is in the tradition of other great Thompson books, such as THE KILLER INSIDE ME. The protagonist is a seemingly respectable, law-abiding citizen -- small-town Southern sheriff, Nick Corey. He's been pushed around by his wife, brother-in-law, and most other town folks. In the beginning it's clear that Corey has been a very passive sheriff, and his anger at being considered weak is building. The book chronicles how he slowly and dramatically strikes back. Corey's much smarter than most of the town thinks, but he's also probably delusional, which is what ultimately makes this book such a black comic gem. There are more laugh-out loud moments in this book than in most Thompson books. The plot depends on a number of coincidences and stretches of logic, but it's great fun and there are some truly great surprises along the way. Overall, I think it's one of Thompson's most enjoyable and funny books, with some memorable moments and characters.

I wonder if Jim Thompson has ever been declared the master of crime novel fiction? If he hasn't, then he certainly gets my vote! No one writes tales that are more cynical, more twisted or more accurate in their perceptions of human depravity. You can have Chandler, Cain, Ellroy, Hammett and all the rest. Thompson tops them all. The most unique thing about Thompson's novels is that he really has no moral center in any of them. In fact, in this book, he even puts you in the shoes of the despicable main character. The novel concerns a bumbling sheriff in a small Southern town, who seems to be a spineless coward and a lazy lay-about. All is not as it seems however, as the sheriff proves to be much more intelligent than anyone would dream of giving him credit for. Thompson mined similar terrain in his book 'The Killer inside Me', but this novel actually tops that one in terms of nastiness and its vitriolic view of human nature. There are a few elements in Thompson's book that strike me as unique. One is his pessimistic misanthropy which takes things a step further from the previous generations of crime novelists. There are no private investigators with a heart of gold here. Another is his dismantling of the idea of America's heartland as being this place of good souls and kind neighbourliness. Thompson was from Oklahoma and, as he knows the surrounding areas intimately, his novels seem to take place in the American South and Southwest. He exposes it as a place that's even MORE corrupt than in the big cities. Chandler, Cain and a lot of other writers usually focused on places like New York and L.A. as the pillars of American decadence. Thompson points out that the WHOLE of America is a swirling cesspool of self-interested swindlers and the only thing that varies is scale. The Sheriff in the novel carefully depicts the town as a stifling, rabid and, dare I say, neo-Facist community, where any behaviour outside the norm is abhorred and subject to the townfolks' vindictive whims. The Sheriff sees all this and schemes and plots ways to maintain his 'easy' lifestyle. The ironic thing is that all the running around and strees seem like MORE work than maybe just making an honest living. What seems most universal about the book is that the main protagonists struggle to maintain his position atop the heap, no matter how small and useless it is, is a reflection of what goes on all over the world, every day, for as long as people have been around. Admittedly, it's bleak, but it's extremely fascinating. One reality is that people will do anything and everything when power and money is involved. This is, by far, Thompson's most sinister character in any of his books. The fact that the Sheriff gets away with what he does, under the guise of sub-civility, is an idictment of the people that we are expected to most trust and respect in this world. This book is probably Thompson's finest work, even though 'The Killer Inside Me' is far more popular. He encapsulates his feelings towards the world so vividly here that I couldn't put the book down. I finished it in two days it was so good. It amazes me how he can capture the black heart of the world, the root of what makes everything function, in such a compact form. Bravo Jimmy! You hit the nail right on the head. Oh, and I love the film noir-ish book covers on all of Thompson's books. They're just beautiful.

I've read a lot of Thompson, and he really does have quite a few good ones under his belt, but this is far and away the crown jewel. It's The Killer Inside Me elevated to an entirely different level. Thompson tried his hand at crime fiction, depression-era social commentary, comedy and a host of other genres, and he seems to have combined everything he ever learned as a writer into the incredibly well-written, funny, shocking, economical Pop. 1280. Allright, it's a frickin masterpiece. It tempts one to use phrases like "one of the great achievements of 20th centurey American literature." It will, of course, never be regarded as such due to the modest circumstances under which Thompson wrote and was published, and the book itself is quite modest. Like it's main character and narrator, it presents itself as affable, charming but goofy, of no great consequence, lulls you, and then wallops you with the fact of how remarkable it is. Nonetheless, I honestly think this should be up there with Faulkner, et. al. when academics make their lists of the high points of American Modernism (or whatever).

Plotting isn't usually Thompson's strong suit, but Pop. 1280 is incredibly polished. Revelations that come later in the book are shocking, but on subsequent readings (which are well-deserved) it's obvious that they were being given away from the beginning. It's always quite an achievement when a writer manages this, and it's done perfectly here, and using a first-person narration.

Nick Corey is one of the most distinctive narrative voices I've ever read, and few writers have created a character more likeable, funny or disturbing. As the singular narrator of the novel, Corey manages to be charming and sympathetic enough to keep the reader interested on that basis alone, acts ridiculous while voicing Thompson's most serious social critiques, and is dangerously crazy, all at the same time and without ever seeming incoherent or out of character. It's incredible (really) writing and, you know, "a remarkable achievement." I, ah, cherish this book.

(also recommended: Robert Polito's Jim Thompson biography Savage Art)

After I read the interesting »The Killer Inside Me«, I had appetite for more Jim Thompson, and my choice fell on »Pop. 1280«. The story is pretty much the same in those two novels, only is the main character's complex and slightly psychopathic personality different. In a way, the sheriff in »Pop. 1280« has more sympathetic sides than the deputy in »The Killer Inside Me«

Once again, JimThompson successfully creates a thrilling environment in a tiny Texan county, and it is all experienced from inside the killer's mind. This way of telling a story works out very well, it glues your eyes to the book - and what's more is that Jim Thompson writes with a lot of humour and sarcasm. This gives the whole thing even more spice, and is maybe even the best feature of »Pop. 1280«.

I am very close to grant this novel 4 stars, but somehow, all in all, the book disappoints compared to »The Killer Inside Me«. If you want well-written, straight-forward, and very (black-)humourous suspense, Jim Thomson is your man, and »Pop. 1280« is not at all a bad choice!

Jim Thompson tried a few different styles of narration in his books, with varying levels of success. But the first-person, interior perspective he uses in Pop. 1280 is totally smooth and effective. It's not for the light-hearted though, as the reader enters the mind of a psychopath, and finds himself (or at least I did) sympathizing with him -- or at least with his feelings and motives, if not his actions. The amazing thing about this book is the way Thompson blends horror with real pathos, plus incredible, laugh-out-loud humor. And the last chapter, with its revelations, is a sad and personal one. I agree with some other reviewers that it's a better read than The Killer in Me, which is saying something. So, if you feel up to the task (if Tom Ripley makes you queasy, don't go here), this is a great Jim Thompson novel. And if you like it, I can recommend The Grifters as another good read.

While some of Jim Thompson's other work (The Grifters, The Killer Inside Me) hews more closely to the classic themes of noir fiction, Pop. 1280 is the most definitive example of his oeuvre. Thompson's bizarre mix of crude humor, biting wit and horrifying crime is perfectly balanced in this book. One of the few texts I've ever seen that manages to distill America in all it's fiendish glory into something that can be assimilated in a few hours. Almost Blakean in it's nightmarish vision of life, death and spirituality.

Published in 1964, Thompson's Pop. 1280 is one of his finest efforts. This book is unusually lucid and often hilarious. Thompson's humor ordinarily leaves you wondering whether or not he meant to be funny, or whether it was mental illness that brought it out. That isn't the case here. Pop. 1280 was obviously designed to be a black comedy from the beginning. Nick Corey is one of Thompson's best characters. There is, of course, the usual sex, crime & insanity(and plenty of booze), but it's unlike any other Thompson book I've read. It's bizarre and intentionally funny. He's thrown a bit of theology and philosophy into the mix. Pop. 1280 lampoons the back-biting, racism & hypocrisy of Small Southern Town, USA, where people only take their masks off behind closed doors. It's an incredibly fast & easy read. If you need a break from Thompson's paranoia and tension, well, here it is. Pop. 1280 is certainly one of Thompson's finest!

This book explores evil as a mundane, workaday series of events by a character whose view of the world is doing what it takes to get him where he wants to go. It is not the evil a Hannibal Lecher or even the real life Jeffery Dahmer. Rather it is the evil of ordinary folks, offered up in a folksy way. Jim Thomson shows us people he knows and knows of. The victims are victims of life and sometimes their own foilbles and sometimes just the bad luck to come accross those who have no qualms when it comes to taking a life as part of getting ahead -- even if the rewards for a death are so small for those who commit murder. It trivializes the lives taken and scares the living daylights out of the reader long after the book has been put away.

OK. You want a fast and funny story that's going to keep your interest and entertain: This is it. Thompson at his best. An easy read and one of the best structured stories extant. The ending let me down, because it's a cop out, but after seeing all those wonderful characters, doing such weird things in such a strange town, it didn't matter. When you have finished the book, go see Coup de Torchon to see what the French have done with the story. You will triple your pleasure. Incidentally, Nick Corey is not a psychopath as defined in DSM V. He is just a slow and easy going guy that likes to do things his way.