Customer Reviews

Roughneck

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

 

 

Roughneck pretty much takes up where Bad Boy left off. It was originally published in 1954. In Roughneck, as was the case with Bad Boy, we get a sort of creatively enhanced autobiography of the king of noir pulp. Follow Thompson through early adulthood, marriage, fatherhood(his description of his own children is hysterical), hobo jungles and more. He describes employment ventures that leave no doubt why he always had more ideas than time to write. He goes through stints as a collector, baker, morgue employee, writer of the labor history for the W.P.A., etc. You will love the story behind the writing and publishing of Thompson's first novel(Now & On Earth). The man was never short on audacity or irreverance. Roughneck is an absolute page-turner. Here's an added bonus for us Thompson fans...this book is absolutely coherent all the way through. There are no lunatic throw away chapters in Roughneck.

If you enjoy the work of Jim Thompson, then you must read this book! As it states on the back of the book: Hard times have never sounded so good!

Funny and exhausting. I think I slept a week after I read this. Thompson takes us across America in search of love, success and a few extra bucks.

The underlying tale is how Jim tried to come to grips with his relationship with his father and himself. Luck always intervenes -- sometimes Good and sometimes Bad. As one of the kings of the character novels, Thompson does a great job on himself and his family and friends.

This is a classic, sometimes funny, sometimes uplifting, sometimes sad but always real.

It is also a great history of the America of the 1930s, 40s and 50s.

-Mike

Thompson's life in his own words, what could be better? Of course, a lot of it is obviously apocryphal, but its a great ride.

This is an autobiographical account of Jim Thompson's life (obviously embellished)from sometime in his 20s up to his later 30s when he arrived in New York City and managed to get a novel accepted by a publisher. He survived a lot, including the Great Depression. He took whatever jobs he could find (some of the accounts are funny) and sometimes was paid for writing. He had to deal with family responsibilities, con artists, deadbeats, bosses hard to work for, and various ventures that did not pan out. He also went through various injuries, illnesses, and alcoholism. Somehow he made it.

It has always been hard to earn a living as a writer. Some are successful, but most are not (the same could be said for musicians and artists - keep your day job). The book is worth reading. It provides a look at an era in the history of the United States. Prices were cheap, but who had any money. You could buy a lot for 25 cents, if you happened to have 25 cents.

Like its companion piece, Bad Boy, Roughneck is a collection of autobiographical vignettes by the legendary Jim Thompson. While each vignette may contain a kernel of truth, most of them are highly embellished and exaggerated so as to maximize the comedic or, on occasion, the dramatic effect.
Like Bad Boy, Roughneck was largely written to provide the reader with light entertainment. The one place Thompson does get quite serious is where he describes his tenure as director of the Oklahoma state writer's project, a federally funded Depression era program. Here, Thompson's pride in his work comes through and is undeniably real.
But the truth of the matter is that Jim Thompson was ill suited to write autobiography. The things he needed to say about himself can be found within the dark, disturbing pages of his many novels, some of which are now recognized as classics. For the real story of Jim Thompson's life, read Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson by Robert Polito.