Customer Reviews

Wild at Heart (Gifford, Barry)

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

 

 

One of those books you don't want to end. I feel this book is far superior to the Lynch film that came out later. Gifford definitely has a magic touch for character development. Though a VERY short book (only about 160 pages) all the characters in the book are fully developed, as is the plot. One of those great summer reads, and it'll only take you a few hours to finish.

"Wild at Heart" was filmed by critically acclaimed director David Lynch and it is easy to see why he found this novel exciting to put on widescreen. Gifford does have distinctive look at some certain people's lifestyles in our society who are usually ignored by the makers of fiction. "Wild at Heart" is a strong book that grips you from page one. One should be noted, however, that Gifford is an author to adour or to hate, like the characters in his books he is no person of gray. Two artists' collobration continued this year with the movie "The Lost Highway."

barry gifford's "wild at heart" is a quick read, and by that i mean, you don't want to stop reading it. the entire novel seems to be a seamless unraveling of stories within stories; each major character in the novel tells at least two stories or has some dialogue revealing the unique niches of their personality. gifford's book reveals the strange and fascinating lives of people you sometimes meet travelling through the underbelly of the deep south; it probes a lot of anthropological and psychological territory without being pretentious or trite. it's a terrific book.

First off, I must admit that the novels of Sailor and Luna (Wild at Heart, Perdita Durango, The Wild Life of Sailor and Lula) should definitely be published in some sort of omnibus edition. This first novel is essential reading before moving on to the sequels but is a bit thin plot-wise. Reading the novels together just feels, to me, more broad and complete and thus a more satisfying read.

That said, I love the dialogue in this book! Barry Gifford writes entertaining dialogue through which he manages to define the character's dilemmas, feelings and backgrounds. And it's surprising how natural it all sounds. Because the dialogue is so natural, the characters don't feel forced or unnecessary.

The last thing I wanted to mention was the short stories, written by the character Johnnie Farragut, that intertwine into the novel. Aside from the dialogue, these are my favorite parts of the book. The stories are an entertaining and interesting way to peek into the mind of the Johnnie Farragut character. They also juxtapose well with the main storyline, enhancing it's symbolism and themes.

Overall a good story and a smooth, fast read but just a bit thin on the plot side. Again, I would have given this book five stars if there was an anthologized edition.

Barry Gifford's book is a quick fun read that will appeal to fans of the movie as well as fans of pulp fiction, and I'm not talking about the Tarantino film. Gifford has a good ear for spoken language and he uses this to great effect in the book. There is little actual narration in the book. Instead all the chapters are comprised of conversations. Character, motivation and plot are all revealed in dialogue.

Combined with extremely short chapters and you have a rapid fire ride with an assortment of colorful characters. The dialogue is quirky, funny and insightful as well.

I've read the book twice and the first time I was expecting it to be more like the film. It's easy to see where elements of the film came from. Most of Sailor and Lula's dialogue is right from the book. However, David Lynch added his own touch to the film, and gave it a more magical, dreamlike twist. These are two sides of the same story. Gifford's take is just as entertaining, but seems to come at the story from a slightly different angle.

This is an enjoyable book, one that I'm sure I'll revisit again. It's great for a quick read, especially after a more weighty and dense book.

This off-beat road novel features ex-con Sailor and his trailer-trash girlfriend, Lula, fleeing from a hitman who writes "Twilight Zone"(!) episodes for fun. Definitely not your average crime novel, it's heavy on quirky grit but surprisingly thin on plot; very little actually happens if you leave out the characters' seemingly random conversations. It's not hard to see why David Lynch found this prime material for one of his oddball cinematic experiments (he was responsible for the 1990 film adaptation), but as a novel, "Wild at Heart," though harmless fun, is just too breezy to leave much of an impression.

"Sailor Ripley," just out of jail, and girlfriend "Lula Pace" travel on highways and offbeat (literally) roads of the south in their 1975 Bonneville convertible. There isn't much of a plot, just chapters numbering a few pages each with them describing some new wild adventure or lunatic person Sailor and Lula meet along the way.

The characters are so bizarre and the dialog so interesting that it was just as fascinating as David Lynn's wild portrayal of it on film.

For fans of the movie "Wild At Heart," you'll be pleasantly surprised to discover that most of the short stories in Barry Gifford's book are not in the film. To me, that meant more great material and a couple of more hours to enjoy these crazy people with stories I wasn't familiar with. I can't get enough of the great dialog, and I'd love to see Gifford write another tale of Sailor and Lula.

This book lacks an emotional core and those seeking intellectual or emotional stimulation should look elseware. The characters are stereotyped, flat and never leave the pages of the book. Gifford believes lashes of sex, violence and murder will make his Sailor and Lula stories interesting and fails dismally. Avoid!