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Nobody Move: A Novel
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From the National Book Award–winning, bestselling author of Tree of Smoke comes a provocative thriller set in the American West.
Nobody Move, which first appeared in the pages of Playboy, is the story of an assortment of lowlifes in Bakersfield, California, and their cat-and-mouse game over $2.3 million. Touched by echoes of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, Nobody Move is at once an homage to and a variation on literary form. It salutes one of our most enduring and popular genres—the American crime novel—but with a grisly humor and outrageousness that are Denis Johnson's own. Sexy, suspenseful, and above all entertaining, Nobody Move shows one of our greatest novelists at his versatile best.
Azioni libro
Inizia a leggereInformazioni sul libro
Nobody Move: A Novel
Descrizione
From the National Book Award–winning, bestselling author of Tree of Smoke comes a provocative thriller set in the American West.
Nobody Move, which first appeared in the pages of Playboy, is the story of an assortment of lowlifes in Bakersfield, California, and their cat-and-mouse game over $2.3 million. Touched by echoes of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, Nobody Move is at once an homage to and a variation on literary form. It salutes one of our most enduring and popular genres—the American crime novel—but with a grisly humor and outrageousness that are Denis Johnson's own. Sexy, suspenseful, and above all entertaining, Nobody Move shows one of our greatest novelists at his versatile best.
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DJ![]()
Recensioni
Dennis Johnson is a great writer. This however is not his best work. The story is well written there just isn't a lot of substance. It follow the genre formula to the letter and is instantly forgetable.
This book zips along and is pleasurable but ultimately falls well short of awe inspiring. It is a hard-boiled, noir-like story set in California. A likable gambler shoots a mobster in the leg to escape paying a debt, he goes on the run, meets a beautiful woman also at odds with the law, and they hole up in a biker bar together. While they are spinning a plan to get millions of dollars she was framed for embezzling, the mob catches up with him and a certain amount of action ensues. Ultimately, the bad guys don't fare particularly well.
The dialogue is a strong point in this book, with well drawn characters and rapid fire repartee. And the plot is enough to keep you going with interest but not enough to, at the end of the day, say one be very impressed.
I have not read any other Denis Johnson books but if this is an appetizer then it makes me look forward to the main course.
The dialogue is a strong point in this book, with well drawn characters and rapid fire repartee. And the plot is enough to keep you going with interest but not enough to, at the end of the day, say one be very impressed.
I have not read any other Denis Johnson books but if this is an appetizer then it makes me look forward to the main course.
This is first book I've read by Denis Johnson, and that was possibly a mistake. His writing style is amazing but most of the genre homages were lost on me.
Denis Johnson's "Nobody Move," set in the depressed burgs of Northern California, is a moody homage to the works of Raymond Chandler, Mickey Spillane, and James M. Cain.. All of Johnson's characters are losers of one sort or another: Jimmy Luntz, a middle-aged nobody with a serious gambling debt; Juarez, Jimmy's creditor, a small-time crook who has assumed a false name and accent to conceal the fact that he is actually from the Middle East; Gambol, Juarez's lumbering "enforcer" who is sent to collect Jimmy's debt; and no less than two femme fatales: Anita Desilvera, a petite brunette with a drinking problem who joins Jimmy's fugitive run with a few plans of her own, and Mary, a "hefty blonde" who applies her nursing skills (and more) to an injured and morose Gambol in hopes of gaining some personal dividends in the bargain. The book is an abrupt departure from Johnson's previous prize-winning book, "Tree of Smoke," and one gets the feeling that he is having fun with it. Johnson's book evokes the mood of vintage noir films like "Double Indemnity" and "Kiss Me Deadly." The dialogue is terse, cynical, and darkly humorous: "You're drunk." "Not yet, but I like how you think." The light banter that ricochets between characters in a volley of poker-faced one-liners is eerily at odds with the extreme violence of the story line, but Johnson works this contradiction to the book's advantage, a la "Pulp Fiction." Much of Johnson's dialogue echoes that of Richard Price ("Lush Life," "Clockers"), the current king of gritty urban dialogue, who also happens to be a script writer ("The Wire."). No wonder "Nobody Move" almost begs to be made into a movie.
Johnson takes what appears at first to be a typical crime story and imbues it with both spark and depth. Jimmy Luntz, a likeable. impractical gambler with a "sissy body" gets in trouble with a bad crowd over - what else? - gambling debts. There's a bad woman, a good woman, and many bad men. The writing is crisp and the dialogue pin-point, punctuated by moments of poetry: "Her hearing came up: the hiss of the river in this wide slow spot, and the breeze in the branches, the tick of the willow leaves." A deceitful judge is "the father of lies." Johnson doles out facts and plot tidbits artfully, but not necessarily where you would expect them. Nearly every word and scene is written as if it could be no other way.
This is a quick read. It's a fun crime novel that reads like a Quentin Tarantino movie.
Leave to Denis Johnson to write a highly readable yarn about a group of low-life losers and gangsters and allow a measure of redemption. Many such books fail in the last regard and can only be labeled as decadent. (Not that I'm above a decadent read now and then.) But when a hard-boiled story is deft enough to twist and turn and leave the reader guessing until the last page the pleasure is double or triple. I closed "Nobody Move" with a satisfying, wry smile.
The action and characters and snappy dialogue and impossible situations keep you reading until the end. It is a bit like a cross between Elmore Leonard and Flannery O'Connor. The gambler Jimmy Luntz is pretty lucky even though he keeps losing his lottery scratch offs.
Good fun. Nowhere as deep as his other works, but good fun and a step up for airplane books.
Nobody Move is the story of interconnected characters in the California desert. Jimmy Luntz is a gambler deep in the whole to his bookie, Gambol is the man sent to inflict physical harm to get the money, Juarez is the king of this underworld, and Anita Desilvera is an alcoholic and soon-to-be-divorced woman convicted of embezzlement who happens upon Jimmy. It's a motley cast of characters, and the cover's gunshots holes are a good indicator of the amount of violence.Denis Johnson is a gifted writer; no one disputes this fact. The characters are intriguing, and there is suspense of sorts, but somehow it didn't all come together for me. Perhaps my own cynicism led me to believe their futures to be bleak and inevitable and I didn't fully embrace the characters. I usually adore noir, but I was ambivalent about this one. It's a brief book, less than 200 pages, and it seems to beg for a movie rather than a book. I wanted to like it more than I did, although I did enjoy reading it (except for one completely unnecessary, disgusting scene that would not have been out of place in a cheap teen comedy).
The best Elmore Leonard novel ever!
There's not much too add to the reviews below. Nobody Move is like Tarentino's Pulp Fiction in novel form. Fun, fast, witty, and violent. Nobody Move doesn't have the depth and resonance of many of DJ's other works, but it seems clear that this was more of a palate cleanser for DJ following the weighty Tree of Smoke. That said, I found Mary and Jimmy's struggle to find love on the run endearing as hell. Now that I think about it, it reminds me of Clarence and Alabama's adventures in the Tarantino-scripted True Romance. May I humbly suggest that True Romance replace Pulp Fiction as the Tarantino comparison of choice for Nobody Move?
A quick fun read about losers constantly turning on each other, lots for violence and bad language to round out a great book to read.
Excellent brief read with great dialogue and an enteraining plot and characters. It reads like a script written by combination of Elmore Leonard with help from Quenton Tarantino.
Will Patton was born to read Denis Johnson. Near perfect crime crosswire non-resolve. I loved it. Welcome to California.
delicious pulp
Readers who know Denis Johnson only from his 614-page National Book Award winner, "Tree of Smoke," a complicated novel about the Vietnam War, will find it difficult to believe that "Nobody Move" is from the same author. "Nobody Move" is short and it is certainly not complicated. The novel, in fact, first appeared in print as a four-part serialization in Playboy in 2008 and the book's pacing reflects the fact that it was written to be presented in four distinct parts over a period of months.In a book filled with lowlifes, thugs, enforcers, and other assorted sociopaths, Jimmy Luntz is about the closest thing to a hero there is - proving that everything is, indeed, relative. Luntz, in debt to a cutthroat loan shark, one day finds himself in a car being driven by Gambol, a man who intends to remind Luntz of his monetary obligations by using a $10 crowbar on his kneecaps. Gambol, though, gets careless just long enough for Luntz to gain the upper hand. Luntz, not one to pass up an opportunity to avoid a good beating, manages to shoot Gambol in the leg, steal his fat wallet, push Gambol out of the car, and drive away in the man's Cadillac.Jimmy, now on the run in northern California, meets one Anita Desilvera, newly divorced and recently framed by her ex-husband in a $2.3 million embezzlement scheme. Anita is determined to get her hands on the money she has been accused of stealing and sees Jimmy as the kind of "muscle" she needs to get it done. Jimmy, on the other hand, just likes what he sees when he looks at Anita and is happy to be hiding out with someone so attractive.Jimmy and Anita hatch a plan that will net each of them half of the missing $2.3 million dollars but, when Gambol and his loan shark boss catch up with them, plans change - and quickly. What happens next reads like Raymond Chandler on speed. Denis Johnson pulls no punches. This is a dark book, one filled with violence and brutality but, very much in the Chandler style, Johnson uses dark humor and sharp dialogue to temper what his characters are doing to each other.The audio version of "Nobody Move" is read by actor Will Patton, well known for the major books he has narrated in the past, including Johnson's own "Tree of Smoke." Patton's delivery is perfect for this four-CD audio book, employing exactly the tone needed to deliver Johnson's sarcastic dialogue and witty give-and-take at its best. Even the most brutal of Johnson's characters are given distinct personalities of their own by Patton's vocal takes on their make-up.This one, bloody as it is at times, is still great fun, and that is due in no small part to Will Patton's reading. I am not sure that I would have found it nearly so funny in written format but I highly recommend the "Nobody Move" audio book to readers who have a "Pulp Fiction" frame-of-mind.Rated at: 5.0
This book zips along and is pleasurable but ultimately falls well short of awe inspiring. It is a hard-boiled, noir-like story set in California. A likable gambler shoots a mobster in the leg to escape paying a debt, he goes on the run, meets a beautiful woman also at odds with the law, and they hole up in a biker bar together. While they are spinning a plan to get millions of dollars she was framed for embezzling, the mob catches up with him and a certain amount of action ensues. Ultimately, the bad guys don't fare particularly well.The dialogue is a strong point in this book, with well drawn characters and rapid fire repartee. And the plot is enough to keep you going with interest but not enough to, at the end of the day, say one be very impressed.I have not read any other Denis Johnson books but if this is an appetizer then it makes me look forward to the main course.
Fast and entertaining read.
When I first started reading this book, I didn't have high hopes, but it completely surprised me. The characters were archetypal without seeming cliche. I thought all of them were interesting, and the story was too. I loved the way the author gave his readers credit; instead of just spelling out the story or trying (and failing) to give a surprise twist, he expected the reader to follow along. Well written.
Certainly a breezy read, perfect for transport reading. But it never quite delivers on its promise to be in the league with Elmore Leonard or Carl Hiassen. Starting with low-life gambler and sad sack Luntz getting nabbed by a gangster he owes money just as he leaves his barbershop chorus concert, you think that's where it's going. But despite plenty of nastiness, there isn't enough quirkiness, color or memorable dialogue. Also, the Amy character's arc wasn't convincing. She got awfully cruel and violent near the end; where did that come from? No foreshadowing. Greedy, sure but not capable of this. Also, it's as though Johnson has never done online banking. Lacking four digits as part of a code might be a problem but getting into a bank account, even one's on onshore account, you'll need more than that.Still, in the right hands, this could make a Tarantino-esque movie and Anita's surprise viciousness would work fine.
Trust Denis Johnson. If you need someone to lay down a straight flush pulp masterpiece, one of the best writers in the business is a safe bet. Not that I usually expect to find Johnson writing in this genre. But if anyone understands the movement of plot and character through dialogue, it’s him.Jimmy Luntz is a bit down on his luck. He’s in debt to some unsavoury people. The kind who come round to collect. And that gun you see in the first act will go off. In the first act. It’s that kind of novel. When Jimmy crosses paths with Anita Desilvera, he might think his luck has changed. She’s clearly out of his league. But she’s got troubles of her own, a taste for vodka, a bad karaoke habit, and a few million in missing funds that she’s taking the fall for having pilfered. She’s also got a bit of a mean streak. But she and Jimmy hit it off, sort of. And their two narrative paths are certain to comingle. With consequences.Mostly this is just fun writing and fun reading. There isn’t really much more to it than that. Johnson’s dialogue is endlessly refreshing. And he knows how to mingle fates both subtly and with lead. You might as well just sit back and enjoy. Gently recommended.
The story starts with a kidnapping in Bakersfield by a big guy named Ernie. He's mean and gets the girl. (Just not the way you'd like.) I'm tired of being stereotyped.
The book opens with the main character, Jimmy Luntz, being exposed as a member of The Alhambra California Beachcomber Chordsmen, a sort of barbershop singing group. Aside from this completely unrealistic aside, Luntz is a pitch-perfect witty portrayal of a gambling addict, including his relationship with a well-written fetching boozer. Luntz needs to take increasing risks to get himself out of gambling debts being called in. Packed with guns, quirky bad guys, surprising plot twists, this novel benefits from Johnson's writing skills, without being wrapped around some controversial setting or characters with less action-packed ramblings.
After "Tree of Smoke", Denis Johnson has written a brief, action-packed, noir thriller. That's what the reviews all said. True, but there's a little more to it than that. A good read.
Gambling addict Jimmy Luntz knows he’s in big trouble when he gets nabbed by Gambol, an enforcer working for Juarez, the underworld crime boss Jimmy’s in the hole to for a few grand. But his perenially bad luck changes when he manages to escape, having shot Gambol in the kneecap and stolen his cash-filled wallet. On the run, Jimmy crosses paths with another bitter loser, alchoholic Anita Desilvera. Anita’s crooked lawyer husband has embezzeled $2.3 million, framed Anita for the job, and, adding insult to injury, divorced her coldly…and Anita wants to get even. The two hide out, planning a caper to steal the $2.3 million from Anita’s ex while avoiding the thugs out to get Jimmy. Unfortunately for them both, Gambol and Juarez not only find them, but find out about the big money at stake. Fates collide violently, and, of course, not everyone makes it out alive and well.Deeply flawed but strangely likeable characters, from weaselly Jimmy to dedicated Gambol, add a little bit of something special to this grim and gritty noir thriller. Shots of bleak humor enliven the starkness of Johnson’s view of lowlifes on the make.
A solid, fast-paced crime novel that has none of Johnson's poetic flourishes whatsoever. If it had a blank cover I would have assumed it was by Elmore Leonard.
Great fun. Read like a classic noir, witty, violent, suspenseful.
Are you familiar with the subreddit r/menwritingwomen ? Because that is where this book belongs. Though Johnson's female characters certainly have some agency. Quentin Tarantino could direct the movie.This novel did apparently first appear in Playboy. And it very much reads like a c1950s harboiled detective novel, but everyone here is a criminal--there is no detective. Gamblers, loan sharks, thieves, embezzlers, who knows what all. They come from Arcadia, Bakersfield, and somewhere outside Oroville. They are all interconnected, because I guess all criminals know each other? And it's equal opportunity insults, with women, Mexicans, Muslims, and Natives all getting it. Only the gay characters aren't mocked.I listened on hoopla so don't have page numbers, but here are some lines:--"pee kind of musically" (a woman, of course)--"a hefty woman", also described as "a hefty blonde"--"Do you always talk about people as though they are invisible?" "Usually just women." (HAR HAR)--"You do drink like an Indian." (another woman)--"possibly pregnant or ready for a diet"So...yeah. There's also lots of shooting.
Read at a single sitting (10 PM - 2 AM), rare for me. Denis Johnson's Nobody Move caroms and skids through a week's worth of antics, ending up -- after significant collateral damage -- about where it started. I can imagine several scenes adopted as set pieces in snide movies. The crime noir plot is propelled by action and dialogue such that it’s easy to miss the book's elegant structure and occasionally evocative description. A gateway drug to Jesus’ Son or Tree of Smoke.