The Big Blowdown

The Big Blowdown

Infobox Book |
name = The Big Blowdown
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = New edition cover (Serpent's Tail)
author = George Pelecanos
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country = United States
language = English
series = D.C. Quartet
genre = Crime novel
publisher = St. Martins Press
pub_date = June 1996
english_pub_date =
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages = 313 pp
isbn = ISBN 0312142846 (Hardcover first edition)
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"The Big Blowdown" is a 1996 crime novel written by George Pelecanos. It is set in Washington DC and focuses on Peter Karras. It is the first of four books comprising the D.C. Quartet. The other books in this series are "King Suckerman", "The Sweet Forever" and "Shame the Devil".

Plot introduction

In 1940s Washington Pete Karras is betrayed by his friend Joe Recevo and disabled by his former employer Mr. Burke. Karras takes up a job in Nick Stefanos' diner but when Burke's protection racket threatens Stefanos Karras resists and ultimately gets his revenge.

Explanation of the novel's title

Characters

Peter Karras, Jimmy Boyle, Joe Recevo, and Perry Angelos are four friends who grew up together in Washington. Angelos is an accountant. Boyle is a police officer. Karras and Recevo work as enforcers for a protection and loan sharking racket run by Mr. Burke. Mr. Burke has several other employees including chief enforcer Reed and advisor Mr. Gearhart. Mr. Bender runs a similar outfit to Burke. Nick Stefanos is the owner of a diner that he runs with his friend "Costa". Junior Oliver is an African American of the same age as the other boys.

Michael and Lola Florek are a brother and sister from Farrell, Pennsylvania. Lola moves to Washington and becomes a prostitute and heroin addict. Her pimp is Morgan and he has a madam called Lydia Fortuno. Eleni Karras is Pete's wife and the two have a son together, Dimitri. Karras is having an affair with a woman named Vera Gardner.

Plot summary

The book opens with a gravely injured Peter Karras in a D.C. hospital in 1946. The plot flashes back to Karras and his friends as children in 1933. Karras gets into a fight with a group of African-American boys and his opponent, Junior Oliver, earns his grudging respect. Next the story jumps to 1944 and the Philippines theatre of World War II. Karras kills his first man and one of his childhood friends, Billy Nicodemus, is killed. Next the book returns to 1946 and we learn that Karras has gotten married, to Eleni, and how he came to be injured. Karras flippant attitude upsets his superior Mr. Burke and when Karras fails to collect a debt from another Greek Burke decides to have him punished. He instructs Recevo to betray his friend Karras. Burke dispatches his enforcer Reed to assault Karras after Recevo sets him up. Reed beats Karras with a baseball bat.

When promiscuous Lola disappears in 1948 after moving to Washington her brother Mike Florek decides to search for her. Eventually Florek takes a job at Nick Stefanos' diner in 1949. Karras is now working there as a chef. Jimmy Boyle, now a beat cop, has become peripherally involved in the investigation of the murder of several prostitutes by a serial killer. Karras correctly suspects that Lola has become a prostitute and aids Florek in his search. Lola's madam Lydia is murdered by the killer and Lola witnesses the crime. Boyle locates Lola for Karras and Karras and Florek extract her from Morgan's brothel. Karras lets Florek and Lola leave town.

Burke targets Stefanos' diner for his protection racket. When Stefanos resists Burke hires Bender's outfit to pressure Stefanos and fool him into believing he needs the protection. Karras sees through the scheme and they lure Bender's men into a trap and kill them. After rescuing Lola Karras suspects Gearhart as the murderer from her description. He enlists the help of Joe Recevo who informs Burke of Gearhart's murderous tendencies. Burke confronts Gearhart and begins to organize a cover-up. Recevo informs Jimmy Boyle of Gearhart's involvement and tells him to go to his apartment to retrieve the murder weapon. Burke dispatches Reed on the same mission. When Boyle reaches the apartment he is grievously wounded by Gearhart, who had disobeyed Burke's instructions and returned home. Boyle manages to shoot Gearhart in the struggle.

Burke realizes that Karras is the common-link between Boyle and Gearhart and confronts Recevo. He instructs Recevo to bring Karras to him. Recevo brings Karras in but the two make a last stand together and kill Burke, Reed and many of their men before being shot. The book ends with a coda set in 1959 as Stefanos and Costa visiting Karras' grave.

Literary significance and reception

The Richmond Review compared the novel to the works of James Ellroy and Eddie Bunker. In particular Karras search for redemption through his involvement in solving the prostitute murders sub-plot was described as evoking Ellroy.Cite web|url=http://www.richmondreview.co.uk/books/bigblowdown.html|title=The Big Blowdown|accessdate=2007-11-08|publisher=The Richmond Review|year=2007|author=Jason Starr] Reviews praised Pelecanos' dialogue and sense of place. They also remarked upon Pelecanos' use of film and music references and the cinematic nature of the book. Karras has been described as a flawed hero because of his infidelity and lack of commitment to his family. The novel's moral complexity has been praised. The use of violent set pieces has been praised as enlivening the novel.

Awards and nominations

The Big Blowdown was the recipient of the International Crime Novel of the Year award in France, Germany and Japan.Cite web|url=http://www.authorsontheweb.com/features/authormonth/0203pelecanos/pelecanos-george.asp|title=George Pelecanos|accessdate=2007-11-08|publisher=Authors on the Web|year=2003] Cite web|url=http://www.readersread.com/features/georgepelecanos.htm|title=Interview with George Pelecanos|accessdate=2007-11-08|publisher=Readers Read|month=March | year=2004]

Footnotes


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • The Falcon Award — Der Maltese Falcon Award (auch: Falcon Award, nicht zu verwechseln mit dem Norman Falcon Award) ist ein internationaler auch in Westeuropa und den USA bekannter japanischer Literaturpreis für Kriminalliteratur. Es werden nur Romane ausgezeichnet …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • The Maltese Falcon Award — Der Maltese Falcon Award (auch: Falcon Award, nicht zu verwechseln mit dem Norman Falcon Award) ist ein internationaler auch in Westeuropa und den USA bekannter japanischer Literaturpreis für Kriminalliteratur. Es werden nur Romane ausgezeichnet …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Big Deer Pond — is located approximately 1.5 west of Lows Lake in the Five Ponds Wilderness Area and the Adirondacks Bob Marshall Wilderness area (there is another in Montana). It serves as a 1/2 mile water portage between Lows Lake and the upper Oswegatchie… …   Wikipedia

  • High Falls on the Oswegatchie River — Infobox Waterfall name = caption = High Falls on the Oswegatchie location = Adirondack Park, New York, USA type = height = 15 feet (4.6 m) height longest = number drops = average flow = world rank = elevation = 1,601 (488 m)High Falls is a small… …   Wikipedia

  • Shame the Devil — Infobox Book | name = Shame the Devil title orig = translator = image caption = author = George Pelecanos illustrator = cover artist = country = United States language = English series = D.C. Quartet genre = Crime novel publisher = Little, Brown… …   Wikipedia

  • Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go — is the third book of a trilogy by novelist George Pelecanos with the same protagonist, Nick Stefanos. In this volume he has retired from his previous job as a crime investigator in Washington D.C., and makes a living as a bartender at a local bar …   Wikipedia

  • Maltese Falcon Society — The Maltese Falcon Society is an organization for admirers of Dashiell Hammett, his novel The Maltese Falcon, and hardboiled mystery books and writers in general. Founded in San Francisco in 1981, the organization is no longer active in the… …   Wikipedia

  • George Pelecanos — Infobox Writer name = George Pelecanos imagesize = 200px caption = pseudonym = birthdate = 1957 birthplace = Washington, D.C., United States deathdate = deathplace = occupation = Novelist, Journalist, Television Writer nationality = American… …   Wikipedia

  • Pelecanos — George Pelecanos George Pelecanos Photographie de George Pelecanos aux Quais du Polar, Lyon, mars 2008 Activité(s) Écrivain, Scénariste pour la télévision …   Wikipédia en Français

  • George Pelecanos — en septembre 2008 Activités …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”