The Thin Man

The Thin Man
By Dashiell Hammett (201 pages)
Published by Vintage
Bookish rating: 4

I'm about 80 years late to the party on this one, but the fact that Hammett's mystery novel is still in print speaks to its awesomeness.

In this super sexy mystery, which takes place in the early thirties (when--duh--it was written), a former private detective, Nick Charles, gets sucked into a murder mystery. Not only do we get to enter the atmospheric world of New York City speakeasies and morning cocktails, but we also get a witty comedy of manners to boot. The dialogue, Nick's narration and wry observations, and characters such as his wife, Nora (based on Hammett's real-life main squeeze Lillian Hellman) are in addition to a complex, clever mystery. Or perhaps vice versa.

The amount of alcohol consumed by Nick and his peeps makes the guys of Mad Men seem like lightweights. I could argue--and if I had more time, I would--that alcohol itself is a main character. The writing and language is 1930s perfection--I mean, when is the last time you read the phrase, "What a dame!"?

Finally, the character of Nora fascinated me. I'm extremely familiar with Lillian Hellman (fun fact: there's yet another new biography out on her, which I haven't read and thus can't vouch for, but I CAN vouch for this Lillian Hellman biography, which came out in paperback last summer), but to see her mannerisms and character via Nick (meaning, via Hammett) has always been somewhat of a missing piece for me.

I plan to read the rest of Hammett's work, including the lesser known novels. In the meantime, read this one. Preferably with a scotch. And if you're not a scotch drinker, well, just make a very strong cocktail, sit back with some jazz playing in the background, and try to integrate the word dame into your next conversation (in a nonsexist way, please).