The American Spectator

Reader Mail

(Page 3 of 14)

p> "The Long Goodbye" is the name of a novel by the superb noir writer Raymond Chandler, whose works, although sometimes uneven, never fail to stun me with their dark beauty. When you finish with MacDonald, by all means try Chandler! br> -- Michel Fleuette /p>

Lawrence Henry replies: Let me correct Mr. Fleutte's impression as gently as I can. I am of course familiar with Raymond Chandler's The Long Goodbye, indeed, with every book in his oeuvre, all of which I have already read and re-read. Chandler and Dashiell Hammett are justifiably credited with bringing the mystery novel up to the stature of literature, and with setting the standard for all writers to follow. They are indeed so widely credited that Chandler's title, The Long Goodbye, has entered the English language on its own, as a ready image, and is widely used without credit, simply because everybody knows it. See also any number of phrases from Shakespeare, such as "the dogs of war."

p> CHRISTMAS IN AUGUST br> Re: Patrick Hynes's Self-Inflicted : /p>

"BUT DEZENHALL WARNS REPUBLICANS not to plan their family vacations to the national capital around a second Bush inaugural just yet. "Don't forget that August is always scandal season. John Kennedy once said that no president survives his first August. By engaging this issue right now, there's a good chance it will be out of the way before the real campaign starts," he said."

p>That's right; and then we finally get to explore Kerry's abysmal Senate record! Then we have the debates! I feel like a kid opening presents on Christmas morning! br> -- Bill Kearney

topics:
John McCain, Mainstream Media, Business, Books, Hollywood, Movies, Constitution, Law, Military, NATO, Energy, Oil