Richard Stark
Slayground
Random House, 1971
A part of Friday Forgotten Books
Parker in the company of company Grofield and second-rate driver Laufman knock out armored car on a deserted road, but when they try to getaway Laufman rolls the car into the fence. Parker is the only one who does not lose consciousness, and he gets out of the car with a bag of money. Police are coming and there is absolutely nowhere to hide - except for Fun Island, an amusement park, closed for the winter. Parker climbs over the wall, hoping to get out later through another exit when a hype around the armored car slows down. Parker does not yet know that there is no way out of the park, and worse than that: Parker and a satchel of money were seen by two mobsters who met with two patrol cops to for the pay-off. And mobsters and cops will want to get this bag.
Those familiar with the previous books in the series about Parker without my recommendations know that you should read Stark, preferably starting with the first book of the series The Hunter. Slayground is rightly considered one of the best books by Stark, largely because Parker here is in an almost hopeless situation (though isn’t he always?). Never before Parker was not in the truest sense cornered where there is no exit. Moreover, by the middle of the novel Parker is left without his favorite weapon – a gun. But Parker, of course, is not one of those who surrender.
Slayground offers not only entertainment for a few hours, but makes fans of the series to ask several questions about the central character, Parker. I was curious, if Parker did not see any options to get out of the situation, would he choose to surrender to police, given that he is wanted for a couple of murders, or he would prefer death in a shootout?
Another issue worrying me in the course of reading can be formulated as follows: how this professional thief is always in a good shape, if he does not play any sports, doesn’t work out, does not go to the gym and spends his free time (or spent up to a certain time) on the beach sunbathing and sipping cocktails? It’s impossible to imagine Parker playing basketball with the company or in the gym lifting weights. The only exercise Parker makes when he comes to jobs, but it does not happen too often. Without the stunning physical form Parker just would not be able to do all that he did in the novel.
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ReplyDeleteRay, I think in at least one or two of the early novels, we see Parker swimming in the ocean, going quite far out, and pushing himself pretty hard--we also see that at least in the months immediately following a heist, he's having lots and lots of vigorous sex. As a fitness regimen, I don't see how that can possibly be improved upon, though it wouldn't be practical for us ordinary folk. He was obviously born with an extraordinary constitution, and he can't stand to be inactive very long.
ReplyDeleteGreat article, but is this really a forgotten book? I don't see how anybody who read it could ever forget it? I do wish I could forget the film adaptation. ;)
Chris,
DeleteI can see your point. Parker did swim in the ocean at beach resorts, but that was long before Claire. It seems like he was born fit.
As for obscurity of this book, sure it's not forgotten, at least by us, Parker fans. I just had written this review and put on a label "forgotten", so it'd suit Patti's blog.
He lives by a lake with Claire, so he probably swims there as well, though not in the winter (not in northern New Jersey)--he does seem to be in less splendid physical condition by end of the series, but some people are just naturally strong, and don't really have to do that much to maintain it.
DeleteSorry for quibbling about the Forgotten Books thing--honestly, how many huge best sellers of the past are forgotten now? But thanks to U. of Chicago, Slayground is in print, as many other equally good Westlake novels are not right now.
I never understood whole in print vs OOP thing. Probably because I always thought that reprints are for pussies. Reprints only have value when they have additions such as intros etc etc. Reprints can also be useful if original copy is in fragile state and you fear to damage your copy by reading it. That's why I sometimes prefer digital books. I even don't consider them reprints.
DeleteIf original editions are plentiful and cheap and in readable condition, sure. But how often is that ever the case for a book worth reading?
DeleteHow are you ever going to read Dickens or Tolstoy without reprints? Granted, I couldn't read Tolstoy in the original, because I can't read Russian. But I doubt I could afford the first English edition, unless I took up Parker's profession.
I work in a library, and a man I worked with there who is now retired told me "A book is not forever." Anybody who has worked in book preservation knows what that means. Sooner or later, every physical edition of a book will cease to exist. A book that is never reprinted will someday disappear from the world forever. I don't trust electronic impulses to survive the whims of time. Ebooks certainly have their uses. But if I love a book, I want it reprinted.
Believe me, you don't want to read Tolstoy in Russian: it's written in prerevolutionary orthography!
DeleteI agree we need reprints, but publishers can't reprint everything. They always need something new. The market itself probably is against reprints. But the culture needs reprints.
Well, given how much I like Tolstoy (and I'm a fairly recent convert, having only read the Pevear/Volokhonsky translations a few years back), in the alternate universe where I would be capable of learning post-revolutionary orthography, I could just as easily learn the other. And this alternate self would also know read classical Greek, Sanskrit, Basque, Provencal, and perhaps even standard Klingon.
DeleteReprints can be extremely lucrative, depending on the author. Scott Meredith, the literary agency where Westlake may be said to have gotten his start in the writing biz, owed much of its early success to having P.G. Wodehouse as its first client--Wodehouse never goes out of style, so he never goes out of print--even once a given book goes out of copyright. That's as close to immortality as any of us ever get.
I've also wondered about the physicality of Parker. You could figure Westlake skipped over the exercise description. The Parker novels focus on Parker and his work. Robbery and theft are what matter to Westlake and Parker. There are scant descriptions of his time in hotels and resorts. Maybe he ran on the beach every morning and then boxed until lunch. Who knows?
ReplyDeleteThis issue might be a reflection of the time the books were written. A regime of cocktails and a "brisk" walk may have counted as healthy.
A lot of low life criminals have health issues. But Parker doesn't do drugs, drinks a little, stays out of prison, I guess, all that play a role.
DeleteI think if he ran, or boxed, we'd hear about it. He swims. And has sex. That's all.
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