The Maltese Falcon is a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally serialized in the magazine Black Mask. The story has been adapted several times for the cinema. The main character, Sam Spade, appears only in this novel and in three lesser known short stories, yet is widely cited as the crystallizing figure in the development of the hard-boiled private detective genre - Raymond Chandler's character Philip Marlowe, for instance, was strongly influenced by Hammett's Spade. Spade was a departure from Hammett's nameless ...
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The Maltese Falcon is a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally serialized in the magazine Black Mask. The story has been adapted several times for the cinema. The main character, Sam Spade, appears only in this novel and in three lesser known short stories, yet is widely cited as the crystallizing figure in the development of the hard-boiled private detective genre - Raymond Chandler's character Philip Marlowe, for instance, was strongly influenced by Hammett's Spade. Spade was a departure from Hammett's nameless and less than glamorous detective, The Continental Op. Sam Spade combined several features of previous detectives, most notably his cold detachment, keen eye for detail, and unflinching determination to achieve his own justice. He is the man who has seen the wretched, the corrupt, the tawdry side of life but still retains his "tarnished idealism."
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Had not previously read this Classic, and it truly was hardboiled! Not to my usual taste but was an introduction to the genre and 1930's attitudes, and I did enjoy being off my usual beaten path!
Marilynne B
Oct 3, 2013
The Maltese Falcon
It arrived as promised in excellent condition. I know the story and have not read the this copy. MJB
michael s
May 2, 2013
Maltese Falcon
Anyone wanting to read the definitive private detective novel,this is the book for you.Even if you have seen Humphry Bogart as Sam Spade in the movie or not,this story is a great tale of greed ,murder,and "The stuff dreams are made of". San Francisco in the 40's, with some of the greatest dialog ever written,will keep you glued to the page.
Heather P
Jan 11, 2013
Purchased for my daughter as she needed it for her AP English class, wanted her to have her own copy. Fast shipment and service, thanks!!
dekesolomon
Oct 18, 2009
An oldie but a goodie, still one of the best.
Read 'The Maltese Falcon.' Watch the Bogart movie. Read the book again. One thing that should strike you is the fact that there is scarcely one spare word in either creation. Working with Hammett's book in one hand, John Huston must have slapped his screenplay together in about 30 minutes.
Hammett's 'Falcon' is tight as a drumhead. The characters are not drawn but chiseled. The action is as fast as any speeding bullet. Every word of dialog sparks blue and crackles with electricity while it speeds things along. Nothing is wasted. 'The Maltese Falcon' is lean and mean, 100 percent nonfat.
Chandler's Marlowe is more cerebral. Every once in a while he even notices what somebody is wearing. In recent memory, only Gus Hasford's Dowdy Lewis is so hard, so fast, so smooth, and cracks so wise. Hammett's Spade, by contrast, doesn't horse around. He just walks into the room and goes for the throat.
Philosophical issues are fun to ponder. It's nice to be able to think about big issues when, every once in a while, one gets the chance. That's the stuff that typically wins prizes in literary circles, and that's as things should be. Even so, anybody can write a good, hard-boiled dick deserves (and gets) my respect.
Dashiell Hammett gave us Sam Spade, and there are none better anywhere. Read 'The Maltese Falcon.' You will never be sorry.
