James M. Cain Books

Before reading this handsome, well-made volume of six crime novels, I tended to consider 'noir' a movement, one of both style and period. I now know that noir is also and more generally an atmosphere and pertains to a wide variety of literary styles, characters, plots, motivations -- but all informed by a dark and often depressing overall mood. Ultimately, these six novels are character studies and although they are offhandedly described as 'pulp novels', their qualities of description, dialogue, and even basic construction techniques such as gradual disclosure and story arc far exceed most recent crime novels I've read. And although classic noir undoubtedly exposed the dark recesses in the minds and hearts of its contemporary audiences, these stories today confirm that there is very little that can shock us; the beauty and longevity of these novels is in their exposition and description of characters and surroundings and the significance of a single, seemingly insignificant event building to an inexorable, devastating climax.

Rather than recount each novel's plot and characters, I will only add that again, each of the representatives of the noir genre present in this edition illustrate a wide variety of settings and styles, places and characters. From what most of us probably consider classic noir represented by Cain's classic "The Postman Always Rings Twice" with its classic highway settings and passion, to the suave, biting, and sardonic wit of Fearing's "The Big Clock" reflecting the unusual structure of multiple first-person narration around a single, main protagonist in an urban, corporate setting, to the Oklahoman grit of a group study in gang crime via serial bankrobbers in Anderson's "Thieves Like Us", to the more explicitly horrifying, psychologically penetrating and depraved "Nightmare Alley" of Gresham, this edition is like a menu of various aspects and directions noir can and did take.

As other reviewers have stated, there is not a weak novel here. I found "The Big Clock" the most singular in structure, setting, and style and in certain aspects, it defies categorization as 'noir' except perhaps only in mood. In fact, it is the novel that for me most broadened the definition of the genre. I found "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?" the most depressing because it appears to be the least fanciful, most truthful and thus the most devastating of the set. In this sense, "...Horses..." comes closest to rivalling truly great literature not so much for its details, but for its overall impact. In my opinion, Woolrich's "I Married a Dead Man" is the least successful because its exploration of mistaken identity (first mistaken, then deliberate) is somewhat banal and after finishing it, I wished Woolrich might have explored the contrast of genteel facade and grasping desperation a bit more explicitly. It is in many ways the most subtle and emotional of the set as well as the most modern (it is chronologically the last), but suffers a bit from the repetitive description of Helen/Patrice and the strain of her external and internal duality.

Several reviewers have found Anderson's "Thieves Like Us" the weakest of the set, but I disagree. The description of a gang is necessarily different and unlike the other novels, Anderson manages to accomplish what the other authors are unable to do (save perhaps McCoy): Describe the criminal as a legitimate, objective individual who deserves our sympathy and even our allegiance. Bowie, the central character, is described as taking a far more relaxed view of his own criminal activity and isn't portrayed in dark, tortured terms. In this light, Bowie has either the weakest conscience or the strongest depending upon how you choose to read him and in either sense, he and together with his cohorts provide and excellent example of the Anti-Hero.

"Nightmare Alley" is the longest and the most absorbing of the set. It is also the most violently and sexually explicit, has the largest cast of important and varied characters, and best succeeds in addressing the big questions concerning truth, faith, relationships, society, etc. Who are the real freaks -- carnival oddities and tricksters, or respectable society members seeking spirituality? Those with mere physical abnormalities or those who deliberately develop intentional differences? What is deception, particularly self-deception? "All the world's a carnival" might be a nihilistic worldview, but Gresham's portrait of an intelligent young carnival magician's development from a sensitive, impressionable boy into a full-blown 'spiritualist medium' whose only desire to trick the vulnerable out of their money (and who ultimately is tricked by one who lacks his ultimate weakness -- his conscience) is devastating. Although I predicted the ending, this truly nightmarish journey down Stanton Carlisle's alley is the point of the book. The true ending is, in fact, never reached and is a brilliant literary stroke.

I highly recommend this set of novels.

This collection of novels from the 30s and 40s was terrific fun and an outstanding introduction to the genre. You can debate whether they're all noir (at least what I expected noir to be); but nonetheless they each convey a distinct impression and view of the time. Without getting into lengthy reviews, I enjoyed Woolrich's "I Married a Dead Man" the most--from his eloquent style to the actual story-line. You know you're reading a master story-teller. Second was Gresham's "Nightmare Alley;" although sometimes I thought he could have expanded on some aspects of the story and shortened other passages (i.e., a little bit of editing would help). But each novel was distinct and enjoyable. Highly recommended.

First of all, the Library Of America collection provides the reader with some of the most beautiful hardcover editions available today. That said, the selections chosesn for this edition are all first class; for someone just getting into hard-boiled fiction, this is the ideal place to start. If you're like me and have been reading this genre for many years, this is a perfect volume to add to one's collection.

Ha! Just skimmed some other reviews and I wanna add my two cents. Yes, this volume is definitely something. Some impressions follow.

The Postman Always Rings Twice: Indeed, Cain knew how to make the reader keep turning pages. Short, sweet, and fascinating. After I discovered the significance of the title (which is a bit of a "trick"), I liked the whole effort all the more.

They Shoot Horses, Don't They?: A bit monotonous to read; a bit dark. That was the point. All told, a fascinating novel. Among all literature named in the world, *this* is one of few titles inspired by God: so memorable and unique, so perfect. It turns out to impart chilling meaning, as well, on several levels.

Thieves Like Us: My least favorite. This was a subjective reaction, however. I wanted the story to take turns it didn't take. Moreover, Anderson as an author took note of things I found not-so-interesting; apparently, the book's status to this day speaks otherwise on behalf of many other readers, however.

The Big Clock: Short, sweet and sterile. Almost machine-like in its plotting and execution -- if so written intentionally, a fascinating stylistic choice given its title -- but, notably, full of interesting and colorful characterizations. Possibly my favorite.

Nightmare Alley: Relentlessly grim and ugly. I'm not so sure there is a single character to root for in this story. That was probably very much intended. Fascinating but, again, very grim. Literary nihilists of today would do well to take a lesson from Gresham's characterization, plot and style.

I Married A Dead Man: Although the novels were presented chronologically, this was a nice way to end the volume. A very simple, linear, domestic story, without hard-boiled criminality or complication, which unfolds with some plot which stretches credibility, but lies ultimately within the realm of the possible. Notable among noir novels for Woolrich's ability to evoke two unexpected emotions at the end: a sense of deep and abiding love between two of the main characters -- before the real and final ending -- and a sense of genuine sadness.

Worth owning. Might take the reader a while to get through. This is, in effect, six books in one, running to nearly a thousand pages. But it was definitely fun; and as another reviewer implied, it's surprising how little has changed.

Noir emerged in the early 20th-Century from Pulp paperbacks published for mass consumption. Highlighting in gritty and sensationalistic detail the sordid undercurrents of Western society, Noir became an artistic force that became the medium for the representation of the down and out segment of the populace. Whether set in the impersonal grime of urban reality or at the deceptive simplicity of rural picturesqueness, Noir in Film and Literature revealed the odyssey and travails of lost souls whose misguided characters bore too much of the weight of their selves and their pasts to break from the shackles of their present.

"Crime Novels: American Noir of the 1930's and 40's" is the American equivalent in prose of the influential and enduring genre. The grim and unforgiving tales of the dejected cast of mid 20th-Century American life are openly depicted ("The Postman Always Rings Twice"; "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?"; "Thieves Like Us"; "Nightmare Alley"); vicissitudes of fate ("The Big Clock"; "I Married a Dead Man"). Whether set in scenic California, the vast and open Midwest, or a high-rise office in Manhattan, these novels uniformly render a panorama of blighted dreams, twisted turns of fate, and the sad recurrence of misfortune in desperate individuals doomed to tragedy.

None too substantial in content but highly readable, this edition is the first of a handsome 2-Volume anthology on American Noir fiction published by the venerable Library of America. Edited by Robert Polito (Poet, writer, anthologist on Noir Lit. and author of a biography on Jim Thompson), these stories enduring relevance are seen in various forms of contemporary society: from the writings of James Ellroy, Brett Easton Ellis, Lawrence Block, and Robert Bloch; in films like "Scarface", "Pulp Fiction", "Fight Club"; and in everyday life.

I haven't been able to put this down since it arrived two days ago. I had
read some of James Cain's stories a long time ago, but in my opinion he is
the best detective writer of all. The movies don't follow his stories in
all cases, but they are still wonderful to read. A great collection!

If you haven't read James M Cain yet, you have to check him out.

This Everyman's Library edition is a great introduction. You get a lot of story in a tidy little hardback. Good paper, readable print, a volume that practically begs to be held and a nice wee ribbon for a bookmark. And the price is right, too.

Cain's prose is lean, tight and wickedly sharp. Like a back-alley razor-fight, you don't even feel the cut until after you see the blood. By then, it's too late.

Movies have been made of Cain's work. Quite a few, actually. He's stayed in print in Europe for the last fifty years. His work has cast a long shadow over many of our most popular noir authors today.

Way too good to miss.

Although Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler are better known today, James M. Cain (1892-1977) is at least their equal--and many consider that he bested both in his finest novels, which combined sin-blacked characters, sordid plots, terse prose, and all the power of a blast furnace. This anthology collects all three of his landmark novels as well as several short stories, all of them showing Cain at the height of his powers.

Published in 1934, THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE is the truly deadly story of a drifter who squirms his way into a job at a California truck stop--and then squirms his way into the bed of a sexy waitress. Trouble is, the waitress is married to the boss... and she doesn't like it, not one little bit. Dripping with lust, deception, and irony, POSTMAN is at once sickening and fascinating, a true powerhouse of a novel that festers long after the story has ended.

DOUBLE INDEMNITY, published in 1936, is equally hot--the tale of an insurance sales man who stays on the right side of the law until he is tempted by a psychopathic femme fatale who doesn't see anything wrong with picking up a few bucks on the unexpected death of her unwanted husband. MILDRED PIERCE, published in 1941, is equally memorable in its portrait of a driven housewife with a wayward husband who discovers that she will do absolutely anything for her vicious, serpentine daughter.

All three novels have been famously filmed, but while the film versions (most created during the 1940s) stand well on their own, the novels out distance them in nothing flat. Cora, begging Frank to bite her lips until they bleed; Phyllis with lipstick splashed across her mouth like a bleeding gash; sleek Monte and his viper-like stepdaughter Veda--all portraits of reckless abandon so powerful that they blister the page.

The volume also includes five hard-to-find Cain stories that are often as memorable as the best of his novels, most notably I think "The Baby in the Ice Box" and "Brush Fire." But whether it is novels or his shorter works, you simply can't go wrong when it comes to the best of James M. Cain. Welcome to the inferno. Brace yourself for the straight-down ride.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

William Marling's fine book is a wonderful introduction to the field of hard-boiled detective fiction for the serious scholar. He traces the historical background of noir fiction, provides several case studies of central texts, and gives biographies of Hammett, Chandler, and Cain. He respects the genre without being fawning. This book is very readable and academically sound at the same time.

Whipped through this one pretty fast. Cain was a great mystery writer and these are three of is best (not to mention three great films!)

Found it cheaper than buying one of these books new. There's an introduction by Thomas Wolfe too.

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This book, more novella than novel, is the Spanish text edition of "Double Indemnity", an intricately plotted, very quick read . Wholly plot-driven, the book is a classic morality tale. A seductive woman, Phyllis Nirdlinger, desires to kill her wealthy husband. An otherwise intelligent insurance agent, Walter Huff, falls under her spell. Together they put together a seemingly failsafe plan to do the dastardly deed, making it appear as if it were an accident, so that the double indemnity clause in an insurance policy will kick into play. The problem is that all is not as it initially seems.

Written as a first person narrative by the insurance agent, the writing is tight, spare, and lean. No word is wasted. Yet, the minimalism works to the advantage of the story, as it makes the intricacy of the plotting clear to the reader. Having seen the film with Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck in the lead roles, I kept hearing Fred MacMurray's voice in my head as I read the book. While the film deviates from the book in a number of ways, it is classic film noir at its best and well-worth viewing. Likewise, the book is a classic in its own right, and those who like hard-boiled crime fiction will not be disappointed.

Historical Murder Mystery set during the Civil War on the western frontier. In it are the vintage James M. Cain ingredients: murder, what he himself always called 'the adventure of sex' and, most of all, the working out of the theme he believed to be central to all his writing, "the wish come true...which becomes reality with terrifying consequences.'"

I easily read this book in a few hours, it was short and it keeps your attention. It's definitely entertaining, but I can't say that I truly loved it. The characters are such bad people that it's hard to sympathize with them in any regard. For a love story, it wasn't that romantic or inspiring, and I will probably never read another book by the same author, because I was really just not blown away by it.

Great story and Stanley Tucci does a great job with the narrative. Far better than the Nicholson-Lange movie version.

A very good book, that for the most part has stood the test of time well. Some excellent twists, about people who you get the feeling might have turned out differently if the circumstances of their lives had been different. Short enough for anyone to take a chance on, and most will probably enjoy the time spent.

This story is about the triangle between an unhappy wife, her older husband, and a hired drifter. It tells how diner owner Nick Papadakis hires Frank Chambers because his hired help won't stay with him. Frank sees Cora, Nick's wife (Chapter 1). There is a fatal attraction (Chapter 2). [Did the other hire help leave quickly to avoid this setup?] Cora won a beauty contest in Des Moines and got a trip to Hollywood; but her pride kept her from going back home. [The beauty contest racket brought hopefuls to Hollywood who lacked money, connections, and acting experience.] Cora married the first honest man she found. But now she is unhappy and in love with Frank (the first who stayed?). They are now planning to murder Nick (Chapter 4).They consider running off together, but its not practical; Cora would return to the life she left. A new crisis for Cora leads to a new plot (Chapter 6).

They have a fatal accident on the mountain road to Malibu Beach. Their car goes off the road and down the cliff. Nick dies in the ambulance, Frank is badly injured with a broken arm. Cora escaped the falling car. The police and an ambulance take them away. After the Inquest District Attorney Sackett questions Frank, and gets him to sign a statement. Sackett suspects murder (Chapter 9). The best lawyer in town will defend Cora against murder; Katz will handle everything. Nick's insurance policy is the alleged motive. There is a shocking surprise plea (Chapter 10). Katz says this is the greatest case in his life, then explains how he will argue in court from the insurance policies (Chapter 11). [This technical detail is simplified in the film.] The rest of the story plays out. The differences in personalities between Cora and Frank result in growing conflicts. After one critical argument they resolve their differences. But an accident brings up the past, and their fate is sealed. [This story is told from Frank's point of view and seems self-serving to me.]

This book essentially is Kerouac meets the three horsemen of mystery: Marlowe, Hammett and Spillane. Written with curt statements, little detail, and almost exclusively dialogue (could be a movie script), this book quickly outlines a thorough story in about 100 pages.

The protagonist, Frank Chambers, is basically another impulse driven, good-for-nothing, tiger on the road. He is the bad boy which good girls fall for. And the girl in this book is Iowa blond beauty queen, Cora Papadakis - whose surname comes from older husband Nick Papadakis. Frank's character reminds me immensely of Kerouac's "On the Road" hero - Dean Moriarity.

Cora hates herself and her life. After Nick employs Frank, she falls for the help. The femme fatale employs Frank to free her from her misery - which means murdering Nick. After botching the job the first time, and failing to run away while Nick sits in a hospital bed, Frank meets up with Cora for a second chance (hence the title).

The second attempt leads you through another botched caper which only leads to an ingenious and fruitful legal maneuver which climaxes with the insurance agent perjuriously testifying in order to save the company money. Money acquits evil.

But, if you sleep with dogs, you wake up with fleas. A few escapades later, Frank and Cora mutually mistrust one another to the point where each believes the other will do to them what they did to poor Nick.

The ending is classic irony. And, that is what makes the book so ingratiatingly wonderful for film makers and readers. Love is conquered by the unknown. Isn't it usually "Love conquers all?" Then the unknown conquers all, or does it?

If you are looking for flowery prose, detailed description, or poignant passages of reflection - forget about it. This is Hemingwayesque, it is Marlowe-like or Hammett-influenced. This is about dialogue, slang, or street talk. This is classic fodder for film noire. This is a classic mystery novel.

DOUBLE INDEMNITY is a noir classic, one of a handful of must-read noir books from the "hardboiled" school. Like his earlier book, THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE, another must-read, DOUBLE INDEMNITY gets into the action quickly. Both books are short because Cain doesn't waste words. He's a master of crime noir, and DOUBLE INDEMNITY is a great noir novel. Read this book. I've read it several times and I never get tired of it.

Rather than recount the story and plot, which too many reviewers here have already done, I'll say this: the movie is terrific, but the book is better. And the more I read the book, the more I like it better than the movie. So if you've seen the movie, read the book. If you haven't seen the movie or read the book, do both. It doesn't matter which you do first.

Also, spend a few more dollars and buy the Everyman's Library volume, THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE, DOUBLE INDEMNITY, MILDRED PIERCE, AND SELECTED STORIES. This high-quality hardcover volume weighs about as much as the typical Vintage Classic paperback, but includes Cain's three best novels, an appropriately-blood-red cloth cover, acid-free paper, and a chronology of Cain's life and works. This volume is one of the best book deals you'll ever find.

...I thought "Double Indemnity" was one of the finest crime/thriller novels that I've ever read. Walter Huff is an insurance agent who is seduced by a woman named Nirdlinger. They decide to kill Nirdlinger's husband in order to collect his wealth. But then this leads to serious consequences.

With memorable characters, terrific tension, and good pacing, "Double Indemnity" is highy recommended if you're in the mood for murder and money. And try not to judge this book by its publication date. Crime and punishment from the 1930's can be a very interesting thing.

Walter Huff is an insurance agent who visited a client about renewing an automobile insurance policy. Mr. Nirdlinger is out but his wife is in. They'll call him. When Huff gets a call he finds the wife is interested in an accident policy for her husband (without his knowledge)! Huff immediately senses the danger in this; but there is a fatal attraction. Walter agrees to murder for Phyllis and the money, even though Phyllis has no cause to resent her husband. Walter explains the three things needed for a successful murder: help, planning, and audacity (as in a gangland slaying). Walter compares insurance to making a bet that something wouldn't happen (Chapter 2). Then daughter Lola Nirdlinger wants a loan against her boyfriend's car. Months pass, then an accident changes Mr. Nirdlinger's travel plans (Chapter 4). They kill Mr. Nirdlinger according to plan (Chapter 5). Chapter 6 tells about overnight train travel in those days. When Walter returns home he realizes he is now in Phyllis' power (Chapter 7).

After the accident the insurance investigators interviewed the people on the train. The insurance company believed it was a suicide so they wouldn't have to pay. Keyes uses the actuarial tables to dispute that theory, but he has no proof. It was important for a minister to be present at the Coroner's Inquest. Keyes surmises how it could have been done, and decides to have Phyllis watched. Lola has suspicions about Phyllis (Chapter 9). Lola tells Walter more about her boyfriend Sachetti, and they begin to spend time together. Lola has learned more about Phyllis! In Chapter 11 Walter decides to act for his safety in Griffith Park at midnight. He carefully plots this. But Phyllis has plans as well. Chapter 12 tells what happened that night. [The 1944 film changed the story, the book will be more intriguing.] Keyes in the Claim Department views the human race as "a little bit crooked" (Chapter 13). We learn why Sachetti was interested in Phyllis! [The 1944 film omitted this part.] Then there is still another surprise! Chapter 14 ties up the loose strings to this story.

The book is more complex than the 1944 film, and a better story. Read it before you see the film. [The basic story is similar to Shakespeare's "Hamlet".]

Maturation of James Cain's writing between "The Postman Always Rings Twice" to publication of "Double Indemnity" is obvious. To this reader, "Double Indemnity" is richer in text, more completely written, and truly incorporates a more deceitful and thoughtful murder(s).

"I know it's not true. I tell myself it's not true. But there's something in me. I don't know what. Maybe I'm crazy. But there's something in me that loves Death. I think of myself as Death, sometimes in a scarlet shroud. . .it doesn't seem terrible. It seems as though I'm doing something . . . Do you understand me, Walter?" Walter Neff, our protagonist narrator easily responds, "No."

By the book's end, in the last 15 pages, we learn a great deal about the meaning behind every word of every sentence of that paragraph. This paragraph explains Mrs. Phyllis Nirdlinger to us.

Like "Postman", the wife - Mrs. Nirdlinger - in this book is younger than her husband, she is pretty, came from Iowa and moved to then edenistic California. And, like "Postman", the protagonist is a gun for her to hire. Unlike "Postman", the woman is a black beauty incarnate. Walter does not know what to think of her. As he matures and learns more about her, the more he becomes perplexed. "I loved her like a rabbit loves a rattlesnake."

Eventually, like "Postman" each enters a "Prizzi's Honor" code of conduct - do unto the other as you would never allow the other to do unto you. Walter sets up a trap of the widow Nirdlinger, he thoughtfully sets her up for the kill and discovers, "I wasn't the only one that figured the world wasn't big enough for two people . . . I had come there to kill her, but . . . "

The next 10-15 pages outline who that woman is, where she has been and what she has done. Walter understandably acknowledges having been used, fesses up to his conduct and expects to be escorted to the electric chair. But like "Postman" the insurance company acquits evil - not with perjury, but in a manner as artful as the trial in "Postman." And, then. . . Cain delivers an ending which deciphers the second paragraph of this review - at that time we and Walter now can respond to her question in the affirmative. Oh, what a great ending.

Having read this book back-to-back with "Postman", each twists the plot like an all star mystery, but the more thorough and intellectual approach to murder described in this novel enticed this reader. And, the writing is more mature - not just dialogue as done in "Postman." Each is fun, each is great. I would never hesitate to recommend this book to anyone looking for a good mystery to read.

I saw Billy Wilder's 1948 movie before I read the original 1936 novel by Cain; the movie was exceptional - well paced, taught storytelling. The book is even better.

This is a simple story of love, murder, and insurance fraud. But the complexity of the written landscape by Cain is absolutely engulfing. Walter Huff, a scheming, self-serving insurance agent falls for Phyllis and they scheme to kill her husband for love and the insurance check. But, of course it is never that easy!

With snappy, well constructed dialog, Cain spins film noir better than any camera can.

Required reading for all natives and denizens of Los Angeles. A dark romp thru our fair city. Accompany Mildred as she traverses LA's golden past- shop with her at Bullocks Wilshire, sweat bullets in the passenger seat as she navigates the Glendale freeway during the flood of 1938, pine for Pasadena, pray that her girls get into Marlborough, imagine singing at the Hollywood Bowl, and marvel as our heroine with the great gams builds an empire out of chicken and waffles - of all things! Mildred is no ordinary pie maker, she's Los Angeles incarnate. Joan Crawford may have won an Oscar for her portrayal in 1945, but Cain's 1941 novel more evenly balances Mildred's capacity for good against a city steeped in bad seeds. And while the film presents Mildred's daughter, Veda, as simply spoiled and shrill, Cain's study presents her as the fully fleshed out viper to which all true divas secretly aspire. Read it and weep. ~ Lili N. Barsha 5/2008

Mildred Pierce proves the old adage that love is blind. Mildred proves that with the men in her life, but even more so with her daughter. Mildred is like many people who can't see the faults in her child, and even when she does she squeezes her eyes even tighter shut. I found this book to be much more captivating than Cain's more popular The Postman Always Rings Twice. This book is timeless, and the characters as believable today as the day they were driven.

I was inspired to read Mildred Pierce after hearing Wesltey Strick, screenwriter and novelists, discuss his new novel on Elvis Mitchell's NPR radio show "The Treatment." Strick said to get in the mood for his own writing, he reread Mildred Pierce and I was intrigued. I had read some other Cain novels and knew he was a master of terse crime fiction but I wasn't prepared for the psychological insight and complexity evident here. His descriptions of American gaucherie and philistinism are unparalleled. His complexity between the mother and daughter is unforced.

The plot, about a Billy Goat husband who leaves his pretty wife for a trashy woman in Southern California circa the Depression, begins simply enough, but spins into penetrating psychological pathology.

His ability to capture America's sense of the American Dream and bad taste reminds me of Paula Fox's novella Desperate Characters and a masterful essay by William E. Blundell's "My Florida," published in the 2005 edition of The Best American Travel Writing.

A man tends to his lawn, showers, gets dressed, tells his wife that he's going for a walk. She knows better --- he's going to see his mistress "and then unbutton that red dress she's always wearing without any brassieres under it." But it's not the mistress that annoys her most. It's the way, in 1931, he's without work and not exactly looking for any.

So far, so ordinary.

Then the author steps in: "They spoke quickly, as though they were saying things that scalded their mouths, and had to cooled with spit. "

That's James M. Cain, folks, the master of the quick, dark truth.

When Cain wrote "Mildred Pierce," his fame and fortune were assured. In the 1930s, he had published "The Postman Always Rings Twice" and "Double Indemnity." These two short, brutal novels had scandalized the bluenoses and become bestsellers. He'd found a formula that, in a repressed culture, never fails --- serving up hot, illicit sex and then punishing the lovers.

In "Mildred Pierce," he adapted the formula and, in the process, wrote what I believe is his best novel. Here the shapely, sexy woman is a wife and mother who wants to stay married. She throws her husband out as a statement of self-respect. It's a costly gesture. As a friend says, "You've joined the biggest army on earth. You're the great American institution that never gets mentioned on Fourth of July --- a grass widow with two small children to support. The dirty bastards."

Mildred's assets are few. She can bake. And she's got a bod for sin. "Her brassiere ballooned a little, with an extremely seductive burden." Although she's got great gams, she feels she's slightly bow-legged, so she takes short steps when she walks. To great effect --- "her bottom twitched in a wholly provocative way."

It's not long before two realities collide. She has no trouble finding a lover (and discovering that she enjoys sex) --- but it's impossible to get a job. For one thing, she is without qualifications. For another, she fears that her eldest daughter, the beautiful and haughty Veda, will scorn her if she wears a waitress's uniform or becomes a clerk in a store.

But a waitress she becomes. And money flows in. Veda is, as expected, horrified. She says Mildred has "degraded" the family. Mildred's response: She spanks Veda silly. To no point. Veda crawls to a couch, laughs and whispers: "A waitress."

It is then that Mildred realizes that she fears her daughter's judgment, "her snobbery, her contempt, her unbreakable spirit." She resolves to open a restaurant, to be a waitress no more. And she thanks her daughter for prodding her to aim higher: "We'll have something. And it'll all be on account of you. Every good thing that happens is on account of you, if Mother only had the good sense to know it."

On the eve of the opening of Mildred's restaurant, she spends the weekend with a society swell and becomes his lover. Back home, her younger daughter has spiked a fever and is in the hospital. The death scene is terrible. Even worse is Mildred's reaction: Thank God it wasn't Veda.

Death and birth collide: As she buries her child, Mildred opens her restaurant. It's a great success. But we have half a book to go, and this half is a slow-mo train wreck --- the story of Veda's evil ways, her schemes to escape her mother and Mildred's shameless effort to win her love.

You think your kids have foul, disrespectful mouths? Listen to Veda: "With this money I can get away from you. From you and your chickens and your pies and your kitchens and everything that smells of grease. I can get away from this shack with its cheap furniture. And this town and its dollar days, and its women that wear uniforms and its men that wear overalls."

Through it all, Mildred is Mother Courage. Her will and her work ethic dazzle. But can Veda be redeemed?

In the movie --- directed by Michael ("Casablanca") Curtiz and starring Joan Crawford, her shoulders so padded she could be a linebacker --- the story is changed for greater dramatic effect. In the book, there's no need; this time, the female is punished and punished and punished, though she's done nothing to deserve it.

"Mildred Pierce" is twice as long as "Postman" and "Double Indemnity" --- and, say I, twice as satisfying. Face it, you're not likely to take a married lover and then kill his/her spouse. But most parents have, at one time or another, a child whose ingratitude is sharper than a serpent's tooth. Well, here's the worst case --- read it and weep for Mildred, then count your blessings.

The book and the movie are both great. The content of this book was a little unusual for the 1940s. I was surprised that the book has a totally different ending than the movie. I have seen the movie several times, and decided to read the book. I am so glad I did, and my husband really enjoyed this book too. Mildred is a great character. She was a woman before her time. Stepping out to have her own business. Not too many women in those times would have had the courage to do such a thing. Her daughter, Veda, is a BRAT. Mildred is a "disney land" parent. She thinks the more she gives the more her daughter will love her. This is a good example for divorced parents today. They feel compelled to give their kids too many "material" things and they really just need to spend more time with their children and learn to say "No". If you haven't read or seen the movie, I would suggest you do both.