The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler BOOK REVIEW

TL;DR

Raymond Chandler’s The Big Sleep is presented as classic hard-boiled crime fiction distinguished by its secretive, corrupt vision of 1930s Los Angeles. Published in 1939, it begins the Philip Marlowe series and surrounds its detective with cigarette smoke, alcohol, hidden information, beauty and tragedy. Read on for the reviewer’s assessment of its setting, atmosphere and noir world.

Transcript

don't you feel that like in all these film noirs somebody's always like wearing like a bathrobe or a smoking jacket and just like pulls you know one hand in their pocket and they're just like pulling it out and they're like ah she ain't got you now just wait till i whip out my other gun better than food man good morning everyone welcome to better f... Read More

Key Insights

• "the big sleep is a hard-boiled 1930s detective novel by the american british author raymond chandler published in 1939" (1:05)
• "it's the first in the philip marlowe series the detective philip marlow and it's the first chandler that i've read" (1:10)
• "classic l.a noir crime fiction saturated in cigarette smoke and soaked in booze" (1:18)
• "l.a is a city behind closed doors seen from the windows of cars it's a hidden city in many ways" (3:13)
• "in chandler's world everybody's corrupt everyone has secrets and is withholding information no one is to be trusted nobody" (3:21)

Questions & Answers

Q: What is The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler about?

The Big Sleep is a hard-boiled detective novel concerned with the crooked, corrupt, bizarre and perverse side of Los Angeles. Its world is filled with secrets, withheld information and people who cannot be trusted.

Q: When was The Big Sleep published?

The Big Sleep was published in 1939. The reviewer describes it as a 1930s detective novel and classic Los Angeles noir crime fiction.

Q: Is The Big Sleep the first Philip Marlowe novel?

Yes. The Big Sleep is the first novel in Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe series.

Q: Where and when does The Big Sleep take place?

The novel takes place in Los Angeles during the 1930s. The reviewer characterizes Chandler’s Los Angeles as grim, dusty and constantly rainy.

Q: How does the review describe the atmosphere of The Big Sleep?

The review describes the novel as saturated in cigarette smoke and soaked in booze. Its atmosphere combines classic film-noir imagery with corruption, secrecy and danger.

Q: How is Los Angeles portrayed in The Big Sleep?

Los Angeles is portrayed as a hidden city behind closed doors and seen from car windows. The story opens some of those doors, moving from beauty and tragedy toward the city’s crooked, corrupt and bizarre side.

Q: Can the characters in The Big Sleep be trusted?

According to the reviewer, nobody in Chandler’s world can be trusted. Everyone is corrupt, has secrets and withholds information.

Q: Was The Big Sleep the reviewer’s first Raymond Chandler book?

Yes. The reviewer says The Big Sleep was the first Raymond Chandler novel he had read, despite having intended to read Chandler for years.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• "The Big Sleep" by Raymond Chandler is a hard-boiled detective novel set in 1930s LA, featuring the iconic character Philip Marlowe.

• Chandler's descriptive writing brings the gritty and corrupt world of LA to life, filled with characters with hidden agendas and dark secrets.

• With its dry humor, complex characters, and noir atmosphere, "The Big Sleep" is a must-read for fans of crime fiction.