THE OUTFIT BY RICHARD STARK

Historical data:
Originally published 1963
This edition Chicago University Press
cover price $14.00
As by Richard Stark AKA the late Donald Westlake

This is the third in the Parker series and although I enjoyed the previous book, The Man with the Getaway Face, this third volume is much more in the style of the debut Parker novel, The Hunter. Indeed the first three Parker books are something of a trilogy.

When we left Parker he'd had a facelift, robbed an armoured car, wasted the bird who fingered the robbery and avenged the death of his plastic surgeon. And all in the usual bizarrely humorous Parker style. This third books starts with Parker still getting trouble from the outfit - word on his new face is out and having to constantly look over his shoulder is making it difficult to operate.

Parker's fed up of running and he decides to become such a thorn in the outfit's side they they lay off him. Another relentlessly paced thriller follows with Parker coming across as brutally nasty and yet compelling as ever. Even with the author's minimalist style the book is highly coloured and the network of professional thieves Parker mobilises to hit at the Outfit are as well organised as any covert governmental department.

The Parker books are true classics - perhaps a little too brutal and morally ambiguous for the mainstream, but I have no doubt that the Parker books will one day be up there with the classics of noir. Or,as the French call them, Roman noir - the term roman noir (“black novel") was employed to describe a range of books, some that an English speaker might think of as mysteries, others as gothic melodramas.


On a personal level I'm still a newcomer to the books - I've done the first three as well as several of the later Parker books and I've enjoyed each and every one. Though Parker does seem to become a slightly mellower character in the later adventures and, although still worth reading, it is these early books that are the real deal.

The world Parker in which operates is a very real world that exists in parallel with the commonplace and Richard Stark (Donald Westlake) knows this world very well.

These are excellent books and my favourite series at the moment.

PARKER'S ON THE WAY FOR ALL FOOLS' DAY

The University of Chicago Press continue with their programme which will eventually see all of the original Parker run back in print. April 1st, April fools day, will see the return to print of The Black Ice Score which was originally published way back in 1965.

Everyone knows the Parker books are uniformly brilliant and Parker is a brutally awesome creation.

JONAH HEX AND MORE PARKER GRAPHIC NOVELS

CBR

has an interview with comic book creator, Darwyn Cooke in which the writer and artist talks about his stint on a forthcoming Jonah Hex strip. He also talks about the second graphic novel to be based on Richard Stark's Parker - The Outfit. Apparently after the success of The Hunter the creators decided to skip the second novel and go straight to the third book for their next strip. Click on the link above for the full interview.

THE MAN WITH THE GETAWAY FACE - RICHARD STARK

The Man with the Getaway Face
Richard Stark
University of Chicago Press
$14.00

This is actually the second in Richard Stark AKA Donald Westlake's Parker series and starts off immediately after the first novel Hunter AKA Point Blank AKA Payback. I'd read The Hunter and several of the later novels, those written following Comeback which saw the return of Parker after a 20 year gap.

Stark's later stuff and versions of The Hunter, usually under the title of Point Blank, are readily available in the UK but anything between Hunter and Comeback is difficult to find. But fear not, it's over to the book buyers best friend, Amazon and a day after ordering the book comes through my letter box.

These are handsome editions from the Chicago University Press who have undertaken a programme that will see the return of all of the first run of Parker/Stark novels.

Here is a press release from the Chicago University

Press Release: Three Parker Novels by RICHARD STARK

According to the New York Times, Donald Westlake was “one of the most successful and versatile mystery writers in the United States,” with over 100 books to his name. The University of Chicago Press has embarked on a project to return the early volumes of his Parker series, written under the pseudonym Richard Stark, to print for a new generation of readers to discover—and become addicted to. These reprints will feature volumes 1-16 of the incredible series, through Butcher’s Moon.

Stark’s ruthless antihero is one of the most unforgettable characters in hardboiled noir. Lauded by critics for his taut realism, unapologetic amorality, and razor-sharp prose-style—and adored by fans who turn each intoxicating page with increasing urgency—Richard Stark is a master of crime writing, his books as influential as any in the genre.

Read the press release, and read this interview with the author.

Also see our complete list of books currently available in the series.

Pictured left is the original paperback edition of The Man with the Getaway Face and below that The Hunter, renamed Payback for a movie tie-in version of the Mel Gibson movie. The novel was also filmed as Payback with Lee Marvin in the title role. The name Parker was not used in either film though and in Payback Gibson was Porter and Lee Marvin was Walker in Point Blank. This was a proviso by the author - who didn't want the Parker name used unless films makers would remain faithful to the books. Not on the Payback novel the author is credited to Donald Westlake - a further attempt to distinguish the film from its source novels as all the Parkers are credited to Richard Stark.

Both are good films - Point Blank the better of the two - but neither come close to the sheer seductive brutality of the original novels.

The Man with the Getaway Face is, like The Hunter, an awesome book. Man, I'm addicted to the character and have to track down the other titles. I've already order the next two books in the series and will probably buy two a month till I've got the lot.

OK - so what did I think of TMWTGF? It was awesome - brilliant and every bit as good as The Hunter. Course I was more familiar with the character this time so I knew what to expect. But the story moved so well, Parker's seedy underworld so vividly drawn that I defy anyone to not keep turning the pages. Once started the reader is hooked.

Parker, after the problems with The Outfit, in Payback undertakes plastic surgery - carried out by a quality doctor called Ardler. After the operation Parker is handed a note that has come for him while he has been convalescing and immediately he's off on another job - this time to rob a pay truck. Problem is Parker's not happy with the way the job 's been worked out and he suspects a double cross from the woman who fingered the job in the first place.

I don't want to give too much detail away for fear of spoiling a tightly planned story with several twists but I will say that the character of Stubbs is so well realised that the man comes living and breathing from the page. But then Parker's entire world is vividly drawn and it feels just like the world outside your window only with an imperceptible tweak. It all seems so real and Parker, immoral, cold, has no endearing qualities, but all the same you'll love every second you spend with the old bastard.

If you've read any of the Parker books then you'll know what I am raving about but if you haven't and you enjoy hard-boiled crime fiction then you really need to try one of these books.

WHAT'S SO FUNNY - DONALD WESTLAKE

Donald Westlake
Quercus £7.99


This is the first Dortmunder I've ever read - you see the trouble with American writers who are not household names, not in the mega bestseller lists, is that a lot of us in other countries never get to hear of them. We certainly don't see them in most of our bookshops - the Internet is changing all that and genre specific sites can reach readers all over the Wild West Web. That's how I discovered Donald Westlake's other half - Richard Stark. When I read Point Blank (originally The Hunter) I was hooked. The character of Parker was an eye-opener for me, I'd never met anyone quite like this man in all fiction. I was then on a mission, I still am, to get all the Stark/Parker books.

I still avoided Dortmunder, though. I'd never seen the Robert Redford movie based on the character, nor in fact was I even aware of it. Shame on me.

I'd learned that Richard Stark was a name used by writer, Donald Westlake for a series of brutal crime novels, primarily about Parker but that the author also wrote equally entertaining crime novels under his real name, Donald Westlake. I read Hard Case Crime's Somebody Owes Me Money and enjoyed it but it was hardly in the same league as the brilliantly brutal, Parker. I became aware of Westlake' s Dortmunder series through various Internet sites and forums but for some reason I got the impression that the books, although highly praised, were out and out comedy crime novels.

Maybe it's the way they are marketed - look at the first cover image, this is a cool, subdued almost moody picture from the UK edition I finally picked up. But in contrast the original American cover looks like a tame crime caper, the type of thing you see in daytime detective series on the television. Not that there's anything wrong with daytime crime capers - hey, we've all got our thing.

However it was discovering that the first Dortmunder novel had actually started out as a Parker story led me to finally take the plunge. Dortmunder's first appearance was in 1970's, The Hot Rock. The story about the theft and loss and recovery and loss again of a precious gem wasn't working. The author realised the problem was Parker, then the main character, and that the story didn't suit his persona. And so Parker was rewritten into John Dortmunder. The character is like Parker in many ways but not so brutal. You could never imagine Dortmunder coldly killing someone who gets in his way and yet the universe he inhabits is very much the Parkerverse.

What's so Funny is actually the penultimate Dortmunder novel. It wasn't planned like that but the author, Donald Westlake sadly passed away after completing a further Dortmunder, Get Real. According to the WIKI there were a total of 14 Dortmunder novels - so one down, thirteen to go.

You see there's this ex-cop turned PI who holds some pretty incriminating evidence on Dortmunder and together with all his contacts still in the force, all linked together by this new internet thing, he makes it pretty clear that he has the power to send our hero, career thief John Dortmunder away for a very long time. That doesn't really appeal to Dortmunder but then nor does the alternative - a seemingly impossible scheme to steal a solid gold chess set from a vault beneath a Manhattan Bank.

Like the Parker books the dialogue is straight forward and direct - often hilarious it leaps from the page, each character having a distinct cadence. You instantly know which character is speaking from what they are saying and the way they are saying it. It's a talent that leaves me in awe of Mr. Westlake.

Dortmunder decides he has no choice but to play along with the ex-cop, knowing that the scheme is impossible. but figuring that the ex-cop will realise this in the end and, with no hard feelings, walk away from the plan. Hey, they tried right. However as the story goes on and more and more characters are sucked into the scheme it begins to look like they are going to try after all. However at about the half way point, the author pulls the rug out from under us and we realise that the scheme was, as initially thought, impossible. And that the Macguffin has no further use in the story, it's done its job, introduced us to characters and conflict - but wait a minute there are loose ends to tie up. And just when you think you've got the handle on the way things are going to go the author once again uses slight of hand to throw the reader into a quandary. The theft is going to happen after all, ...isn't it?

To say anything else about this book would be to risk spoilers and I'm not going to do that - if you haven't read it you are in for a treat - it is comical but the comedy comes naturally out of the characters and situations and above all it's suspenseful and John Dortmunder himself is a brilliant creation. I still prefer Parker but Dortmunder comes close and I'll certainly be reading the rest of the titles in the series. Maybe I'll alternate between Parker and Dortmunder and get the best of both worlds.

Donald Westlake WEBSITE

ASK THE PARROT - RICHARD STARK

ASK THE PARROT
RICHARD STARK
QUERCUS BOOKS
£6.99 (USA COVER SHOWN)

Parker's back and it's just like him to be thrown into the action from the first page - when this book opens he's running through a woodland, the police in pursuit after a bank heist - he can hear the police dogs behind him and he runs straight into a pointed gun.

The guy holding the gun's not a cop, though. But local Tom Lindahl who has his own plans for Parker. The man, a recluse, who lives along with a mute parrot is bitter and when he comes across Parker he sees a plan to get back at those who wronged him in the past and in doing so become incredibly rich.

An early scene in the book, where Parker with Lindahl joins up with the posse looking for him bristles with suspense and excitement. The reader is always aware of what Parker is capable of and at any moment he could hit boiling point.

Man, I love the Parker books and I've still got so many more to discover.

PARKER'S BACK IN GRAPHIC FORM

Darwyn Cooke's graphic novel of Richard Stark's first Parker novel, The Hunter AKA Point Blank AKA Payback is due to hit stores in July. Fans eager to see the book can find a preview HERE.

I'm more than looking forward to this one myself, having only recently discovered the Parker books and reading The Hunter for the most part with my mouth hanging open in amazement.

The books really are wonderful and the graphic novel looks to be shaping up nicely - go and check out the preview and look at the first few pages.

FLASHFIRE - PARKER'S BACK

FLASHFIRE
RICHARD STARK
QUERCUS £7.99

This is only the second Parker book I've read - that fact that it's number 23 in the series did nothing to spoil my enjoyment and I didn't need to know the entire history of the series to follow the story. In fact it's very much a standalone novel and once again has left me eager to start my next Stark/Parker.

The book starts off with a bang when Parker tosses a petrol bomb into a garage in order to create a diversion for an armed gang to carry out a robbery in another part of town.

However Parker's double crossed by the gang who want to keep his stake in order to finance a jewel robbery further down the line. Their big mistake is leaving Parker alive when they flee to carry out their plans.

Another lesson in hardboild excellence that left me clamouring for more of the enigmatic Parker and I've just moved Firebreak, another Parker, to the top of my TBR pile.

Parker, stubborn old git that he is follows the gang to Palm Springs and sets about putting a plan together that will see his money returned to him, or at least that's the theory. As with The Hunter, the only other Parker I've read thus far, the story moves along at a breakneck pace. And Parker's just as nasty as ever and totally without redeeming features.

PAYBACK

I saw this movie a few years back and remember enjoying it but, in those days, I never knew anything about the Richard Stark/Parker book on which it was based. And then recently I read my first Parker - The Hunter and was so impressed that I wanted to see the movie again.

And so one Amazon order later the disc is spinning in my DVD player.

Okay it's still an enjoyable enough movie but after reading the book the flaws become visible. Firstly in this movie the Parker character is called Porter - I don't understand the reasoning behind the name change. And secondly although the character goes against Mel Gibson's "NICE GUY" image (or at least the image he used to have) it's still a watered down version of the remarkable character Richard Stark/Donald Westlake invented.

There are a few major plot changes too - although the reasoning for Porter/Parker's wife double crossing and shooting him is stronger than the book, the rest of the film, particularly the Hollywood ending, is much weaker.

Mel Gibson is fine in the role and does come across, for the most part, as the nasty lowlife of the books but as always the book is far inferior to the source material.

A good film then, very good in fact, but not exactly Richard Stark's Parker. In fact I think I liked it a lot more when I didn't have the book to compare it with.

The other film based on the book was Point Blank which again I haven't seen for years but I've got that movie on the way so expect a review here soon.