I would like to thank NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for a copy of The Annotated Big Sleep for an honest review.
Raymond Chandler's first novel, The Big Sleep, is a masterpiece of the noir and is on the "1001 Books to Read Before You Die List" and I always wanted to read it. This annotated book gives notes and images alongside the full text of the novel. I was able to gain insight of what Los Angeles was like during the 1920's which included maps and images of famous buildings, notes from Chandler's personal letters, pictures of hairstyles and clothing from the characters and an analysis of class, gender, sexuality and ethnicity mentioned in the book. The main character, Philip Marlowe, was brought to life along with pictures of Humphrey Bogart and Robert Mitchum who played Marlowe on film. Not only was I able to enjoy reading The Big Sleep but I got a lot more than I bargained for by reading The Annotated Big Sleep.
Credit for this version of The Big Sleep should be given to the editors, Owen Hill, Pamela Jackson and Anthony Rizzuto, who did an excellent job putting this book together. I would highly recommend this book as an addition to any crime fiction fan's library and hope that you would enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed reading The Annotated Big Sleep.
Raymond Chandler's first novel, The Big Sleep, is a masterpiece of the noir and is on the "1001 Books to Read Before You Die List" and I always wanted to read it. This annotated book gives notes and images alongside the full text of the novel. I was able to gain insight of what Los Angeles was like during the 1920's which included maps and images of famous buildings, notes from Chandler's personal letters, pictures of hairstyles and clothing from the characters and an analysis of class, gender, sexuality and ethnicity mentioned in the book. The main character, Philip Marlowe, was brought to life along with pictures of Humphrey Bogart and Robert Mitchum who played Marlowe on film. Not only was I able to enjoy reading The Big Sleep but I got a lot more than I bargained for by reading The Annotated Big Sleep.
Credit for this version of The Big Sleep should be given to the editors, Owen Hill, Pamela Jackson and Anthony Rizzuto, who did an excellent job putting this book together. I would highly recommend this book as an addition to any crime fiction fan's library and hope that you would enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed reading The Annotated Big Sleep.
