Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Fiction Subjects

The Golden Gizmo

Name: The Golden Gizmo
Author: Jim Thompson
ISBN: 9780375700323

by Jim Thompson

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Overview

One of Thompson's most outrageous works of fiction, the Golden Gizmo incorporates elements of the classic American tall tale with descriptions of the particularly hardboiled criminal underclass of 1950's L.A.. Toddy Kent is a hustler, seeking out sources of easy money in the most unlikely places thanks to a sixth-sense he has, known as a 'gizmo,' after the G.I. term for something unidentifiable. He does not know how it works; if he did than maybe he could prevent the inconvenient inconsistencies that often leave him high and dry at the worst times. A transient life leaves Toddy with an extensive rap sheet and a runaround wife, eventually landing him on the gray side of legal in LA county. Then, his gizmo strikes with a hunch he cannot ignore, leading him to an unknown source of gold. Of course it comes at a price to Toddy. His wife turns up dead--murdered--and he finds himself stalked by a chinless man with a talking doberman that sings hymns before it kills. Thomspon's portrayal of the incurable criminal who has no control over his situation goes from hilarious to horrifying. Through Toddy's attempts to understand his situation, the reader is lead through the strip joints, brothels and seedy bars of a different era, when L.A. was capital of the world of illusion.

Synopsis

Small-time hustler Toddy Kent's sixth sense has always led to trouble but rarely misses the gold. This time his unruly golden gizmo leads him to murder, corruption and an enormous maniac pooch.

New Republic

Like Clint Eastwood s pictures, it s the stuff for rednecks, truckers, failures, psychopaths, and professors...one of the finest American writers and the most frightening, Thompson is the one on best terms with the devil.

About the Author, Jim Thompson

(1906 - 1977) James Meyers Thompson was born in Anadarko, Oklahoma. He began writing fiction at a very young age, selling his first story to True Detective when he was only fourteen. Thompson eventually wrote twenty-nine novels, all but three of which were published as paperback originals. Thompson also wrote two screenplays (for the Stanley Kubrick films “The Killing” and “Paths of Glory”). An outstanding crime writer, the world of his fiction is rife with violence and corruption. In examining the underbelly of human experience and American society in particular, Thompson’s work at its best is both philosophical and experimental. Several of his novels have been filmed by American and French directors, resulting in classic noir including The Killer Inside Me (1952), After Dark My Sweet (1955), and The Grifters (1963).

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Editorials

New Republic

Like Clint Eastwood’s pictures, it’s the stuff for rednecks, truckers, failures, psychopaths, and professors...one of the finest American writers and the most frightening, Thompson is the one on best terms with the devil.

Library Journal

Another of Thompson's autobiographical titles and supposedly true, fans know that half of this is inseparable from his crime writings. Whether fact or fiction, this 1954 title makes for fun reading. Also look for Thompson's novel The Golden Gizmo.