I had never read Dashiell Hammett before picking up this book. According to other reviewers, The Dain Curse is atypical of Hammett, but of course that doesn’t matter to a first-time reader. I wanted to try something from the master of 1920s hard-boiled detective fiction, and sure enough the book was entertaining, despite a plot so convoluted and incomprehensible you could break it into thirds and have enough for three good-sized Robert Crais adventures.
Hammett is generally credited with inventing the hard-boiled detective story, and was its leading proponent until Raymond Chandler came along a decade later. Still, Chandler respected Hammett and with good reason. Hammett’s book, despite being published in the late 1920s, still seems fresh and interesting. (Another interesting point is learning just how much of modern life was already in place in 1928. Vacuum cleaners, long-distance phone calls, the insanity defense…all of these appear in the novel.)
Equally interesting were the parts that have changed. Some of the slang was completely lost on me (anyone out there know what a “darb” is…?), and the way that different races are described – and treated – in the book shows the huge distance that American society has traveled since it was published. And then you have exchanges like the following – between a woman in her 20s and the hero, the nameless Continental Op – that let you know you’re not dealing with anything too modern:
She laughed suddenly, asking:
“Will you beat me if I’m bad?”
I said she might still be young enough for a spanking to do her good.
Still, Hammett’s writing is fresh even after all these years and laugh-out-loud funny in places. His scenes are original and the story carries you along well, even if you don’t really have any idea what’s going on with the plot. Although word has it that his other books are better, I would recommend this one to anybody who has an interest in crime fiction, as well as any student of literary history. If The Dain Curse is the worst of the lot, I very much look forward to reading his other novels.
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