Title: Drive
Author: James Sallis
First published September 1, 2005
158 pages, Paperback
ISBN: 9780547791098 (ISBN10: 0547791097)
Rating: 3.46
Overview
The life of the enigmatic Driver revolves around driving. He’s a stunt driver for movies and a wheelman for robberies.
But when a heist doesn’t go as planned, he finds himself with a contract on his head. From Los Angeles to the Arizona desert, the chase is on, and Driver will need all his survival skills to stay alive.
James Sallis, author of the popular Lew Griffin detective series and Cypress Grove, delivers another gripping crime novel with his signature quirky literary stylings. With lines like “Time went by, which is what time does, what it is,” Drive is a masterfully written neo-noir worthy of comparison to French noir giant Jean-Patrick Manchette.
About the Author
James Sallis, a multi-talented artist, was born on December 21, 1944, in Helena, Arkansas. He has made a name for himself as a crime writer, poet, and musician.
What sets him apart is his series of novels that revolve around Lew Griffin, set in the vibrant city of New Orleans. Another work that made him a household name is his 2005 novel, Drive.
It’s a gripping story that was later adapted into a movie in 2011, retaining the same title.
Editoral Review
Drive by James Sallis is a classic piece of noir fiction that will keep you hooked from beginning to end. Sallis is an award-winning crime novelist and poet, who has always had a flair for writing about gritty underworlds and characters who are layered, complex and often tragic.
Drive is a slim novel that is tightly constructed, with a lean muscularity to its writing that puts you right in the middle of the action. Sallis doesn’t waste any time getting us up to speed, quickly immersing us in the world of the unnamed protagonist, who is a man of few words and many secrets.
Plot Summary
The book follows an unnamed driver, who works as a stunt driver for movie studios during the day but moonlights as a getaway driver for criminals at night to supplement his income. His quiet existence is upended when he gets drawn into a dangerous conspiracy after agreeing to help his neighbor, a young mother, and her son from the clutches of ruthless gangsters.
The driver is a man of few words, solitude, and self-discipline. He also has a traumatic past that he keeps hidden, which has made him want to avoid any emotional attachments to people.
Despite this, the driver becomes invested in his neighbor’s safety, and as he delves deeper into the seedy underworld of the criminals and their employers, the driver is forced to confront who he is and what he stands for.
Critical Analysis
Sallis’s writing style is lean, punchy, and poetic. Everything in Drive serves a specific purpose, and that sense of economy and precision drives the story forward.
The book is not just about high-speed car chases and gritty violence, but it’s also about character development, self-reflection, and redemption. Despite its short length, Sallis skillfully crafts Drive’s plot, pacing, and characters, leaving no stone unturned.
Sallis uses fragmented time frames and jumps back and forth in the character’s past to give the reader insights into the driver’s persona, creating an elusive, chaotic yet grounding effect to the novel. The themes of Drive are familiar, ranging from love and loss, identity, masculinity, and redemption, but the way Sallis explores and weaves these themes into the storyline builds depth and meaning to the overall plot.
The book seems to pay homage to the noir films of the 1940s and 50s, which is evident in the way the story is narrated, the shadowy characters, and the pervasive sense of doom that hangs over the driver. The book’s setting is Los Angeles, which Sallis uses as a backdrop to highlight the city’s underbelly’s seedy aspect.
Despite its many strengths, Drive has some limitations. The book’s fragmented structure may be challenging for some readers to follow, and the ending can feel slightly rushed, resolving the plot a bit too conveniently.
Recommendation
Drive is an excellent read for those who love noir fiction, but it’s also much more than that. It’s a complex meditation on the human psyche and how people try to make sense of their pasts and their actions.
The book’s exploration of themes such as identity and redemption makes it an ideal book club choice as well. For fans of James Sallis, Drive is one of his finest examples of his work to date.
For newcomers to his writing, Drive is the perfect introduction to his style and storytelling abilities. Overall, Drive is a tightly crafted, poetic, and thought-provoking novel that packs a punch in all the right places.
It’s a true masterpiece that lingers long after you’ve turned the final page. Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
