Little Green

Like the previous Easy Rawlins mysteries, this is a lively and pleasurable read. The characters are fascinating, the dialog is vivid and often humorous, and the subtext always includes racial tension.  One of the more colorful character's is Easy's likable but extremely violent friend, Mouse.  In this book, for example, Easy is recovering from a near fatal auto accident - Mouse actually found and saved him - and after he has regained consciousness, Mouse takes Easy to his old apartment, which, they find, is now occupied by Jeffrey, who initially refuses to let them in.  Mouse takes out his long-barreled .41 and hits Jeffrey "in the center of his vast forehead."  Mouse again asks Jeffrey what he's doing here and he answers:

"I live here!  The man who owned this place died and I......I homesteaded it".

There was blood coming from Jeffrey's forehead, but we all knew that was the least of his problems."

 Well, in addition to the outlandish incidents, the social commentary is very interesting.  The events of Little Green are set within the hippie community of LA in the '60s and a recurrent observation of Easy's is how the hippies take a much more inclusive view of diversity - and that maybe this holds some hope for future relationships between black and white men. An interesting and entertaining read!

The Long Fall

I previously reviewed a Walter Mosley Leonid McGill mystery entitled The Thrill is Gone. This one, the first in the Leonid McGill series, is also set in New York and again involves the hard, street-savvy McGill sorting out the complex and sordid story that lies behind the sanitized assignment he accepts from a lawyer acting on behalf of an undisclosed client. When, however, McGill discovers that the "missing persons" he has located are being murdered in succession, he takes a deeper and more perilous interest in the case. As always, Mosley offers sharp dialog, interesting human interactions and a window into the cynical and tough-guy side of New York City. For me, though, the earlier Mosleys - written before 2000, say - are still the best.

When the Thrill is Gone

Walter Mosley writes vivid mysteries and crime stories, usually set in LA, but sometimes elsewhere, as this one, which is set in New York City. Many of the stories have a noir feel and all feature very sharp urban dialog that's a pleasure to read. The subtext of all the stories is race relations, embodied in the action, rather than described. This one, in the Leonard McGill series, was not my favorite (I have most enjoyed the books featuring Easy Rawlins or Fearless Jones) but still had wonderful moments of human interaction. Any Mosley is a pleasure!