Recommend a sequence of novels leading from action trash to literary treasure

October 29, 2009 3:21 PM

I am looking for recommendations for a sequence of novels that might lead an adult fan of very trashy action to the real gold.

The sequence needs to start at Matthew Reilly's Temple and I don't know where it would end. It doesn't have to make it to Ulysses or Gravity's Rainbow^* but if you think you could plot such a path then go for it. If you want to specify what each step gains/loses I'd love to see that, too.

Take as many steps as you like. Given that people's tastes tend to change slowly more steps might be better.

You don't have to stick to the action genre, but please no horror. Sci-fi is okay, but the reader in question is not a big fan of it.

Thanks

(I'm secretly hoping we are going to witness the birth pangs of a giant flowchart of readerly goodness.)

 

^*Insert actual pinnacle of literature here.

posted by hifimofo to writing & language (11 comments total)

I don't know Temple, but taking a look at the synopsis, I can recommend some transitions from it. These are are the crime/thriller novels which are still pretty enthralling reads, but move into more solid literary ground. Most of these are books I used to read a few years back, after my parents left them lying around.

Three authors of crime thrillers that I've really enjoyed in the past. I'm not too sure whether these are more or less 'literary' than the starting point.

Robert Crais writes a very melancholic series of detective/thriller noir novels starring Elvis Cole. I read The Last Detective which was excellent, and some others.

James Lee Burke in a similar vein writes crime, his main series stars Dave Robicheaux. Can't remember which ones I read, but I definitely enjoyed them.

Lee Child is famous for the Jack Reacher series, and I've read a couple of them, but really, the first one, Killing Floor, is by far the best. Maybe the quality has improved recently, but the last I read of the series he was rehashing the basic ideas and the resulting stories were utterly tired. But Killing Floor is punchy and fresh.

Moving along, The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy is an incredible book. Can't go wrong there. It's pretty fatalistic, but it is recognised as an important novel, with literary significance.

From this basis I would move on to Ian Rankin. His Rebus novels have become progressively more nuanced, at their best they are poignant meditations on human nature.

I might also throw in some Roald Dahl short stories. Classic literature with Dahl's searing wit, and highly digestible, which should appeal to you.
posted by schmichael at 4:00 PM on October 29

I like this question--it's good and hard. I've never read Matthew Reilly, but based on the Amazon description it looks kind of... Tom-Clancy-ish, with maybe some mysticism mixed in? And a little on the long side.

So let's try, in sequence--

Matthew Reilly--Temple
Anything by Tom Clancy (more realistic than Temple appears to be to me--you could maybe even skip this step)
Anything by Robert Ludlum that has the CIA or a similar organization in it
Robert Littell--The Company (espionage and intrigue, long like Clancy, but a little more literary, and very immersive)
Robert Littell--Legends (a short book, also a thriller. There are some interesting postmodern conceits in this book about the nature of identity that don't draw a lot of undue attention to themselves.)
Something by John Le Carre next? The Tailor of Panama? Then:
Norman Mailer--Harlot's Ghost (this is the shakiest step, admittedly--either you tore through this book or you put it down after 100 pages. But by this point we are safely middlebrow. And if you like that, then Oswald's Tale or The Executioner's Song are possibilities.)
Joseph Conrad--The Secret Agent
(And if you like that, then Conrad's Nostromo.)
And then--if you want another mystery novel, chock full of intrigue? That sort of makes fun of the structure and content of mystery novels? And is a little strange, but really quick to read? Thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49.

Maybe that's too short a sequence. But the takeaway here is that Robert Littell should be viewed as the gateway drug to middlebrow, and Lot 49 as the gateway drug to highbrow.
posted by Prospero at 4:01 PM on October 29 [1 favorite]

Ok, I just looked up Matthew Riley, and man, you were not kidding about trashy action. Military gorillas on an atoll? Holy crap. That is trash on toast. I would try to make a full list, but I'm not sure where to begin. Let me take a stab at offering some suggestions, though.

Charlie Huston: His Joe Pitt vampire series and his Hank Thompson trilogy are well worth checking out.

Allan Guthrie: He writes very violent, but funny novels that can be read as a critique of the whole hard-boiled/noir school of writing. Not to everyone's taste, but good reads with plenty of action even if the reader doesn't exactly get Guthrie's finer points.

Dave Zeltserman: Like Guthrie, this is dark stuff. His Small Crimes and Pariah are pretty much essential reading, though.

Richard Stark's (Donald Westlake's) Parker Novels. These have received a great deal of praise from the likes of Luc Sante and John Banville. They've been compared to Simenon's work. (Stay away from Maigret.)


And then there's the previously mentioned James Ellroy. Try the Underworld USA trilogy.
posted by dortmunder at 4:21 PM on October 29

I'm going to echo some of the above here.

Start with a Parker novel, preferably The Hunter. From there, Charlie Houston to James M. Cain to Jim Thompson (The Grifters or The Getaway) to James Ellroy (The USA Trilogy or The L.A. Quartet or preferably both) to Hammett's Red Harvest. Boo-yah.
posted by Bookhouse at 4:55 PM on October 29

Ok,

*Fight Club* - Chuck Palahniuk
It's a short read, and if they haven't seen the movie recently, a brilliant, lovely re-exploration.

If they liked ENOUGH, any other Chuck Palahniuk, as that will expand their repertoire of the diverse and the weird. Actually, hell - if you can get them onto Chuck Palahniuk, just let 'em rip, and figure that it will be expanding their brain-meats (please scan very closely to avoid HORROR though, and dear lord, if they read a book about trapped writers, that includes 'their' short stories, avoid the first one, called 'Guts'. Just do it. Especially if they have a visual imagination).

Otherwise, onto Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson,
with a side-trip either BEFORE or AFTER to the comic Transmetropolitan if you think that would tweak their fancy (and if military gorillas work, then maybe it will).

Gently, gently we tread...

From there, tis a short, sweet step into The Road by Jack Kerouac (or possibly The Electric Cool Aide Acid Trip as a baby step).

And voila! Now we is hitting some classy literature!

Sidetreks from there may include 'Pride, Prejudice and Zombies' (haven't read it myself, unsure how 'horror' it is)...
posted by Elysum at 5:03 PM on October 29

Sorry, I didn't put that I ALSO haven't read The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test (as exampled by the complete misspelling), but I revoke my recommendation based on the reviews. It just looked like a good link based on the Amazon 'People who bought this, also bought this...'.
posted by Elysum at 5:51 PM on October 29

Excellent. Already lots of great stuff to research.

Keep them coming!
posted by hifimofo at 6:04 PM on October 29

Vonnegut: Cat's Cradle, eventually leading to Heller, Catch 22... and we're pretty close to literature.
posted by callmejay at 6:59 PM on October 29

Your reader might enjoy Tim O'Brien's books. I think these would be a relatively painless step into literary territory. I'm thinking specifically of If I Die in a Combat Zone, Box Me Up and Ship Me Home. Raw, first person account of the author's time in the Vietnam War.

Then, to continue with the Vietnam War theme, Dispatches by Michael Herr. This one is basically collected notes from a war correspondent; very gripping, well-written, interesting subject matter.

If that one goes over well, O'Brien's Going After Cacciato might be a good next step. It's more challenging, nonlinear and surreal.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 8:55 PM on October 29

I'm seconding James Lee Burke's series featuring Dave Robicheaux. I like all of his work, but the Robicheaux ones have a melancholy/spiritual edge that really puts them ahead of the pack for me.

And I love love love John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee series.

Lee Child's Jack Reacher books are great fun too, with a great loner hero. He sometimes gets a bit too superhuman for me, but still makes for a good read.

I'll second Robert Crais too, while I'm at it. His character Elvis Cole is a great one.
posted by midwestguy at 8:39 AM on October 30

The Hunters -- James Salter (Riveting Korean War jet pilot w/ dogfighting and awesomeness, yet containing a very high level of writing. Concise, clear, kickass.)

Deliverance -- James Dickey (Good movie, but this is way better. Incessant action written with literary skill)

Not a list of transitions---but these are books they could jump into immediately. They tackle the same, generally speaking, subject matter as trashy action, only with literary skill and sensibilities. And they are the sort of books you read completely in one day, because you cannot stop.

Best way to get used to the cold water is to jump in!
posted by Darth Fedor at 12:01 PM on October 30