A Dog's Ransom

It's not so much the plot of A Dog's Ransom that makes it a worthwhile read. Rather it's the detailed psychological profiles of the four main characters that make this novel stand out. The four main characters are: -Ed and Greta Reynolds, well-to-do Manhattanites who, through no fault of their own, become the target of a petty extortionist. -Kenneth Rowajinski, the aforementioned extortionist. A poor, lonely wretch of a man whose only joy in life derives from writing threatening letters to strangers. -Clarence Duhamell, a young patrolman with the NYPD. Sensitive and well intentioned. Clarence tries to help Ed and Greta after Rowajinski demands ransom for the return of their beloved pet poodle. Of the four, the character Highsmith spends the most time developing in detail is Clarence Duhamell. Clarence is rather ambivalent about being a cop and his ambivalence is abundantly apparent to his colleagues. For that reason he has never been accepted as "one of the boys" within the law enforcement brotherhood. When Clarence goes above and beyond the call of duty to help Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds, his efforts become inexplicably ham-handed, resulting in a disasterous cascade of events leading to his own undoing. A Dog's Ransom is a well written New York novel noteworthy for it's exquisite character development. A 4 star effort.

Patricia Highsmith is one of the best American writers of the Twentieth Century. For years now certain critics have been trying to get this message out. I think they've largely failed. Highsmith is'nt a genre writer.Yet you'll still find that she is typed a cime,thriller,or even mystery writer.Her novels aren't all that thrilling.She doesn't write "who dunnits".Crime is almost always a factor.However one should question how important the crimes really are to the novels.I think Highsmith is a writer who uses crime as a a plot device.She is far more interested in commenting on society at large and exploring the strange contours of the human mind than she is in solving crimes or exciting her readers.That said A DOGS RANSOM is something of a police procedural novel.It's good Highsmith not great.Highsmith was not the sort of writer to sweat factual details.There is an interesting factual mistake in the book.At one point she indicates that a truck is delivering wooden beer barrels.In New York,in 1969?London,maybe, not New York.I temporarily let this error mislead me and concluded that Highsmith,long a resident of Europe, also didn't know that a revolution had taken place in american criminal procedure in the 1960's.Then i realized that was nonesense.Highsmith comments directly and indirectly on affirmative action and the deinstutionalization of mental patients.She deliberately distorts reality to make her case.Her case is urban america of the 1960's was a cesspool of idiocy and corruption.Highsmith is a bilious, malevolent writer.This is not a pretty book.She attacks the U.S.from the Left and the Right simultaneously.Her racism is clear and in it's relentlessnes(not it's intensity) jarring.Highsmith is a writer who isn't asking you to love or admire her.She's a nasty piece of work.You have to admire her.

This book tricks you into thinking it's the story of a grouchy old man who cruely kidnaps and murders a grieving Manhattan couple's poodle and the couple's efforts to get help from an apathetic police department following the loss of their dog. Early on but completely out of nowhere the book shifts it's focus to a dedicated and heroic young cop, Clarence, who decides to help the couple out of pure kindness, a kindness that leads to Clarence's destruction. I loved the portrayal of Clarence as an obsessive do gooder who's fear of doing the wrong thing causes him to commit evil acts in the name of justice. The villain, Rowajinski, is one of her most hateful since the lawyer in A Suspension Of Mercy or David Pritchard in Ripley Under Water. I reccomend this book highly to anyone who loves a good read and a story where the characters don't always act rational but the story stays true to life. This book shows there truly is no such thing as good or evil, it's just a matter of perception.

A Dog's Ransom is classic Patricia Highsmith - that is, it is a study of how feelings of apprehension and fear overwhelm the guilty (or persons suspected of guilt). Despite its title, the book has little to do with dogs or ransom really ... although this is where the story begins.In this novel we have a middle-aged couple in Manhatten whose little poodle is kidnapped by a mentally disturbed loner. Having reported the crime, the police are unattentive with the exception of a "do gooder" rookie. However soon this rookie, due to incompetence and personal weaknesses, gets over his head ... and soon finds himself in big trouble. Despite its slow (and somewhat contrived) beginning, the tension builds very nicely. And the ending is rather ... upsetting.Bottom line: amongst Highsmith's better works despite a relatively low "wow!" factor. Strongly recommended for Highsmith fans. Highsmith neophytes are advised to first read her more famous works (The Talented Mr Ripley, Strangers on a Train, ..).

The Sunday Times said of Highsmith, "She makes books that you really can't put down." This is one of them. After 25 or 30 pages, I defy any crime & suspense fan to stop reading. All the usual Highsmith elements are here -- smooth, accomplished writing, an absorbing plot, eerily believable characters, and an authentic feeling for locale (in this case, 1970s Manhattan); on the whole, however, the book isn't nearly as successful as many other Highsmith works. The ending is something of a shock, and leaves one wondering just what she was trying to say and accomplish; the thematic material also -- though never overt in Highsmith -- is especially hard to assemble, and creates a suspicion that, in this book, there wasn't any. Though it's well worth reading for the page-turning suspense, I wouldn't pay too much for some rare copy -- esp. as there are plenty of other Highsmiths that are very exciting and work quite well on other levels too ("Cry of the Owl," which is still in print; "This Sweet Sickness," which isn't; and "Strangers on a Train," which has been out of print for years but will be re-issued by Norton in August 2001).Not bad, but if you're not a Highsmith fan, trying something else first.