This is a good, taut western. Leonard excels at writing about laconic men being tough, and his protagonist here, Corey Bowen, is no exception to that rule--nor is his villain, Frank Renda, which adds a lot to the book's success. Despite being quite short--well under 200 pages--this one weaves together several strands involving characters each with his or her own agenda which may or may not correspond to anyone else's. E.g. Bowen's partner in the crime for which they were committed may or may not have been genuinely a crook (though Bowen clearly was not but instead an unwitting accomplice), so may or may not be useful to Bowen in his escape attempt; Ike wants to escape too but hates the prison guards so much he may let that get in the way of doing the sensible thing; the warden's wife wants out and is willing to go to any lengths to get there, but Bowen's reluctant to let her use him for hew own ends. And so on. Lots more meat and character than action-driven stories usually have. Leonard also manages to give us much of what we'd expect from a western--including Apaches (also handled from a reasonably unconventional perspective, though they are admittedly mostly even more laconic than the white guys and are mainly here preternatural trackers who respect the man who can fight well, and not much else)--without succumbing to formula or cliche. (Well, mostly, anyway.) The one weak link is the involvedment of plucky and beautiful Karla, the trading post dealer's daughter, who not only falls for Bowen for no real reason (other than his rugged good looks, presumably) but also manages to get some pretty serious wheels in motion to get his case reviewed. Nevertheless, a top-flight western, highly recommended to fans of the genre--and to anyone else who likes stories of tough men who can take it and dish it out.
I was expecting to be a little disappointed by this being that it's a western novel from the 1950s. I assumed thet Leonard's style would be very dry considering that he had not yet come up with his own 10 rules of writing.But I was really surprised how similar it was to Leonard's later work (it's possible that he went through and revised it..but I don't know) Very tough and lean with every chapter being necessary to the plot. Not for a second did it seem to go on too long (as opposed to his good-but-not-great western novel that came later GUNSIGHTS).ESCAPE FROM FIVE SHADOWS is also one of the most suspenseful and exciting novels I've read in a long time. Even if you don't like westerns, Leonard creates a plot and characters that are so realistic that it could easily be transferred to a modern setting.What is missing from this novel as opposed to the bulk of his work is the humor. His earlier work is a bit tougher (Mr. Majestyk, 52 Pick-Up, etc) while his later work (1980s to the present) has that sly ironic humor which we all know and love (re: Get Shorty)Anyway, this is a great western prison-break book that'll please fans of good, suspenseful writing."but don't take MY word for it..."
What do You think about Escape From Five Shadows (2002)?
Corey Bowen is 1 year in to a seven year prison sentence for rustling. He maintains his own innocence. He is assigned to a construction project headed by a corrupt government contractor building a road to nowhere. All he wants to do is escape. After his first attempt he learns that it is not easy to evade the Apache scouts hired to track prisoners. Next time, he plans on making it work. Escape From Five Shadows is another great western novel from Elmore Leonard's early days. It deals with the themes of corruption and deceit as well as hope and redemption. The characters are as tough as the land that they inhabit. When I was thirteen I started reading westerns. It has been years since I stopped reading them. Books like Escape From Five Shadows remind me why I should read more.
—David Williams
I’m reading Elmore Leonard’s novels in order, interested to follow the development of his craft. Published in 1956, Escape from Five Shadows is his third and like the first two a western. Wrongly convicted of cattle rustling, Corey Bowen is determined to break out of a brutal labour camp, but without spilling anyone’s blood. The echoes of Hemingway are much fainter now: Leonard is finding his own voice. His plotting is tighter and cleverer, and the women no longer wait passively for the hero to triumph but play key parts in the drama. Halfway though I was gripped, thinking that, apart from some awkward inner monologue, this was going to be faultless. But Leonard hits problems in the denouement. Gone is the natural action and dialogue he has used so deftly in the set-up. Instead the characters, with time running out and their backs to the wall, laboriously explain the plot logic and options to each other, and credibility dies. An enjoyable read though, and I look forward to the next one!
—Bobbie Darbyshire
In his early writing career Elmore Leonard wrote western novels.. (one of the most notable was "Valdez is Coming" which was really a pretty good western film even if it did not have concrete conclusion) "Escape From Five Shadows" was different because it wasn't about a range war, a gunslinger, etc. rather, it was just a simple story about a crooked prison camp and the people caught up in a plot to cheat the government. If you are looking for the quirky characters found in most of Leonard's gangster/crime novels, you won't find them here. Instead, you will just find a fair novel, well-written, but nothing earth shattering. If Leonard could write a quirky western I would love to read it. However, this one just stops short of being really worth it.
—David
