"He looked down into Jack's hard, battered face. 'You and me, now,' he said, 'We're connected. That's good. And when the connection breaks, it's over, that's too bad, but it's finished and a man would be a fool to try to make it go on when it's all over. You dig? We got it, you don't even have to admit it, but when we think of each other, we feel good, and that's it. But when it busts, it's busted, and that's the end. Nothin happens twice.'" This book almost reads like two books, and the first book I would give 4 or 4.5 stars, but the second book, I'd give 2.5 or 3.0 stars. The first two-thirds tell of the origins, delinquency, reformatory years, high living, and prison time of Jack Levitt. A good portion of the early part also follows Billy Lancing, a young black pool aficionado and hustler. The fever pitch and existentialism of this first part are stunning at times. The last third: After serving time in San Quentin prison, Jack tries to focus his life through work and discipline, and he ends up meeting some high society types. He falls in love and marries and confronts the challenges of social integration. It's this last third that seems more artificial and less authentically raw.
What do You think about Hard Rain Falling (1964)?
This guy writes like John Williams, which is as good of a compliment as I can give.
—jsho291
The pool room and jailhouse scenes are worth the price of admission
—bookXmonster
