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Product Description
Review
You will look long and hard before you find anyone with a bad word to say about Leonard. About the worst thing I can think of to say about SWAG is that it might be said to make armed robbery look like a enticing career move... if you haven't read him before, you are in for a treat. -- Nicholas Lezard The Guardian
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Book Description
The smallest of small-time criminals, Ernest Stickley Jr. figures his luck's about to change when Detroit used-car salesman Frank Ryan catches him trying to boost a ride from Ryan's lot. Frank's got some surefire schemes for getting rich quick—all of them involving guns—and all Stickley has to do is follow "Ryan's Rules" to share the wealth. But sometimes rules need to be bent, maybe even broken, if one is to succeed in the world of crime, especially if the "brains" of the operation knows less than nothing.
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Odd Couple Discovers the Joys of Armed Robbery,
By Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 112,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (#1 HALL OF FAME)
This review is from: Swag: A Novel (Paperback)
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal." -- Matthew 6:19Following a most unusual introduction to one another, a used car salesman, Frank Ryan, and an incorrigible car thief, Ernest Stickley, team up to make armed robbery safe and profitable by following the rules that Ryan swears by. Soon they are living the high life while doing relatively few heists to pay for it all. With time, their confidence grows . . . and so do their targets. Can they succeed in taking down one of Detroit's biggest businesses? As in all of Elmore Leonard's crime stories about Detroit, his leading hooligans are more hapless than dangerous (except perhaps to themselves), stupid while thinking they are very smart, and trusting where they shouldn't be. If you are thinking about leading a life of crime, don't do what these guys do! The story has a nice pace to it that makes the action move along at a good speed while adding complications without overly weighing down the plot. While there are relatively few gut-busting funny parts, the overall humor level is quite good and will keep you smiling virtually from beginning to end.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Elmore's masterpiece,
By
This review is from: Swag (Mass Market Paperback)
Although it is hard to select Elmore's best work, for my money Swag is the one. Swag is funny, dramatic and tense at the same time. The humor is subtle, but is vintage Elmore. The tension carried thorughout the book is masterful. You really don't know until the final paragraph whether Ryan and Stick will get away or not. All in all, a tremendous book. I would recoomend Swag to any one who has not read any Elmore. Enjoy.
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Proverbial Bandits,
By Clare Quilty (a little pad in hawaii) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Swag (Audio Cassette)
Two small-time crooks (a guy who sells used cars and a guy who steals them) band together in early 70's Detroit and, with nothing better to do, decide to start holding up liquor stores, Quik-E Marts, and supermarkets. They establish a set of foolproof rules and make out like the proverbial bandits, stashing their loot under the sink and spending it on hysterically rendered period clothes, cars and stereos. Things go great until, of course, they begin to violate their own guidelines.Fast, funny, violent, gritty, sexy and chock full of Leonard's trademark dialogue and twisty turns, this book skims along like a Tarantino movie writ long before Tarantino came about. I'm a huge Elmore Leonard fan and this is my favorite of his books. I can't believe it's not more popular, can't believe it's actually OUT OF PRINT. Track it down used if you can, it's a true unheralded modern classic.
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