The Voice of James M. Cain: A Biography

by David Madden

James M. Cain was among the prominent member of the "hard-boiled" school of writing that characterized the 1930s and 1940s, one of the masters of the genre that included Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. His novels became such popular film noir classics as The Postman always Rings Twice, Double Indemnity, and Mildred Pierce, and his 1937 novel Serenade boldly portrayed its hero as a bisexual. Cain also taught journalism at various colleges in Maryland, wrote editorials for the New York World, and was for a brief time managing editor at The New Yorker. This is the first biography of James M. Cain written with the full cooperation of the late novelist's family.

Genres: Biography

308 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 21, 2020

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unusual way to write a biography. The author had a long-term relationship with Mr. Cain and wanted to write this in a way that incorporated the 125-page autobiographical narrative of his life which Mr. Cain gave him at one time. I tried really hard to be interested in this and read it. Had a rough time getting through more than a couple of pages at a time. By the start of the fourth chapter, I had to give it up. Utterly uninteresting. It probably deserves better than my take on it.

[Sean Kinch · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my review of this book at Chapter16.org:

https://chapter16.org/the-love-rack/