The Friends Of Eddie Coyle - George V Higgins

 THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE - GEORGE V HIGGINS

The book on which the 1973 film starring Robert Mitchum was based and the only thing wrong with it is the cover because if the guy in the picture is meant to be the main character, Eddie 'Fingers' Coyle, then it looks nothing like him. The book describes Coyle as being stocky and in his forties which fits Robert Mitchum's description but the guy on the cover is at least ten years younger and not stocky in the slightest. Perhaps it's meant to be one of the other main characters, the gun seller by the name of Jackie Brown? It's unlikely though, and probably more to do with not paying proper attention.

It's not a bad cover, of course, and it's actually a good picture - painted, interestingly enough, by Paul Roberts, who went on to being the vocalist for British rock band Sniff 'n' The Tears who had a world-wide hit with the song Driver's Seat.

Apart from the issue with the cover, The Friends Of Eddie Coyle by George V Higgins is classic pulp fiction. It's a crime caper involving a gang of hardened criminals robbing a series of banks who like to use a new set of guns every time they rob a new bank. The guns are being supplied to the gang by Eddie Coyle who gets them from a gun dealer called Jackie Brown. And that's the gist of it but being a crime caper the cast of characters is going to be a nest of vipers with everyone playing everybody off against one another, including girlfriends, bar-owners and police.

The whole pace of the story suits Robert Mitchum's demeanour perfectly as it's very languid, very world-weary, very life at the end of its tether. It's totally narrative-driven with conversations and monologues written phonetically in an often surreal, wise-guy vernacular. The bottom line is that it's a joy to read and is the perfect example of why books such as this are so good. They're not a challenge, they're not written to educate or to make the reader think, or as a vehicle for any kind of lesson in morality. They're written to be read - actually. They're written to entertain and to make the act of reading a pleasure not a chore.

The film of the book is a classic, directed by Peter Yates (who also directed Bullitt) that as well as starring Robert Mitchum also stars Peter Boyle. It's a perfect cast and the book in a similar fashion is perfect pulp fiction.

John Serpico