Dillinger in Hollywood

October 25, 2004
Though Sayles is best known as the writer/director of acclaimed independent films (Lone Star
; Matewan
), he's also an accomplished novelist (Union Dues
; Los Gusanos
). In this engaging collection, his first in 25 years, he reminds us of his skill in shorter forms. In the title story, Son Bishop, an ex-horse wrangler and stunt man, works at a nursing home populated by the relics of Hollywood's Golden Age, one of whom claims he "used
to be" John Dillinger. "Your geriatrics and horses hold a lot in common," Bishop muses. "hey're high-strung, they bite and kick sometimes, and they're none of them too big on bowel control." The more substantial and subtle "Casa de Los Babys" (the genesis of his eponymous movie?) follows a group of American women waiting to adopt babies in a Latin American city, as well as a maid at their crumbling hotel, a nurse at the orphanage and a young homeless boy who would like nothing better than to nab the women's wallets. "The Halfway Diner" finds a company of women riding a weekly bus to visit their husbands in jail and touchingly describes their esprit de corps ("The thing is," the narrator says, "we're all of us doing time"). Humor leavens the social conscience in many of these tales, and Sayles's exceptional dialogue is reason enough to appreciate this collection. Agent, Anthony Arnove
.

November 1, 2004
These ten stories, written by noted filmmaker Sayles between 1980 and 2004, focus on life's quiet, overlooked extras. In the title story, a man in a senior citizens' residence claims that he is John Dillinger and that the person who was killed was a double. Three stories center on women, e.g., "Peeling," about some crawfish cleaners in the back room of a restaurant, and "Casa de los Babys," which highlights the lives of South American women waiting to adopt, as well as those of a hotelier, a maid, and a street urchin. The most powerful story, "Above the Line," recounts an old stunt man's acting in an independent film. All these clips use well-designed dialog that illuminates the little people who work behind the scenes. Sayles has a strong eye for imagery and detail so the reader feels a part of the action. Highly recommended.-Joshua Cohen, Mid-Hudson Lib. Syst., Poughkeepsie, NY

Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2004
Filmmaker Sayles, writer and director of "The Brother from Another Planet,"" Passion Fish," and "Silver City," among others, is also a highly imaginative short story writer with a sure ear for dialogue, a keen eye for group dynamics, a flair for quickly establishing intriguing mise-en-scenes, and the ability to animate a great spectrum of flinty characters. This alluring collection of 10 ambient tales written between 1980 and the present begins with the piquant title story. Set in a nursing home for working-class Hollywood veterans, it's a tale about glory days real and imagined, mortality, and succor. Caring for each other under difficult circumstances is a pivotal theme here, whether it takes the form of tending to abandoned babies or the camaraderie among women on a bus to visit their men in prison. Writing with as much artistry as conviction from the point of view of characters wholly unlike himself, Sayles expresses his compassion and concern for those who struggle with poverty and prejudice, seeking both to provoke and entertain. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)