Audiobook8 hours
Cool Hand Luke
Written by Donn Pearce
Narrated by Mark Hammer
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
Based in part on Donn Pearce's own experiences working on a Florida road gang, this classic story of Cool Hand Luke, the defiant survivor who refused to be defeated by the forces of corrupt authority, is earthy, sensitively written, and revealing.
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Reviews for Cool Hand Luke
Rating: 4.062499972916667 out of 5 stars
4/5
48 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A "hard case" on a chain gang.There are some great, very memorable sequences. But it seemed unnecessarily episodic. In retrospect, I can see how everything contributed to character development, but it felt unfocused while watching it. And the ending is too inevitable to be satisfying.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Donn Pearce's description of life on a Florida chain gang is spot on. But then, that should serve as no surprise. He spent two years on a chain gang and is the inspiration for the character Sailor. He once appeared on the TV game show To Tell the Truth back before the movie starring Paul Newman was made. Google it. See if you can pick him out.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Surprisingly well written and transportive. Better than the movie as I vaguely recall a sort of psychological battle of wills as in The Sea Wolf. Pearce actually served on a Florida chain gang making it an anthropological study of the mid-century American southern red neck. The mirrored sunglasses worn by the boss (devil) is quite the trick. Pearce deserves more critical attention then he received (he died in 2017), ironically the film buried the book but it continues to be rediscovered. On release it sold 1,100 copies and was never a best seller but has become a slow burning cult-classic, recently adapted to a major West End theater production. Mark Hammer's 1991 audiobook performance is amazing.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I haven't watched the movie in years, but the PTSD and reintegration of WWII vets into society angle was either elided or I totally forgot about it. I was surprised at how good the writing was. Couldn't help but think of The Stockade of From Here to Eternity.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I wanted to see how closely it followed the movie. Generally it did with a few scenes changed or added, most notably the boxing match with Dragline and the visit from his mother. I was surprised to learn this was Donn Pearce's first novel. He also wrote the screenplay.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I had no idea what to expect from this, I knew of the film and the recent play adaptation but didn't know anything of the plot. A really interesting read, definitely paints a vivid picture of life for the men on the chain gang and bull gang.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5[One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest + A Separate Peace] - prep school + convicts + a better writer.