Hard Rain Falling (New York Review Books Classics) Paperback – September 8, 2009

Such a rich tapestry of a book; the characters really come to life and the story really draws you in. Very enjoyable read.

The main character in this book is Jack Levitt. He is 17 years old and tough. He has run away from an orphanage. The only thing he knows about life is that it is hard, and he has no capacity to change is life. He has never been loved and through out this book he searches for something. He is possibly searching for love but does not even recognize the feeling. Throw away people often are locked into their way of life and do not know how to change. When life is hopeless for people they may fail to react to their problems---they go with the flow. As Jack meets like people this is exactly the way they live life. Jack is a little different from most of the gang. He wishes for solitude, and quiet and wants to think. Where ever he is he is trying to figure the whys. He thinks in jail, and out of jail. Even in pool halls and whore houses Jack is thinking-----but alas it makes no difference, Jack is still over whelmed with life. Don Carpenter made the Jack Levitt character live. I have never known a gang of thugs and I was fascinated with their life on the edge. As I read about Jack, Denny and Billy the word hopeless kept popping into my thoughts. Jack was the toughest of the group. In one of his depressed moods he began to think about how he would like to kill someone. As he factored out his feelings he came to the conclusion that it was necessary to hate the person you planned to kill. He dropped that plan because he could not think of anyone he hated. Jack was not a whiner and he blamed only himself for his actions. He took his punishment but that did not deter him from finding trouble. The story and the writing are excellent. However, the book is depressing,sexual and raw.

The above sentiment concisely summarizes the prevailing attitude of Don Carpenter's little known masterpiece, Hard Rain Falling. A brief prologue introduces Jack Levitt's parents who are around only to conceive and abandon the story's main character. From orphanage to pool halls, reform school and then prison, HRF shines a harsh light on the lives of people without resources or opportunity in post war and 1950s America. As his life unfolds I was reminded of Dante's admonishment inscribed above the entrance to Hell. This America is definitely not grandpa's suburban dream come true.This is a hard, spare novel that is entirely masculine in its perspective and outlook, without even a pretense of understanding women. They exist on the periphery as sexual objects or as the mother's of sons--users or untrustworthy because of their unpredictability. Some may find this disturbing as I did initially but it is entirely in keeping with the emotional disconnect of Jack's existence. Others have remarked upon the homosexual relationship set in prison and it is remarkable for frankness, but most especially for its tenderness and impact on the core of the story. Carpenter is an astonishingly empathetic writer who does more then identify with the downtrodden and outcasts, he dignifies their lives with his storytelling making them as intriguing as an Edward Hopper painting.Institutions are equally excoriated, and in the end it is the relentless grinding down by the social machine that defeats and overwhelms. From fantasies of murder to easy rage and brawls, Jack is slowly beaten down til the most precious thing in his life is taken away, and taken with barely a whimper. Perhaps the most brilliant accomplishment of the book though is its lack of sentimentality or self pity. Neither Jack nor the reader is allowed to feel sorry for him, pity being not merely useless but offensive. It is through struggle that one finds purpose, if only surviving what should, long ago have worn you out.In the end there is an appreciation of the only thing in life worth pursuing.--love. To receive it and give it is what make an otherwise miserable existence even close to meaningful.

Characters are well-written, hard to imagine living like they do.

"Hard Rain Falling" is a dark, tough novel about the underside of American Society, set in American Western States. It is the debut novel of Don Carpenter. It was published in the 1960s and spans a time from the 1940s to the 1960s. It has a raw aspect to it and corresponding "street level" crude language and nomenclature. It is of moderate length and is well written.I originally came upon this novel while reading " The Man Who Came Uptown" by George Pelecanos. That novel is of a similar type composed more recently. Mister Pelecanos refers to multiple prior "American Noir" type novels of which I was unfamiliar and decided to read. I read two of the novels, "Hard Rain Falling" and "Northline". Both are dark and gritty. Of the two I prefer "Northline". "Hard Rain Falling" reminds me more of "The Man Who Came Uptown". "Northline" is slightly different than the other two in my estimation.Speaking for myself, there is something mildly addictive to modern American Noir novels. They tend to put me in mind of my own former professional life. I am a retired police detective. I came to feel that I lived two lives at once. I was a married husband and father and at home lived like "Ozzie Nelson" or "Ward Clever". Then I went to work and existed in a sleazy underworld. After awhile, multiple decades, it finally wore me down. I now live a strictly vanilla life. These types of books almost transport me back in time and I find them mesmerizing. I limit myself to reading one such book every three or four months....If you choose to read this book and really like it, you might find "The Man Who Came Uptown" an interesting novel to compare and contrast with " Hard Rain Falling". I liked all three novels mentioned herein. In order, I liked "Northline" most, "The Man Who Came Uptown" second, and " Hard Rain Falling" third. Thank You for taking the time to read this review.

Deep and compelling. I read it in two sittings. This is a classic of its kind, in the mould of Richard Yates.

came as described

Print is worst

un grand grand roman américain. On le trouve aussi en français sous le titre de Sale Temps pour les Braves.Un des plus beaux livres que j'ai lus de ma vie, carrément ! :-)

Good read but seems dated