Swag: A Novel

Elmore Leonard always.delivers. Funny, real, poignant. Swag is a great read. Frank and Earnest are a couple of classic characters.

This was a good book. At first I thought it was like a bunch of small stories about two newbie stick-up men. How they went about thinking on how to stick-up grocery stores, bars, etc... and then actually pulling them off. But then, as the book went on, every thing started to get really well tied together in this great plot. This is one of my favourite Elmore Leonard books. The characters were great as what the plot. This is also the introduction to the Stick character who after you read this book, you wanted more of. (He then later followed it up with the book...Stick) SWAG is classic Leonard at its best.I've read about 20 of his books and this is within the top 5.

This novel, although not the most recent work of Leonard's, its excellent. It encompasses a character which many people can relate and puts him in a completely new life with money and girls. You will not be able to put this book down, I read it in about 2 days, and by the end it becomes so intense you are reading as fast as you can. The ending of the book and the last line are perfect.

This novel just isn't what I expect from an Elmore Leonard book. The characters were not polished and this is the first Leonard story I've read where the dialog boring. I can't really recommend it.

Swag was a turning point in Elmore Leonard's writing. The plot was a bit more complicated than his past books. There were more characters. The language and violence was a bit rougher. The book had a more complex middle than any of his works with a suitable number of twists and turns. The story follows two men that form an armed robbery duo. They rob a number of businesses without ever hurting anyone. When they become mixed up in a big score, they discover that they are being conned by the others they brought in to help them. What this novel has in common with other Leonard novels is that we don't get to find out what happens to the characters at the end. The story ends before their fate with the law is determined. Leonard does have a crossover character from a previous work, Leon Woody. Strangely enough, Woody was a companion to Jack Ryan in an earlier book and Frank Ryan in this book. Leonard even points out the earlier Ryan character and states that they are not related. This is an interesting piece of information considering that his next novel revives the Jack Ryan character. Overall, this was a good read.

Leonard is an American master and this book is one of the jewels of his crown. Few have written with such clarity, eschewing the sideshows and set pieces that lesser writers confuse with the essential virtues of storytelling. I think the scene in the parking lot between Stick and two thieves is a subtle, perfectly orchestrated episode that lingered with me long afterward. The characters are sketched, the reader is given the important details, but they aren't belabored. Highly recommended for fans of crime/mystery fiction and literary fiction alike. At his best, Leonard rises above all the labels and crafts something unique, full of color and, most important, -true-.

This is a fun book, especially if you are from or familiar with southeast Michigan (in which case you may appreciate the details in the setting). Violent but funny, with an enjoyable aimlessness and spontaneity which feels more true to life than most books. Swag is now my favorite Elmore Leonard book.

I'm ashamed to admit that this was my first Elmore Leonard novel, but of course shan't be my last. It's a great crime caper, and didn't feel dated despite being 40 years old. The dialogue was brilliant and the final act was well done. If I may be permitted a few criticisms, the protagonists, Frank and Earnest, were just shy of compelling and the middle of the book sagged a little as the dysfunctional duo knocked over yet another liquor store. But hey, even if this isn't his best, it's still damned good.

Well, here's another book that it's taken me so long to getting around to reviewing that they've changed the cover art since I bought it! I'm a big fan of Elmore Leonard and must have well over thirty of his books on the shelf, plus a few in e-book form. "Swag" was first published in 1976 and tells the tale of two armed robbers, used car salesman Frank Ryan and car thief Ernest Stickley, Jnr., who go on a very successful spree........until they get greedy..... Great, tight story telling and low-life characters seemingly effortlessly brought to life by Leonard's fantastic dialogue.

This is one of Elmore Leonard's early novels and one of his best! It has that cool 70's vibe and great atmosphere to spare. Mr. Leonard's best novels are character driven thrillers and "Swag" is a great example. The two main protagonists complement each other perfectly. One of them is cool, taciturn and introverted, the other one is more talkative, extroverted and likes to take risks. Together they start to perform armed robberies and get away with it until things get out of hand. "Swag" is a real page turner and highly recommended.

Clever. Takes you back to the 70s. Interesting unexpected plot. True Elmore Leonard. Always a great read. One of the best.

Una lista di regole per un'attività criminale senza problemi. Questo il "decalogo" di una strana coppia di delinquenti. Tutto fila liscio fino a quando non si infrangono le regole... Se conosci Leonard lo apprezzerai, se non lo conosci puoi cominciare da qui, come ho fatto io.

Nice book in terms of font size and quality. Great price and speedy delivery. Solid but not great read