Cool Hand Luke by Donn Pearce

I think I am the only person in the world who has not seen the movie Cool Hand Luke, so it was with great anticipation that I opened my new book of the month by Donn Pearce. I honestly had no idea what it would be about, I only knew that Luke was played by Paul Newman in the film. The funny thing is, that despite the fact that I knew this, it was not Newman that I was picturing in my head. I think Newman is way too good looking to be Luke. I think he would be more rugged, maybe more Redford or Nick Nolte.

Cool Hand Luke was written in 1965 and was Pearce's first novel. He was a veteran of WW II, a thief and a private detective. He wrote about prison from first hand experience. While he was nominated for an Academy Award for the screen play adaptation of this novel, I have to think a lot of the rhythm and voice of this book would be lost in a movie. It is so very well written that you find yourself cruising through large swaths of the book like a poem. The content however is gritty and dark. A prison chain gang in 1960's Florida is not a friendly place. In fact it is one of the most brutal atmospheres I have every read about. It is so bad that you feel sorry for the convicts despite the terrible crimes they have committed. You are even rooting for them when they try to escape.

While there are good times amongst the convicts, telling stories about the outside, playing music, celebrating the fourth of July, life is mostly hard. They dig ditches and clear weeds every day in the hot, mosquito infested swamps of Florida. If they look at the guards sideways or talk out of turn you spend the night in the box. The regular building is only marginally better. It is hot, the lights are always on and the smell is brutal. It is only the thought of getting out that keeps the men going, despite the fact that life on the outside would not be a lot better for a convicted felon.