Half Of Paradise
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Book Description
A mesmerising novel set in the Louisiana heartland from award-winning author James Lee Burke.
Product Description
Toussaint Boudreaux, a black docker in New Orleans, puts up with his co-workers' racism because he has to, and moonlights as a prize-fighter in the hope of a better life - but the only break he gets lands him in penal servitude. J.P. Winfield, a hick with a gift for twelve-string guitar, finds his break into showbiz leads to the flipside of the American dream. Avery Broussard, descendant of an aristocratic French family, runs whiskey after what remains of his land is repossessed... The interlocking stories of these three men are an elegy to the realities of life in 1950s Louisiana, their destinies fixed by the circumstances of their birth and time. Yet each carries the hope of redemption.
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After the spring rains when the first hot days of summer begin, the inland waters of the Gulf of Mexico turn smoky-green from the floating seaweed, fading to dark blue beyond the sandbars where the great white pelicans dive for fish. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
After the spring rains when the first hot days of summer begin, the inland waters of the Gulf of Mexico turn smoky-green from the floating seaweed, fading to dark blue beyond the sandbars where the great white pelicans dive for fish. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
"Half of Paradise,"published in 1965, was James Lee Burke's first published fictional effort. Not surprisingly, it shoots off many sparks that illuminate where he's later going to go as a writer. He gives us powerful descriptions of his home territory, around New Orleans, Louisiana; both the natural and manmade environments; for his first time out, he's pretty good on character development and dialogue, and he renders strong descriptions of people's everyday lives, jobs, and family histories.
The novel reads as, probably is, three discrete novellas packaged together. It tells the story of JP Winfield, a penniless, orphaned sharecropper who discovers a talent for playing a 12-string guitar; it leads him into some prosperity and public notice, but his weaknesses are always with him. It also gives us Toussant Boudreaux, a black New Orleans dockworker who moonlights as a prizefighter, seems to have a promising career in that direction, but then takes a crippling injury. Finally it introduces Avery Broussard, descended of the area's French-Spanish landowning families: but the land's long gone, he's working as a oil company roustabout, and he's got a crippling alcohol dependency. If you see a pattern here, there is one. All three men are overwhelmed by their weaknesses; you'd have to call the book a downer. And without giving away too much of the plot, readers may learn more about Louisiana jails than many might care to.
Burke's first novel introduces,in the Broussard segments, the character of black Ba'tiste, storied family servant, who will reappear in his later works. It further gives Broussard a wealthy high school girlfriend (a character that will also often reappear in his later works) the family name of Robichaux: that, of course, will later be the surname of his famous detective Dave Robichaux. It's pretty clear that Burke was going to write his way into an outstanding future once his world view got a little less depressing. How much you want to read this first effort probably depends on how much you like the later work.
The novel reads as, probably is, three discrete novellas packaged together. It tells the story of JP Winfield, a penniless, orphaned sharecropper who discovers a talent for playing a 12-string guitar; it leads him into some prosperity and public notice, but his weaknesses are always with him. It also gives us Toussant Boudreaux, a black New Orleans dockworker who moonlights as a prizefighter, seems to have a promising career in that direction, but then takes a crippling injury. Finally it introduces Avery Broussard, descended of the area's French-Spanish landowning families: but the land's long gone, he's working as a oil company roustabout, and he's got a crippling alcohol dependency. If you see a pattern here, there is one. All three men are overwhelmed by their weaknesses; you'd have to call the book a downer. And without giving away too much of the plot, readers may learn more about Louisiana jails than many might care to.
Burke's first novel introduces,in the Broussard segments, the character of black Ba'tiste, storied family servant, who will reappear in his later works. It further gives Broussard a wealthy high school girlfriend (a character that will also often reappear in his later works) the family name of Robichaux: that, of course, will later be the surname of his famous detective Dave Robichaux. It's pretty clear that Burke was going to write his way into an outstanding future once his world view got a little less depressing. How much you want to read this first effort probably depends on how much you like the later work.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
8 reviews
37 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Love Burke, but could have left this one on the shelf
27 Mar 2000
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've read just about every book James Lee Burke has written -- from his Dave Robicheaux series to Cimmaron Rose and others. I've loved them all and eagerly await new ones. This is the first time I've read one of his books that I didn't like it. I couldn't connect with the characters, didn't bond with them, didn't find their situation to be compelling to read about. It took all I could do to finish it. It certainly wouldn't dissuade me from reading anything else he writes (although there isn't much left that I haven't read...) but this is not a great book, not up to his usual exploration of characters or his colorful description of surroundings. There was not a likeable character in the book, nor was I able to get a good visual for the surroundings. Skip it if you love Burke, you'll only be disappointed.
28 of 30 people found the following review helpful
No One Captures the Human Condition Like Burke
21 Oct 1998
Format:Mass Market Paperback
James Lee Burke's first novel does not have the fast paced, action packed movement as does his Dave Robicheaux novels, but he is clearly setting his penchant for detail and human suffering early in his career. Three stories combine to form the core of this novel - life is not all wine and roses. The book centers on the success and failures of three south Louisiana men who have a great deal of promise but ending up on life's darker side. Burke doesn't have a hero nor does he need one. One man driven to alcoholism by his desire to escape his father's shadow is consumed and fate has led him to prison, let him out and returned him in one foul stroke. Another man is a promising boxer who is set up by greed and sentenced to life in prison can only escape one way. A third man, poor but very talented, falls to the pressures and luxuries of stardom. His excesses leads him to the palace. These three stories are linked by prison and intoxicating substances. They are linked by one man who succombs to temptation and goes to prison. This is a great book, but it is unlike any of Burke's more famous novels. He does remain constant in his ability to capture the surroundings and the human spirit. A must read for any fan of Dave Robicheaux to catch the young wild pen of a man destined for fame.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Burke's First Published Novel Shoots Sparks
26 May 2007
Format:Paperback
"Half of Paradise,"published in 1965, was James Lee Burke's first published fictional effort. Not surprisingly, it shoots off many sparks that illuminate where he's later going to go as a writer. He gives us powerful descriptions of his home territory, around New Orleans, Louisiana; both the natural and manmade environments; for his first time out, he's pretty good on character development and dialogue, and he renders strong descriptions of people's everyday lives, jobs, and family histories.
The novel reads as, probably is, three discrete novellas packaged together. It tells the story of JP Winfield, a penniless, orphaned sharecropper who discovers a talent for playing a 12-string guitar; it leads him into some prosperity and public notice, but his weaknesses are always with him. It also gives us Toussant Boudreaux, a black New Orleans dockworker who moonlights as a prizefighter, seems to have a promising career in that direction, but then takes a crippling injury. Finally it introduces Avery Broussard, descended of the area's French-Spanish landowning families: but the land's long gone, he's working as a oil company roustabout, and he's got a crippling alcohol dependency. If you see a pattern here, there is one. All three men are overwhelmed by their weaknesses; you'd have to call the book a downer. And without giving away too much of the plot, readers may learn more about Louisiana jails than many might care to.
Burke's first novel introduces,in the Broussard segments, the character of black Ba'tiste, storied family servant, who will reappear in his later works. It further gives Broussard a wealthy high school girlfriend (a character that will also often reappear in his later works) the family name of Robichaux: that, of course, will later be the surname of his famous detective Dave Robichaux. It's pretty clear that Burke was going to write his way into an outstanding future once his world view got a little less depressing. How much you want to read this first effort probably depends on how much you like the later work.
The novel reads as, probably is, three discrete novellas packaged together. It tells the story of JP Winfield, a penniless, orphaned sharecropper who discovers a talent for playing a 12-string guitar; it leads him into some prosperity and public notice, but his weaknesses are always with him. It also gives us Toussant Boudreaux, a black New Orleans dockworker who moonlights as a prizefighter, seems to have a promising career in that direction, but then takes a crippling injury. Finally it introduces Avery Broussard, descended of the area's French-Spanish landowning families: but the land's long gone, he's working as a oil company roustabout, and he's got a crippling alcohol dependency. If you see a pattern here, there is one. All three men are overwhelmed by their weaknesses; you'd have to call the book a downer. And without giving away too much of the plot, readers may learn more about Louisiana jails than many might care to.
Burke's first novel introduces,in the Broussard segments, the character of black Ba'tiste, storied family servant, who will reappear in his later works. It further gives Broussard a wealthy high school girlfriend (a character that will also often reappear in his later works) the family name of Robichaux: that, of course, will later be the surname of his famous detective Dave Robichaux. It's pretty clear that Burke was going to write his way into an outstanding future once his world view got a little less depressing. How much you want to read this first effort probably depends on how much you like the later work.
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