The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

I picked up the annotated version of The Big Sleep with annotation done by Owen Hill, Pamela Jackson, and Anthony Dean Rizzuto.  The novel is a noir classic, with our gritty PI Philip Marlowe getting himself further and further ensnared in the hijinks and dangers of the Sternwood family. If you don't know your literary history, you might find yourself thinking that this novel falls back on literary tropes and cliches, but as you read it, consider that Chandler was creating these tropes, as much as anything else.

I found the annotated version to be exactly what I wanted my literature classes to be like in college, but never really were. The annotations contain personal correspondence from Chandler, comparisons from works Chandler had previously published, movie stills, photos from California during the time period of the novel, and a variety of interesting lexicographical notes. I was absolutely riveted by the notes, and kept interrupting my husband's reading to ask him what he thought of particular controversies. Does it matter if the slang used was in use in "real"life or if it was created for these novels? Does it count as self-plagiarism if Chandler cannibalized his works from pulp magazines?

I don't think I would have enjoyed this book near as much with the editorializing, so I recommend the annotated version strongly.  I also recommend you settle yourself in for some great metaphor and simile work from Chandler. I enjoyed the absolute ridiculousness of his comparisons, while also acknowledging their uniqueness and accurateness.

Thumbs up from me!