Sat 26 Jun 2010
Reviews by L. J. Roberts
DICK FRANCIS – Rat Race. Harper & Row, US, hardcover, 1971. Michael Joseph, UK, hardcover, 1970. Reprinted many times.
Genre: Amateur sleuth. Leading character: Matt Shore, stand-alone. (Francis’s 10th novel.) Setting: England.
First Sentence: I picked four of them up at Whit Waltham in the new Cherokee Six 300 that never got a chance to grow old.
Matt Shore’s life and career as a pilot have been on a downward spiral. His latest job is with a flying taxi service for racecourses and his first flight ends with the plane exploding after he lands from sensing a problem with the aircraft.
Although all the passengers are safe, it’s another black mark on Matt’s career and he wants to know why.
Although I’ve not read this particular book since January 1977, it reminds me why I became such of fan of Dick Francis’s writing. The protagonist, Matt Shore, is so appealing and one of a style I appreciate — the “common” man caught up in an uncommon situation.
He is not perfect. He is intelligent without being egotistical, attractive without being overbearing, and heroic without being macho. And he gets the girl, but you know there will be painful incidences along the way.
In spite of the opening portent, the story captivates you from the very first page and never lets you go. The pacing between suspense and respite is every effective. The writing is masterful — not a term I use lightly — and imminently readable.
I was surprised how much of the plot I remembered after all these years, and that’s a real tribute to the author. Whether Dick or Mary Francis was the primary author of this, and the other books by Dick Francis, I frankly don’t care.
All I know is that it was a great read when I read it the first time, and it is a great read now.
Rating: Very Good Plus.
June 26th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
I’m a fan of Dick Francis as well, and mourned his passing. I commented to someone who wondered why I liked his work “I am not a fan of horse racing, flat racing or steeple chase, and have no interest in it…*except* when I’m reading a Dick Francis novel.”
He was a champion jockey before turning his hand to writing, and most of his books are set in a racing setting. His knowledge of the field comes from experience, and his love of it permeates the pages and carries you along. While I’m reading a Francis novel, I’m at the races, and fully as caught up as anyone lining up to place a bet.
The weakest of his works for me was the one (whose name I’m blanking on) revolving around a computer program that could pick winners. Francis was a careful researcher, wanting to get the details right. It’s obvious he conducted dutiful research, and equally obvious if you know anything about computers that he didn’t understand what he was told.
Ah, well. No jockey wins *every* race, but Francis won enough to be a champion as a jockey and a writer.
June 26th, 2010 at 8:24 pm
Since there was little drop off when Mary Francis died and was replaced with their son Felix I have to think most of the writing was done by Dick — or at least by then the combined style was natural to him. But then I could never tell the difference with Mildred Gordon died and Gordon wrote with his second wife. That isn’t to suggest their input wasn’t vital — just that over time I think many writing teams end up writing so much alike it is hard to tell them apart.
One of the keys to his (their) success is the attractive protagonists. I know many women who are Francis fans because of them — with a particular fancy for Kit Fielding (who appeared in two books). And while there are certainly common themes among his heroes they are also a diverse lot. TWICE SHY is a good example of his style where he manages to have two narrators that are alike, but distinct voices — though he does nothing showy or obvious to achieve that distinction.
This one was fairly early on before he went from a success to a mega success on the bestseller list, but still features his many virtues as a writer. Julian Symons was right in MORTAL CONSEQUENCES when he predicted Francis would become a major voice in the field.