Rating: 
Summary: Another great read from Raymond Chandler
Review: "The Little Sister" was my introduction to Raymond Chandler and his immortal private detective, Philip Marlowe. I opened it up for the first time four years ago and have read it twice more since then. I had never read a hard-boiled mystery before, and "The Little Sister" exceeded my expectations. The punchy dialogue, the terrific characters, Chandler's trademark similies, Marlowe's toughness interlaced with a penchant for justice, the contemporary view into the Hollywood of the late 1940's. "The Little Sister" electrified me and sparked an insatiable appetite for more Chandler. I read his remaining novels in rapid succession, always buying the next one before reaching the end of the novel at hand so I could immediately plunged back into Marlowe's long-vanished world. I have since read all of Chandler's novels and short stories, and "The Little Sister" still remains my favorite, closely followed by "Farewell, My Lovely."
Rating:
Summary: Another great read from Raymond Chandler
Review: "The Little Sister" was my introduction to Raymond Chandler and his immortal private detective, Philip Marlowe. I opened it up for the first time four years ago and have read it twice more since then. I had never read a hard-boiled mystery before, and "The Little Sister" exceeded my expectations. The punchy dialogue, the terrific characters, Chandler's trademark similies, Marlowe's toughness interlaced with a penchant for justice, the contemporary view into the Hollywood of the late 1940's. "The Little Sister" electrified me and sparked an insatiable appetite for more Chandler. I read his remaining novels in rapid succession, always buying the next one before reaching the end of the novel at hand so I could immediately plunged back into Marlowe's long-vanished world. I have since read all of Chandler's novels and short stories, and "The Little Sister" still remains my favorite, closely followed by "Farewell, My Lovely."
Rating: 
Summary: Chandler is Great, But do not Start Here!
Review: As always, Raymond Chandler's writing technique is excellent in "The Little Sister." And while the premise is good--- a woman from Kansas coming to Philip Marlowe in hopes of locating her missing brother--- the story and its characters dissolve into eccentricity by the end of the book.
Chandler was such an excellent story teller, and part of his appeal was writing colorful mysteries that had the right mix of gritty reality and just a few dashes of improbable situations. The characters in this book start off well, but become more cartoonish as the story moves along.
In my opinion, there is no terrible Raymond Chandler book, but this does come close. If you have never read any of Chandler's work, this may not be the best place to start. "Farewell, My Lovely" and "The High Window" would be my personal picks as his finest work, but any of his other novels are superior to this.
Rating:
Summary: There's a lot here to enjoy.
Review: Before reading this book, make sure you have a large blackboard and plenty of chalk. At least half a dozen different colors. Because that's what you'll need to diagram out the plot of The Little Sister. Keeping straight who's who and who did what to whom and why will give you plenty to do as you read and reread the pages of this Philip Marlowe mystery. Now I know what you're going to say. With Raymond Chandler, it's not about the story, it's about atmosphere. True enough. But I still have to believe that the reader's enjoyment is greatly enhanced if the writer has provided a coherent plot as a framework for displaying literary dexterity. In other words, the story itself isn't all important, but it is somewhat important.
As I see it, there are no less than four ways to view this novel.
The first way is as a murder mystery. A young woman from Manhattan (Manhattan, Kansas that is) hires Marlowe to find her missing brother. His subsequent search does eventually locate the young man but not before a drunk and a grifter are both murdered with an ice pick to the vicinity of the medulla oblongata. What is the motive behind these grotesque slayings? The motive is the urgent need to find a particular photograph. A photograph that shows two people sitting down to dinner in a restaurant. I'm not kidding.
The second way to view The Little Sister is as an affectionate sendup of noir crime writing in general and Dashiell Hammett's Maltese Falcon in particular. This might explain why the complications are endless and so very difficult to follow. Perhaps Chandler felt the need to exaggerate the number and degree of plot twists in order to make a satiric point.
Thirdly, The Little Sister is a withering look at Hollywood and the recognizable types who dwell within. Second rate actors, self important talent agents, ambitious starlets, jaded actresses and befuddled studio heads are all lampooned to one degree or another here. I found this aspect of the book to be highly entertaining and would have liked to have seen it emphasized even more.
And lastly, this book can be taken as a view into the mind of a man slowly losing his grip. This Marlowe is world weary, tired. He's lonely and exasperated. Chandler has Marlowe questioning his own sanity for continuing to pursue his chosen profession.
Marlowe's investigation takes him to many places in and near Los Angeles. A seedy hotel, a rundown boarding house, the police station, and a working movie set to name only a few. Chandler brilliantly describes all locales with an amount of detail that serves to set the exact mood he wants to convey. Marlowe's steady output of cynical quips, some spoken, others only thought, are first rate and at times absolutely priceless. It is a tribute to Chandler's originality, as well as his keen wit, that readers never tire of this ongoing patter.
The Little Sister has a lot to recommend it. I just don't think one should have to work so hard to be able to follow a storyline. And oh yes, be sure to read The Maltese Falcon first.
Rating:
Summary: There's a lot here to enjoy.
Review: Before reading this book, make sure you have a large blackboard and plenty of chalk. At least half a dozen different colors. Because that's what you'll need to diagram out the plot of The Little Sister. Keeping straight who's who and who did what to whom and why will give you plenty to do as you read and reread the pages of this Philip Marlowe mystery. Now I know what you're going to say. With Raymond Chandler, it's not about the story, it's about atmosphere. True enough. But I still have to believe that the reader's enjoyment is greatly enhanced if the writer has provided a coherent plot as a framework for displaying literary dexterity. In other words, the story itself isn't all important, but it is somewhat important.
As I see it, there are no less than four ways to view this novel.
The first way is as a murder mystery. A young woman from Manhattan (Manhattan, Kansas that is) hires Marlowe to find her missing brother. His subsequent search does eventually locate the young man but not before a drunk and a grifter are both murdered with an ice pick to the vicinity of the medulla oblongata. What is the motive behind these grotesque slayings? The motive is the urgent need to find a particular photograph. A photograph that shows two people sitting down to dinner in a restaurant. I'm not kidding.
The second way to view The Little Sister is as an affectionate sendup of noir crime writing in general and Dashiell Hammett's Maltese Falcon in particular. This might explain why the complications are endless and so very difficult to follow. Perhaps Chandler felt the need to exaggerate the number and degree of plot twists in order to make a satiric point.
Thirdly, The Little Sister is a withering look at Hollywood and the recognizable types who dwell within. Second rate actors, self important talent agents, ambitious starlets, jaded actresses and befuddled studio heads are all lampooned to one degree or another here. I found this aspect of the book to be highly entertaining and would have liked to have seen it emphasized even more.
And lastly, this book can be taken as a view into the mind of a man slowly losing his grip. This Marlowe is world weary, tired. He's lonely and exasperated. Chandler has Marlowe questioning his own sanity for continuing to pursue his chosen profession.
Marlowe's investigation takes him to many places in and near Los Angeles. A seedy hotel, a rundown boarding house, the police station, and a working movie set to name only a few. Chandler brilliantly describes all locales with an amount of detail that serves to set the exact mood he wants to convey. Marlowe's steady output of cynical quips, some spoken, others only thought, are first rate and at times absolutely priceless. It is a tribute to Chandler's originality, as well as his keen wit, that readers never tire of this ongoing patter.
The Little Sister has a lot to recommend it. I just don't think one should have to work so hard to be able to follow a storyline. And oh yes, be sure to read The Maltese Falcon first.
Rating:
Summary: Not quite as impressed as I thought I would be...
Review: Having read every other "Marlow" novel, I figured that this would follow the pattern established by the previous stories, each one being better than the last. Unfortunately, this one dropped the ball. I wish I could say why - all the usual ingredients are there from seductive women brandishing sex to dangerous mobsters and other assorted degenerates brandishing guns, ice picks and dodgy cigarettes. The accustomed hazards of a private eye! But... this time it never seems to catch fire. The traditional Marlow observations and asides. The chess like dialogue. The characters oozing deceit and human frailty. It's still there, but it's kinda got all formulaic. A sort of writing by numbers. Chanlder was by this time famous, well off and held in some esteem, so perhaps he had lost his early enthusiasm and drive. I don't know, but it certainly seems that way. The plot itself starts out tired and, like some of the hapless people in the book, eventually turns up DOA. Again, all the ingredients are there but the recipe is off. Hollywood, starlets, The Mob, bent cops - perhaps it's just too easy a target. It's complex, as one would expect from Chandler, but about two thirds the way through, the author seems to stop bothering to explain (even in a general manner) how we got where we are and loose interest in the narrative. And so did I. Never mind, I have ordered The Long Goodbye and that seems to get glowing reviews, so perhaps this was just a bit of an aberration. Please don't be put off trying the other Marlow stories, or even this one. At his worst, Chandler is still head and shoulders above 99% of other detective writers.
Rating:
Summary: Top flight 'thirties style mystery drama. L.A.'s seamy past.
Review: I just finished reading "The High Window" and got hooked so I went right out and bought "The Little Sister". I'm not sorry. It's even better! Now I'll have to go buy "Trouble is My Business". I only have about 40 pages left and I don't want it to end yet. Raymond Chandler is the best.
Rating: 
Summary: Cool
Review: I liked the female character (the little sis) ... reminds me of Maltese Falcon. Neatly written. What can one say about Chandler - his style is gripping and really entertaining. I wonder why a lot of his one lines don't make it to the quotation books!
Rating:
Summary: Orfamay and Marlowe; wise cracks and skewed sisters.
Review: Orfamay Quest is the little sister. Marlowe is the man. The story offers sex and murder. The dialogue is Chandler. So why is there no click, no snap? "Now that you have hit me, maybe you ought to kiss me", one of the women in the story says. That is the sort of line that is out of place, a Chandler crack of the sort that sings in other books but seems strange here. Few women would ever say such a line, and the woman in this story would not have, and why have her say it? The same is true of the story, where the death and murder never seems quite serious. There is a scene in the book where two actors playing tough guys try to muscle Marlowe by acting tough. Both appear to be caricatures of characters from the Maltese Falcon. That is the problem with this book - it is too self-consciously tongue in cheek and self-wise. Is it a parody or a novel? Marlowe's wise-cracking diffidence takes over the entire book. But Chandler on an off day is always worth a read, and his bad writing (or half-parody)sings better than most modern writers, so if you can find it in a used book store, snap it up!
Rating:
Summary: Orfamay and Marlowe; wise cracks and skewed sisters.
Review: Orfamay Quest is the little sister. Marlowe is the man. The story offers sex and murder. The dialogue is Chandler. So why is there no click, no snap? "Now that you have hit me, maybe you ought to kiss me", one of the women in the story says. That is the sort of line that is out of place, a Chandler crack of the sort that sings in other books but seems strange here. Few women would ever say such a line, and the woman in this story would not have, and why have her say it? The same is true of the story, where the death and murder never seems quite serious. There is a scene in the book where two actors playing tough guys try to muscle Marlowe by acting tough. Both appear to be caricatures of characters from the Maltese Falcon. That is the problem with this book - it is too self-consciously tongue in cheek and self-wise. Is it a parody or a novel? Marlowe's wise-cracking diffidence takes over the entire book. But Chandler on an off day is always worth a read, and his bad writing (or half-parody)sings better than most modern writers, so if you can find it in a used book store, snap it up!
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