Tristram Shandy and Annie Get Your Gun are both woven into the fabric of Take, Welsh author Bill James’ sixth crime story featuring detective Colin Harpur and his supervisor Desmond Iles. Shandy is the current subject of Harpur’s wife’s reading group, and the 18th century satire reminds Colin that life is full of absurdities and coincidences, often delivered ironically and out of order. A community theater production of the 1946 Irving Berlin musical Annie, meanwhile, finds Harpur’s daughters sharing the stage with Doris Preston, the wife of Ron “Planner” Preston, a cautious career crook who has his eye on a weekly wages delivery truck.
In Take, the reader spends more time with the criminals than the cops, and the choice is effective and illuminating: James sketches intriguing portraits of Planner and his gang, which includes Tyrone and Dean, two young bucks who are looking out for themselves; Mansel Billings, a self-described mother hen caring for his own bedridden mother; and Hoppy Short, a dim but available gun for hire. There is friction among the group as everyone waits – Planner’s daughter is attracted to Tyrone, for one thing – but Mansel tries to keep spirits up and Planner tries to keep control.
There are also two informants waiting for a payout, a canteen worker at the truck company and a desk policeman looking to open his own restaurant. There is a rumor that there may be more money in the van than usual, as a third driver has been assigned to the route. It’s also possible that the police already know of the plan, and no one wants to drive into an ambush, especially when snipers like Robert Cotton are on the force and at the ready.
In Take, the reader spends more time with the criminals than the cops, and the choice is effective and illuminating: James sketches intriguing portraits of Planner and his gang, which includes Tyrone and Dean, two young bucks who are looking out for themselves; Mansel Billings, a self-described mother hen caring for his own bedridden mother; and Hoppy Short, a dim but available gun for hire. There is friction among the group as everyone waits – Planner’s daughter is attracted to Tyrone, for one thing – but Mansel tries to keep spirits up and Planner tries to keep control.
There are also two informants waiting for a payout, a canteen worker at the truck company and a desk policeman looking to open his own restaurant. There is a rumor that there may be more money in the van than usual, as a third driver has been assigned to the route. It’s also possible that the police already know of the plan, and no one wants to drive into an ambush, especially when snipers like Robert Cotton are on the force and at the ready.
In her New York Times book review of the previous series entry, Come Clean, Marilyn Stasio writes that Bill James characterizes his criminals “in a mock-heroic style that confers dignity as well as absurdity on their aspirations for greatness.” It’s an observant description, and it fits the characters here as well. Except possibly for Hoppy, all are looking at the robbery as a way to find legitimacy and security. Planner wants to provide a comfortable, upwardly mobile life for his wife and daughter. Tyrone and Dean want this to be their first big score and a boost to their reputations. Mansel wants to give his mother care and quality that he can’t otherwise afford. Even Barry Leckwith, the cop informant on the inside, wants to use his share to become an independent entrepreneur.
As for the “mock-heroic” descriptor, I think that may be a little too dismissive. Almost always, the author makes his characters psychologically truthful; we might not agree with the choices made (of both the police and the criminal plotters) but we always understand the motivation and logic that brings them there. Planner and his gang aren’t being mocked; morality aside, their focus on their goal of stealing is just as competent and thorough as Harpur’s actions to sniff out and stop illegal activity. Each side has its networks, each side struts on the same stage, castmates destined to share the same sets and perform in a final drama together.
As for the “mock-heroic” descriptor, I think that may be a little too dismissive. Almost always, the author makes his characters psychologically truthful; we might not agree with the choices made (of both the police and the criminal plotters) but we always understand the motivation and logic that brings them there. Planner and his gang aren’t being mocked; morality aside, their focus on their goal of stealing is just as competent and thorough as Harpur’s actions to sniff out and stop illegal activity. Each side has its networks, each side struts on the same stage, castmates destined to share the same sets and perform in a final drama together.
If the reader sides ultimately with the actors representing law and order, it is largely because the criminals are endangering innocent people with their acts. The men have guns, and they are not the cap pistols from the music hall. I mention this because Bill James also brilliantly examines the murky morals of Team Law & Order, filled with individuals (Harpur and Iles included, but also of informants like Leckwith) who are willing to keep the rule book conveniently closed if doing so will benefit them. In Take, the married Harpur’s ongoing affair with Ruth Cotton has cooled, as cuckolding a colleague and sharpshooter by sleeping with his wife might not be the best strategy.
Used throughout both as a verb and a noun, Take is another winning entry in an unusual and consistently engaging crime series. The story whips along, conflicts and complications are constant, and the dialogue and prose are always colorful and often bitingly funny. I appreciate James’ world-building, and his ongoing refusal to label anyone “hero” or “villain” but instead explore every character along the way and have them act truthfully, however flawed their thinking and ethics may be. No community theater director could ask for more.
Used throughout both as a verb and a noun, Take is another winning entry in an unusual and consistently engaging crime series. The story whips along, conflicts and complications are constant, and the dialogue and prose are always colorful and often bitingly funny. I appreciate James’ world-building, and his ongoing refusal to label anyone “hero” or “villain” but instead explore every character along the way and have them act truthfully, however flawed their thinking and ethics may be. No community theater director could ask for more.
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