Some Came Running

by James Jones and James Jones

Book Overview

James Jones's saga of life in the American Midwest, newly revised five decades after it was first published and including a new foreword by his daughter, Kaylie Jones After the blockbuster... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451053370
• ISBN13: 9780451053374
• Release Date: December 1958
• Publisher: Signet Book
• Length: 624 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Excellent writing on Jones' part as usual.......

I was raised in Robinson, Illinois as well as James Jones (he was born and raised there) and he returned to Robinson after serving in the military in World War II. Most of his writing was about his life growing up in Robinson and the surrounding area which we natives refer to as "the Wabash Valley" - Mr. Jones wrote much about his experiences during the war (WW II) as well. "Some Came Running" was based on his actual life with friends from this area and trips that they made "across the river" over into Terre Haute, Indiana. While he may have seemed to be a dark personality at times, he led a very distinct and interesting life and his writings reflect that. There is even a Literary Society in his honor in Robinson (see following links, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Jones_(author) and http://rking.vinu.edu/j.htm)

A Man in The Middle

You either liked "some came running" or you didn't, and there doesn't seem to be anything in between. And the movie of the same name was a typical Hollywood treatment at the time with little about it that followed the objective of the book. If reading this book, I sincerely recommend taking the "abridged" version. Nothing of the story is lost in the excellent editing but removes the non-essential rambling that Jones was going through when he wrote the original. I thoroughly enjoyed it. For me, there was an honesty about it from all angles; from the black sheep, insecure would-be writer to the over-achiever brother of same, and all the widely diverse, yet associated personalities in between. Jones got into the psyche of each as he penned their thoughts and actions against the thoughts and actions of those they associated with. It's true it dealt with the seamy side of life, but it dealt with the middle class striving for the high society life, too. Each striving, striving, for something elusive; and self-destruction lived close to the surface within all of them. It begins with the black sheep brother, the non-conformist Dave Hirsch, returning by bus from a stint in the army and a war, and stepping off into the old hometown from where he had been helpfully banished several years before by his brother, Frank, for an indescretion. One immediately feels that he has returned solely to embarrass the older brother, who has achieved a measure of social standing and wealth, thereby exacting a subtle revenge - after all, it's his home too and he can return if he wants. Then the action begins; Dave has long desired to become a writer and has a certain amount of unrealized talent; but he has no drive, no motive, and lapses into the dark recesses of the local bars and it's correspondingly dark female companionship much too often to allow him to concentrate. He feels some guilt about it, not enough to reform it; he is overly sensitive about his weight; and he suffers from all sorts of other insecurities because of these truths about himself that he dislikes, but isn't strong enough to overcome. One of the most pitiful of the female characers, Ginny, figures prominently in the life of Dave almost immediately. Lost, dull witted, unable to have any normal relationship with a man, she nonetheless has the use of men because she provides a use "for" them. The reader feels sorrow along with the adult knowledge that there are really such people out there. Along the way, Dave is introduced to a wonderful old gentleman through his brother, Bob French, an intellectual who has a correspondingly educated daughter, Gwen. Dave is immediately attracted to the daughter, and although his personal obstacles are still there, he has one advantage: She has somehow gone slumming in her choices of reading material at one time and discovered Dave's work which she feels has merit but not enough polish. She sees hidden potential in him and determines to assist him write a n

Running With the Big Boys

Take a little Lewis, add Farrell, Faulkner and Dreiser. Mix all that up and you might come close. Jones creates characters that stand up and talk back. They cast long shadows. Jones creates a real town out of paper, ink and imagination. This town is in the Midwest, but it could be anywhere. His people have problems like you have problems. At times they work it all out. At times they don't. This is life lived. This is great literature. This is James Jones best work. And they don't come much better than James Jones.

A Classic

They don't write 'em like this anymore.

A Brilliant Slice of Americana

What happens to the Band of Brothers when they return home? Jones explores life in a small midwestern town when soldiers returned home from WWII. Unforgettable characters. An indictment of the hypocrisy of Main Street USA. One of the last Great American Novels.