Damon Runyon spun humorous and sentimental tales of gamblers, hustlers, actors, and gangsters, few of whom go by "square" names, preferring instead colorful monikers such as "Nathan Detroit", "Benny Southstreet", "Big Jule", "Harry the Horse", "Good Time Charley", "Dave the Dude", or "The Seldom Seen Kid". His distinctive vernacular style is known as "Runyonese": a mixture of formal speech and colorful slang, almost always in present tense, and always devoid of contractions.
Having closed out 2021 by watching Guys and Dolls, it seemed perfect to begin 2022 by reading some of the stories that inspired the movie's style, if not the story.
I can't believe this is my first time reading Damon Runyon. I loved the narrator's voice, the comic twists (which made me think of O'Henry), and the world of the guys and dolls. My favorite story was Princess O'Hara, especially the part where the gang realizes that they have experience in stealing a lot of things like diamonds but no one knows how to steal a horse so they have to go to a rodeo to look for someone with experience.
This is perfect light-hearted reading along the lines of P.G. Wodehouse or, as I mentioned above, O'Henry. I will be reading more Runyon in the year to come.
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