Josh's Reviews > Deliverance: A Novel

(3.5) Let me be honest. I might be the only southern male in my age range (mid 40's) who has never seen the movie for Deliverance all the way through. I may have seen a short clip here and there, but not enough to really grasp something other than "these guys go out in the woods for a new experience and get more than they bargained for".

Needless to say, Dickey's descriptive prose of the outdoors was very sharp and enjoyable. His reasoning that certain characteristics arise in a person when put into a specific situation, ala Darwin, was drawn out effortlessly, yet I can't say that I truly enjoyed the eventual outcome.

Some questions I have after reading:

Is vigilantism justified in every situation?
Are morals propelled aside if pushed over the edge, and if so, is there a gray area involved?
Were these southern stereotypes necessarily exaggerated in the 1970's and are they still today?

I can see how and why this was made into a big movie at the time and it seems as though it was written for that purpose. Bottom line: good prose, interesting character development, but not completely believable. Still a solid book.