Judith Freeman, The Long Embrace

The Long Embrace

Judith Freeman.

This is a fascinating biography of Raymond Chandler and his two decade older twice divorced wife Cissy Pascal especially the insight into their relationship. Ms. Freeman digs deep into archives, visited the numerous California residences where her subjects lived, interviewed people who knew the Chandlers, and dived into the mystery novels he wrote. The biographer used all that to draw conclusions about the couple. Especially fascinating is Ms. Freeman?s inferences she makes on Mr. Marlowe and his relationship with Cissy from his novels and correspondence. At times the author over plays her inductive reasoning by making denouements based on extremely insignificant flimsy data that cannot be defended although Ms. Freeman tries. However, overall her logic especially when it comes to analyzing Chandler?s literature, for instance Marlowe's flaws and how he dealt with females, make for an intriguing biography that also allows the reader to see inside Judith Freeman.

Harriet Klausner