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Slayground: A Parker Novel Paperback – September 1, 2010

by Richard Stark (Author), Charles Ardai (Foreword)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 387 ratings
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The hunter becomes prey, as a heist goes sour and Parker finds himself trapped in a shuttered amusement park, besieged by a bevy of local mobsters, in Slayground. There are no exits from Fun Island. Outnumbered and outgunned, Parker can’t afford a single miscalculation. He’s low on bullets and making it out alive is a long shot—but, as anyone who’s crossed his path knows, no one is better at playing higher stakes with shorter odds.

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Previous page
  1. Book 14 of 24
    Parker Novels
  2. Print length
    200 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    University of Chicago Press
  5. Publication date
    September 1, 2010
  6. Dimensions
    5.25 x 0.7 x 8 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    9780226770925
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0226770925
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A dimestore shiv of a book about what happens when corrupt cops tip off the mob about a car accident in which an incompetent wheelman flips a getaway car next to an amusement park called Fun Island. (Hint: Master thief/antihero extraordinaire Parker survives; a lot of other people die." -- Seth Mnookin ― The Millions

“Parker is refreshingly amoral, a thief who always gets away with the swag.”
-- Stephen King ― Entertainment Weekly

“Parker . . . lumbers through the pages of Richard Stark’s noir novels scattering dead bodies like peanut shells. . . . In a complex world [he] makes things simple.”
-- William Grimes ― New York Times

“Richard Stark’s Parker novels . . . are among the most poised and polished fictions of their time and, in fact, of any time.”
-- John Banville ― Bookforum

“Parker is a true treasure. . . . The master thief is back, along with Richard Stark.”
-- Marilyn Stasio ― New York Times Book Review

“Westlake knows precisely how to grab a reader, draw him or her into the story, and then slowly tighten his grip until escape is impossible.”
― Washington Post

“Elmore Leonard wouldn’t write what he does if Stark hadn’t been there before. And Quentin Tarantino wouldn’t write what he does without Leonard. . . . Old master that he is, Stark does all of them one better.”
― Los Angeles Times

“Whatever Stark writes, I read. He’s a stylist, a pro, and I thoroughly enjoy his attitude.”
-- Elmore Leonard

“Donald Westlake’s Parker novels are among the small number of books I read over and over. Forget all that crap you’ve been telling yourself about War and Peace and Proust—these are the books you’ll want on that desert island.”
-- Lawrence Block

“Richard Stark writes a harsh and frightening story of criminal warfare and vengeance with economy, understatement and a deadly amoral objectivity—a remarkable addition to the list of the shockers that the French call roman noirs.”
-- Anthony Boucher ― New York Times Book Review

"Parker is a brilliant invention. . . . What chiefly distinguishes Westlake, under whatever name, is his passion for process and mechanics. . . . Parker appears to have eliminated everything from his program but machine logic, but this is merely protective coloration. He is a romantic vestige, a free-market anarchist whose independent status is becoming a thing of the past."
-- Luc Sante ― New York Review of Books

"I wouldn't care to speculate about what it is in Westlake's psyche that makes him so good at writing about Parker, much less what it is that makes me like the Parker novels so much. Suffice it to say that Stark/Westlake is the cleanest of all noir novelists, a styleless stylist who gets to the point with stupendous economy, hustling you down the path of plot so briskly that you have to read his books a second time to appreciate the elegance and sober wit with which they are written."
-- Terry Teachout ― Commentary

"If you're a fan of noir novels and haven't yet read Richard Stark, you may want to give these books a try. Who knows? Parker may just be the son of a bitch you've been searching for."
-- John McNally ― Virginia Quarterly Review

"The University of Chicago Press has recently undertaken a campaign to get Parker back in print in affordable and handsome editions, and I dove in. And now I get it."
-- Josef Braun ― Vue Weekly

"Whether early or late, the Parker novels are all superlative literary entertainments."
-- Terry Teachout ― Weekly Standard

“The UC Press mission, to reprint the 1960s Parker novels of Richard Stark (the late Donald Westlake), is wholly admirable. The books have been out of print for decades, and the fast-paced, hard-boiled thrillers featuring the thief Parker are brilliant.” -- H. J. Kirchoff ― Globe and Mail

“Fiercely distracting . . . . Westlake is an expert plotter; and while Parker is a blunt instrument of a human being depicted in rudimentary short grunts of sentences, his take on other characters reveals a writer of great humor and human understanding.” -- John Hodgman ― "Parade"

"Richard Stark’s Parker crime novels are the ultimate page-turners." -- Jonathan Ames ― The Boston Globe

About the Author


Richard Stark was one of the many pseudonyms of Donald E. Westlake (1933–2008), a prolific author of noir crime fiction. In 1993, the Mystery Writers of America bestowed the society’s highest honor on Westlake, naming him a Grand Master.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0226770923
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of Chicago Press; Reprint edition (September 1, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 200 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780226770925
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0226770925
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.7 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 387 ratings

About the author

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Richard Stark

Richard Stark

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Donald Edwin Westlake (July 12, 1933 – December 31, 2008) was an American writer, with over a hundred novels and non-fiction books to his credit. He specialized in crime fiction, especially comic capers, with an occasional foray into science fiction or other genres. He was a three-time Edgar Award winner, one of only three writers (the others are Joe Gores and William L. DeAndrea) to win Edgars in three different categories (1968, Best Novel, God Save the Mark; 1990, Best Short Story, "Too Many Crooks"; 1991, Best Motion Picture Screenplay, The Grifters). In 1993, the Mystery Writers of America named Westlake a Grand Master, the highest honor bestowed by the society.

Richard Stark: Westlake's best-known continuing pseudonym was that of Richard Stark. Stark debuted in 1959, with a story in Mystery Digest. Four other Stark short stories followed through 1961, including "The Curious Facts Preceding My Execution", later the title story in Westlake's first short-story collection. Then, from 1962 to 1974, sixteen novels about the relentless and remorseless professional thief Parker and his accomplices (including larcenous actor Alan Grofield) appeared and were credited to Richard Stark. "Stark" was then inactive until 1997, when Westlake once again began writing and publishing Parker novels under Stark's name. The University of Chicago began republishing the Richard Stark novels in 2008. When Stephen King wrote the novel The Dark Half in 1989, he named the central villain George Stark as an homage to Westlake.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo by Jean-Marie David [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5-2.0-1.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
387 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Steve Paul
5.0 out of 5 stars Parker Becomes Rambo
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2014
Verified Purchase
I enjoyed Slayground. It's the 14th in the series.

As in all Parker novels, crime is a business. Not good. Not bad.

Parker's objective is always someone else's money...usually enough to live on for a year or so. There are no moral judgments. Parker is just as bad as he seems. He possesses a professional code of honor: loyalty and respect for fellow professional thieves with whom he has worked in the past. He is deeply suspicious of new amateurish thieves. He's violent without hesitation but only if he needs to be. He misses nothing. And no Parker novel would be complete without the double-cross.

Parker is impatient with small-talk. He talks only if it serves a purpose. Odd to think that the untalkative Parker reserves for himself the most difficult task of handling people--both fellow thieves as well as the victims.

A Parker story generally has these parts: 1) Planning the heist and assembling the team, 2) carrying out the heist that sometimes goes bad, 3) getting away, and 4) dealing with a double-cross. In Slayground, it is mostly surviving the getaway against impossible odds.

In Slayground, Parker the thug becomes Rambo. Parker is trapped in a closed-for-the-winter amusement park with a gun and a bag of cash from a heist gone bad. Parker doesn't realize it at first, but Parker is trapped in the park, and there is only one way in and out of the park.

The main story begins when Parker is seen entering the park with a bag of cash minutes after a heist that had gone terribly wrong (for Parker). Unbeknownst to Parker, the park is owned by the local mobster Al Lozini, the regional boss. The mob puts two and two together, takes matters into their own hands, and no surprise does not report Parker's whereabouts to the police. Parker becomes the prey. Parker figures this out quickly when police do not show at the amusement park despite being seen going in.

The rest of the story is Parker overcoming impossible odds: a well-armed mob, couple of corrupt local police, winter cold, and being out-gunned. It's classic Parker because the mob has no idea of the buzz saw they walked into in pursuit of Parker. Parker uses his wits, violence, and ruthlessness to counter the mobsters.
4 people found this helpful
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Clark Hallman
4.0 out of 5 stars A Hard-Boiled Criminal Does What is Necessary to Survive
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2012
Verified Purchase
Richard Stark was one of the many pseudonyms of Donald E. Westlake (1933-2008), who was a very prolific, and acclaimed, noir crime fiction writer. The Mystery Writers of America bestowed their Grand Master award on Westlake in 1993, and if Slayground is representative of the Westlake's quality of writing and storylines he certainly deserved the Grand Master award. Slayground: A Parker Novel was first published in 1969 after Stark (Westlake) had published dozens of novels about the tough and determined thief. Parker reconnoitered and planned his thefts very carefully. He also tried to choose his companion thieves very carefully. However, unexpected obstacles or glitches can turn the most carefully planned capers into a test of survival skills even for a consummate professional thief like Parker. Perhaps the trait that made Parker so amazing was his ability to accept those unexpected glitches without panic. He was not someone who was overcome by fear, agony, or self-pity when he found himself in desperate situations. Instead he was able to simply accept his difficult situations and respond analytically to extricate himself from dangerous situations. He was indeed tough (hardboiled), but he didn't use violence unless it was necessary for a successful heist or to extract himself from dangerous situations. In Slayground, Parker and two accomplices rob over $70,000 from an armored truck, but things go wrong when their escape vehicle crashes on an icy street during their escape. The two accomplices are injured and Parker flees alone on foot with the bag of money. He takes refuge in a closed-for-the-winter amusement park/fun house as a temporary hideout. However, he realizes that four people, including two policemen, saw him entering the park with the bag of money. He also discovers that the park is surrounded by a high fence and a moat on all sides but the front. The only way out is through the front gate. When no police attempt to capture him, he realizes that the men who saw him enter the amusement park intend to probably kill him and take the money for themselves. Unfortunately, the men, including the two policemen, are connected to the mob and they come after him with many reinforcements toting weapons. Parker is alone, cold, hungry, with a gun, but only a few bullets. This story places Parker in a position that seems impossible for him to survive. He realizes that he may not survive, but he steadfastly prepares to face, punish, and eliminate his foes with his wits and whatever resources he can find in the amusement park. He doesn't hate his enemies, but he does what he knows he must do to survive without any regrets. This is a thrilling, fun, and quick read. I plan to read other Parker novels in the future and I recommend Slayground to any crime-fiction aficionado, especially to those who enjoy the perspective of the criminal. However, don't expect deep thoughts from Parker because he is not that kind of guy. This edition of Slayground also contains an interesting forward written by Charles Ardai about Westlake and the Parker novels.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Fiona Stevens
5.0 out of 5 stars This is fast paced hard-boiled crime fiction at its best. To often authors promise
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 20, 2017
Verified Purchase
There's only ever been 3 books that I've read in say two sittings, one of these was The Friends Of Eddie Coyle. The Drop & No Country For Old Men. Now I have a 4th to add to this list. Richard Stark is a genre all of his own. This is fast paced hard-boiled crime fiction at its best. To often authors promise, but when you get down to it there's like a paragraph of the real stuff and the rest is boring page filling stuff. Think about this? With all the crime authors out there why only one ''Richard Stark'' who delivers a heist man as hard as nails? book after book. So these days I stay clear of the middle class of the road type of crime fiction. Stark every time. 5/5
3 people found this helpful
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Sordel
4.0 out of 5 stars Parker's Amusements
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 14, 2022
Verified Purchase
Parker is trapped with a suitcase full of money on the inside and the (other) bad guys on the outside. The premise for this rollercoaster of a novel is as simple, and as fanciful, as can be, with the odds stacked against our protagonist and little time to waste on characterisation or plot. There are better, tougher, Parker novels but that won't bother any reader flying through this one.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Slayground a classix
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 18, 2021
Verified Purchase
A real classic of this type. I found this author after watching the film Parker and decided to try the books in the series. I am so pleased I did. It had me turning the pages as he fought and plotted his way out of the different situations he found himself in. Well worth a read.
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Bob J
5.0 out of 5 stars vintage parker
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 16, 2013
Verified Purchase
Yes, one of the best ones, I think. Parker shown to be very resourceful. Pity he never (as far as I know) got back for his money.
2 people found this helpful
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