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Rating:  -
The book and the movie are both great. The content of this book was a little unusual for the 1940s. I was surprised that the book has a totally different ending than the movie. I have seen the movie several times, and decided to read the book. I am so glad I did, and my husband really enjoyed this book too. Mildred is a great character. She was a woman before her time. Stepping out to have her own business. Not too many women in those times would have had the courage to do such a thing. Her daughter, Veda, is a BRAT. Mildred is a "disney land" parent. She thinks the more she gives the more her daughter will love her. This is a good example for divorced parents today. They feel compelled to give their kids too many "material" things and they really just need to spend more time with their children and learn to say "No". If you haven't read or seen the movie, I would suggest you do both.
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There are only two words to describe this book: wow and bravo. Each of its 17 chapters is a compelling mini masterpiece of storytelling.
The title character is a young financially challenged mother who is forced to fend for herself in the decidedly unfriendly milieu of Depression era Los Angeles. After considerable struggle and plenty of hard work, Mildred eventually becomes a successful business woman.
But while Mildred is achieving economic independence, her daughter Veda, a precocious 11 year old at the novel's onset, matures into a hateful, greedy young adult who makes her mother's life a living hell.
Author James Cain has offered up a virtuoso performance in the writing of this wonderful novel. Chapter 1 is pure genius. It starts off with images of perfect domesticity; a husband doing yardwork and a wife decorating a cake. Then it suddenly spirals downward into the abyss of irretrievable family break-up. Each subsequent chapter is masterfully built on the one before to paint a vivid picture of Mildred's world as she wends her way through the obstacle course that is her life.
Mildred Pierce is a gripping, page turner of a novel. An enthusiastic 5 stars.
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James M. Cain is one of the fathers of the noir novel (along with Hammet and Chandler) with novels as "The Postman Always Rings Twice" and "Double Indemnity" that were soon turned into films and became cornerstones of the noir cinema, as it did the cinematographic version of Mildred Pierce.
Mildred Pierce is not, however, a noir novel strictu senso. There is no detective, and if there is any crime it is not particularly remarkable, the characters don't take a walk in the wild side or through the asphalt jungle. The plot tells the story of Mildred, a still young woman trying to make ends meet after divorcing his former middle class husband, now unemployed due to the Depression. In her quest for a future (from proud wife to diner waitress to fast-food entrepreneur) she has to deal with her pride, her pretentious and viperous daughter, her decadent playboy lover and the close social categories of the 30's.
For some it could be an elaborated melodrama, but Mildred Pierce reads like a noir. The wisecrack-saturated dialogues are those of a hardboiled crime novels, as are the social schemas. Finally, Cain discovers settings that latter became classics of the Californian and American noir imaginary: the diners, the first fast food chains, and the posh restaurants by the sea.
Mildred Pierce is a great book and a portrait of a time. Go for it. I have it in a very nice edition by Everyman's Library featuring also "The Postman Always Rings Twice", "Double Indemnity" and a few short stories and the lot is definitely worth the (quite low) price.
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James M. Cain's reputation as a master of the noir genre rests largely on his phenomenally grim 1934 story "The Postman Always Rings Twice," 1935's "Double Indemnity," and this 1941 classic "Mildred Pierce." No other noir writer's reputation-whether Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, or Cornell Woolrich-rests on only two or three stories. How is it possible to sustain a literary legacy based on two, maybe three stories that you could read in three single sittings? Think movies. You can thank Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler for Cain's enduring legacy. These two guys collaborated on the script for "Double Indemnity" the film, a film that has since become one of the classics of American cinema. And don't forget Joan Crawford won an Oscar for her work in the screen version of "Mildred Pierce." Too, if memory serves correctly, there are two film versions of "The Postman Always Rings Twice," one of them starring Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange. If I were a writer, I wouldn't be too enthusiastic that my legacy rested on film versions of my stories. From what I've read of the noir masters, Cain isn't nearly as good of a storyteller as Chandler, Hammett, or Woolrich. He isn't as good as Jim Thompson or David Goodis either, for that matter. He's still good, though.
Fortunately, although it isn't as noir as "Double Indemnity" or "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Mildred Pierce" is a wonderful story embodying several key elements of the noir genre. The novel is the story of Mildred Pierce, a young, leggy housewife and mother in California trying to make the best of a bad situation during the Great Depression. Like millions of other Americans during those trying times, Mildred's financial situation falters when her husband Bert's unemployment threatens to cost the family their home. Since Bert is also cheating on his wife, Mildred eventually forces her man to permanently leave. This situation leaves our heroine caring for her two children, Veda and Moira, without a source of income. Thanks to a helpful neighbor mixed up in bootlegging, a Mrs. Gessler, Mildred obtains enough support until she finally lands employment as a waitress at a Los Angeles hash house. Pierce is a tough lady, full of pride and ideals about what a woman should do in life, but economic uncertainty forces her to make tough choices. Her no nonsense attitude, along with her abilities as a fine cook, soon allows the woman to build a small restaurant/pie shop. A few more years of hard work finds Mildred with three restaurants and a bursting bank account in a time when people still stand in bread lines. She's a success story.
Cain is not content to allow his readers to bask in the glow of Mildred's success. As tough of a woman as she is, as careful about business as she is, Mildred Pierce has two problems that threaten to permanently destroy her life. The first problem is Veda, Pierce's eldest daughter. This girl is your archetypical snob, a young lady so enamored of the finer things in life that she will stop at nothing to obtain social position and wealth. Mildred recognizes her daughter's failings, but insists on doting on her while showering the girl with expensive gifts. Despite all the attentions she receives, Veda loathes her mother. She considers the idea of Mildred working in a restaurant unconscionable, and constantly works behind the scenes to heap scorn upon her mother. The second problem involves men. Mildred Pierce cannot seem to find a good man, as she soon discovers after hooking up with a somewhat wealthy loafer and snob named Monty Beragon. It isn't too long before Veda and Monty hit it off to the everlasting detriment of Mildred. Although both depend on Pierce for money, they can't stand her seemingly lowly status and plebian manners. You can rest assured that events will soon reach a frightful denouement, one loaded with shattering emotional conflicts that wreck lives and destroy relationships.
"Mildred Pierce," in my opinion, is even better than Cain's noir novellas "Double Indemnity" and "The Postman Always Rings Twice." You won't find a crime like murder anywhere in the story, nothing requiring a crafty cover up or the presence of law enforcement officials. The book instead focuses on the unhealthy relationship between a mother and a daughter both proud and spoiled in their own ways. In many ways, this destructive relationship is worse than the illicit affairs of the protagonists in the previously mentioned two books: Mildred and Veda hurt each other innumerable times, and go on hurting each other until the bitter end whereas Cain's other memorable characters quickly reach a point of no return. There is no end to the emotional suffering of the characters in this story, although despite what other readers have thought the conclusion does hold out a glimmer of hope that Mildred will overcome her weaknesses and rebuild her shattered life.
Don't worry about the lack of a juicy crime, though, since other aspects of the story intrigue immensely. Mildred Pierce as a character is quite wonderful; you simply can't help but like the lady despite her flaws. Conversely, Veda as drawn by Cain is one of the great evil characters of literature. You'll gape at her soulless machinations, wondering how she gets away with such despicable behaviors and fervently hoping for a serious comeuppance. Too, it's nice to get a look at pre-World War II California, an atmosphere that Cain makes excellent use of throughout the story. I recommend heartily that all beginning Cain fans read "Mildred Pierce" alongside his two other masterworks. Sadly, it seems many of his readers tend to overlook this non-noir noir classic. I'm glad I didn't.
Rating: -
A remarkable story of human relationships, complexities, perseverance, and weakness!
All too often people turn a blind eye to what they refuse to believe, or perhaps can't comprehend - and we see this played out in the interactions of Mildred and her daughter Veda! This adds to the reader's involvement and emotional responses to this stunning and well told novel. A powerful piece of writing!
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