The Maltese Falcon

By: Dashiell Hammett

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

Hard-boiled detective Sam Spade is hired to locate a client's sister by tailing the sister's companion. Spade's partner Miles Archer takes on the assignment, and quickly both Archer and the man he was shadowing are murdered. As Spade pursues the mystery of his partner's death, he is drawn into a circle of colorful characters, and they are all after a legendary statuette of a falcon that had long ago been made for King Charles of Spain. Encrusted with jewels, it is worth a fortune. Missing for centuries, it resurfaced in 1921, when it was covered in black enamel to disguise its true value.

The Maltese Falcon is the definitive masterpiece of the hard-boiled detective genre. Humphrey Bogart immortalized tough-guy Sam Spade in the classic 1941 film.

©1956, 1957 Dashiell Hammett (P)2003 The Audio Partners Publishing Corp.

Critic reviews

"Dashiell Hammett...is a master of the detective novel, yes, but also one hell of a writer." (The Boston Globe)
"The Maltese Falcon is not only probably the best detective story we have ever read, it is an exceedingly well written novel." (The Times Literary Supplement)
"Hammett's prose [is] clean and entirely unique. His characters [are] as sharply and economically defined as any in American fiction." (The New York Times)
"William Dufris is a one-man band, covering the entire cast of diverse characters with unbelievable ease....just short of amazing." (AudioFile)

Amusing. Writer’s Study

If you’ve recently quit smoking or used to smoke cigarettes you might want to avoid this one altogether as tobacco use happens frequently. I found the descriptive language excellent, the story pretty simple and hokey… it was entertaining enough.

A Nice Rendition

Most people have seen the movie (often more than once) and many have read the book, so what's new and worthwhile about this audio book? The narrator, for one. William Dufris does a fine job with this book. He doesn't try to make Sam Spade sound like Humphrey Bogart--a wise choice. After all, the Sam Spade in the book (blond hair, somewhat satanic smiling features) isn't like Bogart's character at all. At the same time, he does an excellent imitation of the film versions of Cairo and Gutman. All in all, it was fun to listen to. The story stands on its own merits: classic hard-boiled detective fiction. If you're looking for good entertainment, this is is.

Fantastic, the narrator stole the show

This is a fantastic story by Hamett. I think the narrator Dufris did a fantastic job bringing the characters to life. I had the image of this book in black and white in relation to the Bogart film. The narrator brings the characters to life with the Gutman role played in the film by Sydney Greenstreet and Cairo role played by Peter Loire. I felt the passion and lust for this historic bird that would do anything to acquire. I couldn't wait to hear Gutman speak in this book. The female parts were not done as well, well enough with the main female character though. It was short and very enjoyable, and it is done in San Francisco, where I live. If you like mystery and going to a play then you will enjoy this.

You will see Bogart when you read this one.

Noir was created by Hammett. I saw this movie a few decades ago and although I don't remember anything about it, I could see Bogey and the wonderful film noir setting while reading this book.

Solid Performance, Classic Story

The narrator is spot-on with the voices and the story is as charming and immersive as its ever been.

Fine performance of an American classic

What does William Dufris bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The audiobook reader does a great job creating characters. Hammett's Sam Spade is described as a "blond Satan," his face composed of V's. He is also fairly athletic--he can throw a punch and disarm attackers. Humphrey Bogart was neither of these things, but he was such a damn good actor that he made the role unforgettably his own. Dufris creates another Spade, sexier and more muscular, and yet still a little bit vulnerable. His work with the female voices is also remarkable. Brigid O'Shaughnessy is a real piece of work, and I actually preferred his characterization to that of Mary Astor in the movie, who IMO was a bit cold. For the secondary characters, Joel Cairo and Caspar Gutman, Dufris basically gives spot-on impersonations of Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet from the movie. Since the final act is almost all dialogue, this is an impressive job.

Any additional comments?

I don't even know how many times I've seen the classic noir film, but if you love the film, you need to experience the book. It is much easier to appreciate the screenplay, which is faithful to the book but with a little judicious trimming. This story/movie/genre/character/Frisco locale has been so often imitated that it is a challenge to go back and think that everything from Roger Rabbit to the Monk TV series owes a huge debt to Dashiell Hammett and Sam Spade. "I hope they don't hang you by that pretty neck, Precious." Enjoy!

Incredibly Wonderful

A tribute to the writing skill and imagination of Dashiell Hammett and the considerable talent of William Dufris who memorialized the acting and voices of Peter Lorre and Sidney Greenstreet with his impersonations. Hammett wrote the definitive masterpiece of detective fiction, beautifully portrayed in this recording.

Overrated

Dated in many ways. Annoying descriptions of body mpvements. Predictable ending. Stereotyped characters. Still though a good mystery. .

Great Book

Im not much on detective novels but this one really brought things to life. Loads of twists and turns that leave you wondering how it’s going to go down with a almost completely unexpected ending. Voices in the audio also were expertly done, 5/5 would recommend.

i just love this book

ive seen the movie but just came across the book and I found it to be an excellent story, the narrator was great at expressing the different characters and events. if anyone likes old noir they should read this.