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)

Excellent Narration

I so enjoyed William Dufris’ performance, it brought even more depth to Hammett’s cast of characters. So engaging! Great book with great narration.

A Great Story in Mystery Genre

I love mysteries and had never read/listened to this one. It's likely the real beginning of the genre...smooth, lots of twists, great characters. An engrossing listen!

Awesome performace

What did you love best about The Maltese Falcon?

The story is great and William Dufris' performance, voice characterizations and cadence really brings the tale to life.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Maltese Falcon?

The wit of Spade when encountering the detectives. Each time he is playful and frustrating at the same time.

Have you listened to any of William Dufris’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is the first book I've listened to by William Dufris. I will look for others, he's great.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I chuckled a few times and completely engaged in the story all the way through. I listened to other narrations before purchasing this one and I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much without the character voices and feeling. It's a story that deserves emotion and I think is written to incite it one's mind if read.

Any additional comments?

Though older and slightly muffled compared to the other Audible unabridged offering. This one stands out with Mr. Dufris' performance.

Perfect match of text and narrator

THE MALTESE FALCON is a fabulous book, and the Humphrey Bogart movie version is, of course, a classic. Here, William Dufris does an amazing job bringing each character to life. He wisely doesn't imitate Bogart for his Sam Spade, but there's a lot of Peter Lorre in his Joel Cairo and more than a dollop of Sydney Greenstreet in his Kasper Gutman. He brings all the overwrought duplicitousness to his Brigid O'Shaughnessy, and the other female characters -- especially Effie Perrine -- are handled well. Hammett was a master of dialogue, and the lines crackle in this terrific reading by Dufris. An absolutely first-rate production of one of the greatest noir novels of all time. Five stars across the board.

Performance!

Simply superb performance of this timeless classic. I liked it better than the Humphrey Bogart movie.

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!