Djibouti audiobook

Ha superado con creces mis expectativas, con una historia que se va desarrollando poco a poco y que se lee con mucha fluidez.Según empecé el libro, conecté en el acto con los protagonistas, sólo por el mero hecho de lo bien que se llevaban y cómo mi cerebro era capaz de ponerles voz en cada parte del diálogo. No eran necesarios los "dijo Dara" o "dijo Xavier", porque la forma que tenía cada uno de hablar era única. Sabías quién era quién con apenas 5 palabras.El comienzo del libro consiste en la presentación de los personajes y que te hagas una pequeña idea de como son, pero lo realmente importante, pasa desde la mitad del libro, donde los capítulos no los protagonizan solo Dara y Xavier, sino que tenemos diferentes puntos de vista para no perder en ningún momento el foco donde se encuentra la acción.En uno de esos focos, la idea que tenía de Billy y de Helene era errónea, sólo era la pequeña punta del iceberg del cómo eran realmente. Billy ha sido el personaje del que más llegas a saber y menos al mismo tiempo cuando terminas de leer, y de quien más incógnitas tengo. En cuanto a Helene, ves que es mucho más que una fachada, como le sucede a Billy con ella, sino que es muy inteligente.Curiosamente, la parte de la historia que más me ha enganchado no han sido las aventuras de los piratas, sino la del atentado. Es de esos momentos en los que te pones a leer y sigues porque cada vez es más interesante. No sabes qué va hacer a continuación Jama, quién puede caer a continuación o si va a acabar el libro en un final feliz.En resumen, este libro me ha sorprendido, tanto por los personajes como por la forma en la que se desarrolla la historia.Reseña en el Blog Los Libros y Eva

So I have to say I was actually a little underwhelmed by this book. The subject was interesting enough and the characters were pretty good, but I couldn't escape the thought I was listening to an NPR story where they tell you the story, then tell you about the story they just told you about. The Somali Pirate angle was pretty good and the use of real world events to bolster the story was good too, but I think the conclusion left me wanting, like I think there should have been a follow up story (even a short story) to neatly tie up loose ends. All in all I would give this book a solid 3 1/2 stars, but since I can't add a 1/2 to the rating I have to round up since I like the author so much. I would recommend it to people, but I wouldn't recommend this book for those who are just discovering the stories of Elmore Leonard.

Awesome story. Told in a narrative: character 1 says this, character 2 replies, character 3 (in a different scene) says such, and so on. The villian is identified and I the reader cheer for the good guys. But, who are the actual good guys. The ending is what I hoped for, but who actually will give the villian his just dessert? The bad guy is really, really bad. Good plot. Keeps the resder wondering until the very end as to who will stop him. A true page-turner.

There isn't an Elmore Leonard book I've read that I didn't really enjoy!!

One thing I love about masters in any craft: their ability to break the rules and make it work. The way a Picasso looks like a jumbled mess but also exactly like his lover Dora Marr. Or the way little old martial arts masters throw very large men around the room. Or this tour de force from Elmore Leonard. Djibouti is a strange book. It's set in North Africa, for one thing-- not exactly Leonard's usual stomping grounds. And there's a bit of international, Graham Greene-style espionage for another. More than half of it is told in a sort of cascading flashback- the protagonists watching events unfold on a laptop screen and remembering what happened. So much distance from the tension should be dramatic death... except that Leonard is a master. He keeps you reading.Like those little old men throwing larger and younger opponents around like dolls, Leonard's moves are subtle. Some of what he does here seems impossible. But like those little old men, what he does here... works. And by the time the hustlers start hustling and the bad men start killing and we're in familiar Dutch Leonard territory again, those strange and recursive flashbacks turn out to have been the most economical way to bring us to this point. And what a fine point it is. I put this book down, one *very* satisfied reader.Djibouti should come with two labels. For readers: OPEN AND ENJOY. And for writers: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME. :)

Dara and Xavier arrive in East Africa to make a documentary about Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. They meet a pirate, a guy who's supposed to be talking pirates out of being pirates, a wealthy Texan with a huge shotgun and a new girlfriend and an American Al Qaeda guy who wants to blow something up. Dara and Xavier talk about films and the film they're making and about stuff that happened. Leonard does that a lot, have the characters tell the story for big chunks. They tell each other what happens, they describe people, they describe the setting and the set-up and the whole damn thing. Like Cuba Libre, it's an atypical setting for Leonard, but Leonard makes it his own, and the story and the action flow nice and smooth and the cool dialogue and the cool characters, gauging each other's levels off cool, comparing everything to movies, thinking what they're going to say, how it'll sound, what it'll look like. Some carry it off, and some do not. in a Leonard book, it's a matter of life and death.

Elmore Leonard at his creative best. Out of a mundane tale of a young documentary film maker and her older ? (grip, cameraman, associate, fixer, flunky, lover), Mr. Leonard creates a gem of a story. Told in a very unusual style with quick cuts; short, immediate flashbacks;and instant changes of point-of-view, he has what looks like a script for another movie. The dialogue and characters are perfect. Their behavior is precisely right. The settings are easily imagined.(I hope this movie is not as poorly done as the others he has allowed to get the Hollywood treatment. Get Shorty was awful.)Of course there is violence. The subject is the Somali pirates, after all. There is lots of bad language; they are pirates, film makers and various armed mercenaries. There are some sexual situations and lots of talk about them.So, in writing a book about making a film, Mr. Leonard has created his next film. I would have ended the book a couple of pages earlier, however, with the final telephone call.

Well this is actually a Goodreads triumph, because I don't think I would have ever heard about this book save for a Goodreads friend and family member had recently reviewed it.Having never read Leonard, I did not know what to expect. Although, I have enjoyed many of his novels' film adaptations in part because of the dialogue. No less so in prose, Djibouti does a wonderful job capturing the small nuance of conversations between people that show the reader who they are without having to explicitly state characteristics. The play with time aspects of the narrative jumping around from documentary filming, to reviewing the film and discussing, to engaging the actual principals of the narrative makes the book pleasantly challenging and always engaging.A very fun read about interesting contemporary geo-political stuff...Thanks for the review Terry!

one of the things i enjoy about elmore leonard is his use of dialogue to reveal plot, describe people and places and sketch out character motivation. it's like the whole book is happening right now and you're sitting in the middle of the soup with everyone else who is reading the book and is part of the book. he also has one the characters use the video camera as another device to "show" stuff rather than "tell" parts of the story. as a writer i find his lack of huge chunks of exposition refreshing. to me showing is almost always better than telling. just sayin'

Leonard is the best. Most authors writing a book about someone shooting a documentary about African pirates, would most likely write the book describing the filming as it occurs. Leonard uses this as a springboard for a sexy dangerous plot that provides some twisted insight into entrepreneurs and terrorists. Such a gift for dialogue and plot twists. My only regret is that I have to wait a year for my next Elmore Leonard fix.

Elmore Leonard is my favourite crime writer and Djibouti is another excellent read from the author. His dialogue as usual is great, the book moves along at an excellent pace and it is utterly unputdownable. Amazing stuff, with an interesting take on modern piracy featuring some good characters.

The ending was a bit odd, I really enjoy the way Elmore Leonard brings life and humor to his characters. Great settings as well, overall really good read. Leonard never disappoints.

Beside a setting that is much under-appreciated, I have one word: pirates.

Elmore Leonard, the master of dialogue. That he may be, but sometimes I have to backtrack through a paragraph to find a tag that lets me know who said what. This isn’t as much of a problem as Leonard’s books progress as you get to know the characters, and their modes of speech and idioms. The author is master of this too. The results are always an absorbing read with a hard-boiled tone.This is the third book of Leonard’s I’ve read (Get Shorty and a collection of westerns being the others) and by now I’m familiar with the style. I like it.Official reviews of this book have suggested that the pace is a bit slow to start with. That may be so, but I reckon the background had to be set, characters established, and the curious vibe of seeing the story unfold through the footage of the award-winning documentary maker, Dara (who’s female, by the way). This plays firmly into Leonard’s hands being a screen-writer himself and, for me, it was interesting to follow the dialogue between Dara and her side-kick/guide/potential seventy-year old love interest, Xavier. How they discussed the use of their footage and the narrative that would emerge was fascinating for me.Why not five stars? Leonard sets a high bar for himself, and not every book can be a classic. But this one is well-researched and extremely entertaining. I also know now where Djibouti is!