Maximum Bob audiobook

Treasure of the Rubbermaids 15: See Ya Later, Alligator!The on-going discoveries of priceless books and comics found in a stack of Rubbermaid containers previously stored and forgotten at my parent’s house and untouched for almost 20 years. Thanks to my father dumping them back on me, I now spend my spare time unearthing lost treasures from their plastic depths.This is not the Elmore Leonard book I wanted to be reading. I thought I would be able to achieve a Raylan Givens nirvana because not only was the third season of Justified going to premiere along with the release of the second season DVD set a new novel featuring my favorite cowboy hat wearing marshal was being released the same week. Unfortunately, I learned that Leonard had given the writers of the show a sneak peek at his story for Raylan and allowed them to ‘strip it for parts’ so that it not only inspired last season, it’s going to have some of the same characters from this season too. In the interest of staying spoiler free for the show I’m leaving that one on the shelf for now, but that’s a powerful itch to resist so I dug this one out of the Rubbermaids to allow me to scratch a bit.Big Bob Gibbs is a racist Florida judge known for his tendency to hand out the maximum sentence even if the defendant didn’t necessarily deserve it. Bob’s wife Leanne is trying his patience with her new age belief in auras and crystals, and her insistence that she’s channeling a twelve year old black child who has been dead for over a hundred years. Probation officer Karen Baker has caught the judge’s eye, and she has to deflect his unwanted advances while juggling her caseload of assorted ne’er-do-wells including Elvin Crowe*, a just released murderer who doesn’t think he should have served so much time because he didn’t kill the guy he meant to. When an alligator shows up in an unexpected place and starts a ruckus police detective Gary Hammond gets involved and wonders if someone with an agenda didn’t put the gator there.* The family should be familiar to Justified fans with Raylan having many run-ins with Dewey Crowe.Like most Leonard plots this one spins off in unexpected directions and expands to include a wild cast of characters including a crack whore, a gator poacher, and a junkie doctor under house arrest. It’s got the Leonard hallmarks of crackling dialogue and narration that shifts to feature different characters and how they see the other people around them.This isn’t quite on the same level with my favorite Leonard novels like Out of Sight or Rum Punch (a/k/a Jackie Brown), but it definitely ranks in the upper echelon of his work.It’s also an interesting trivia note for Leonard's fans that this book was also the basis for a short lived TV series. It’s pretty obvious that the reoccurring character of a pistol-packin’ drunken judge played by Stephen Root on Justified was inspired by this one, too.

I read at least one Elmore Leonard novel each year and I’m never disappointed. The pace, style, and characters of most of his books are similar: there are unsavory people doing unsavory things, often double-crossing each other as the quick pace of the plot builds to a crescendo. It’s no wonder why so many of Leonard’s books have become movies and TV shows; I liken his books to action movies (although not as dumb as the typical Hollywood blockbuster).Maximum Bob sticks to Leonard’s formula, which can be summed up in one of his rules of writing: “Try to leave out the parts that readers tend to skip.” He’s a master when it comes to pacing and dialogue and it’s one of the reasons why his work remains so highly regarded. For this book, Maximum Bob is a racist and sexist judge known for sentencing convicts to the maximum penalty allowable by law. Not surprisingly, he has a few people trying to exact their revenge. The protagonist is Kathy Baker, a female probation officer who has to get past the good ol’ boy judge to do her job and save him in spite of himself. There are also cops, felons, and a schizophrenic wife who figure into the action-packed plot. Maximum Bob is excellent entertainment and makes for a satisfying night or two of reading.

When does a fascination turn into an addiction? If it is an addiction, I guess it's harmless to me and other living things. So it's back to Elmore. He's always good for a few chuckles, but Maximum Bob kept me laughing pretty much the whole time. Bob is a judge, famous for handing out maximum sentences. Thus the nickname. He's also famous for what today we'd call sexual harassment, but when the book was written in 1991 it wasn't a disbarment offense to invite a court reporter into his chambers and ask her to play carnival. "What's that?" "You sit on my face and I guess your weight."Bob marries a girl with a job in a watch-the-mermaids tank at a local bar. Shortly after, she has a paranormal experience when an alligator gets into the tank and the fright of it conjures into her consciousness a 15-year-old slave girl from centuries past. From then on, Leanne listens only to the girl and tries to get Bob to go along with the meditations, crystals, and whatever other spiritual stuff she dreams up.Into Bob's courtroom steps Kathy Baker, a probation officer trying to represent Dale Crowe--The Crowe's being Leonard's favorite redneck halfwit crime family--so he doesn't get sent up for violating his probation. She fails with Dale, but attracts horny Bob's attention, which sets the plot in motion. The rest of the book consist220px-Elmore_Leonards of Kathy pursuing Dale and his ex-con uncle Elvin, Bob pursuing Kathy, and alligators pursuing and gobbling up small dogs. There are a couple of more interesting convict idiots in the mix that keep the frolic complicated. Not that the book is free of pathos. One particular murder--unexpected to me--tugs the heartstrings. However, despite the bloodshed, the book is mostly fun.I don't think I've conquered my addiction yet, nor have I tried, so look for more Elmore from me in the future.

Interesting characters with unique voices. A plot that is unpredictable but feels inevitable. A setting that has tone more than detail. I'm a fan of Leonard's work, even though I haven't made a dedicated effort to read all of his books. This book, about a judge who wants to drive his wife away and blackmails a defendant into helping him--which naturally goes completely haywire, and stirs up a great deal of trouble--is a bit shaggy in the best way. I'm not sure what I'm going to read next, because this will be a difficult act to follow. [Added: I had no idea there was a TV series based on this book. I'll have to look it up.]

This is definitely one of my favorite Leonard novels. The story has lots of twists and surprises. It takes place in Florida, so naturally there are some dumb criminals named Crowe. The characters are believable. As to be expected, there are many humorous moments. Like many of Leonard's stories, this would make a great movie.

A good yarn for a long flight from a master storyteller. As usual it is full of characters on the margins of society, and Leonard reminds us that unless you're living on the edge you're taking too much space.

Maximum Bob is the nickname given to Judge Bob Gibbs. Judge Gibbs is known for handing out hard sentences from the bench. Dale Crowe Junior has the misfortune to draw Maximum Bob. Dale gets five years and threatens the judge. His probation officer Kathy Baker has her hands full. She is trying to fend off the advances of Judge Gibbs, keep Dale in line, and deal with Dale's uncle Elvin. Things get complicated when an attempt is made on the Judge's life. Now the list of suspects long, and Kathy seems to have a number of them among her parolees.Maximum Bob is a fun book in that great Leonard style. There are the usual lowlifes populating the pages of the book. Readers of the Raylan Givens stories fans of the FX series Justified will recognize the relatives of Dewey Crowe, everyone's favorite redneck moron. Something I have grown to love about Leonard's novels and stories is how they are often linked with each other. Dale Junior is mentioned in "Fire In The Hole," Judge Gibbs is the judge who sentenced Jack Foley to prison in Road Dogs. There is even a scene in the book where one of the characters is recalling a western novel that he read in prison. The unnamed novel is Leonard's Bounty Hunters. These little Easter Eggs are quite fun for the loyal Leonard readers.

This is the first Elmore Leonard book I ever read. I just saw it at the library and had heard that Leonard was one of the best crime writers so I decided to check it out and I was blown away how much I loved this book!The story of a judge who is known for giving the maximum sentence in all his cases and the recent parolee who decides we would like to get some revenge against the guy who threw him in jail, mix in the strong, take no shit parole officer Kathy and you have a quintessential Leonard caper. Full of witty dialogue, sudden shocking violence and the judge's wife who thinks she is seeing people in her backyard. It's everything you want in Elmore's work and if you love all the things I listed above this book is for you.Read this book! Do it now!

Elmore Leonard died a few years back and I am trying slowly to make my way through his oeuvre-I've enjoyed several already and Maximum Bob (1991) is no exception. It is set in Florida-like many of his novels and has the usual great dialogue, descriptions, and characters-good and bad. Maximum Bob is a racist, womanizing judge who sometimes abuses his power to get favors and finds himself a target for assassination. Some of the bad guys are familiar to me, there are two members of the Crowe clan (Elvin and Dale)-who are frequently found in the Rayland Givens stories. However, this time the protagonist is a very competent divorced Cuban-American, Kathy Baker, who saves the day. A fast and entertaining read. There are still several Leonard novels in the waiting.

just for fun and an easy 2 day read, it doesn't get too much better than a book by Elmore.FYI Maximum Bob is a judge, known for his strict sentences.....hence the title. Full of surprises, laughs and entertainment.

Maneuvering and manipulation, backstabbing and skulduggery...what's not to like? Did I mention the alligator creeping around the judges porch--and the gorgeous street-smart probation officer?

Good book, funny characters.

No sir, this did NOT go the way I thought it would.

Read this and learn how to write dialogue.

Classic Elmore Leonard. The plot can seem a little implausible at times, but can give you a surprise with a very plausible turn as well. Some terrific characters and amusing and clever lines. My 14th Elmore.

Here we go again - it's Mr L, so it's *****. Some especially great characters incl the unlikeable title character and his wonderfully kooky wife, and the spectacularly nasty Elvin. Plus at one point some real emotion, unusual chez Elmore

A fast-moving, hilarious crime novel, with dialogue that sizzles, crackles, and pops. One of the most enjoyable novels I've read in recent months, and one of Elmore Leonard's best. Don't miss it!

Liked the book, the author is a great writer and you never know where his plots in his books are going to lead and what the characters are going to do.

3.5/5