Long acknowledged as the modern master of dialogue, Elmore Leonard is far more than that. Leonard writes the cleanest, tightest sentences of anyone working today. His style is so smooth and simple, a reader can swiftly be led to imagine that what Leonard does is incredibly easy. Except, of course, it’s not. Leonard excels were almost every other writer utterly fails. He is a genius in moving briskly through a story, in sketching complex characters with simple action, in conveying the most with the least amount of words, and, always, in presenting the most fluid, readable and believable dialogue in the business.
He is, quite frankly, so damn good he is often overlooked. Sometimes the best writers are staring us right in the face, and with Leonard this is the case. For whatever reason, he has not bucked the system in ways that have garnered the same animosity from literary critics, as many of his contemporary popular writers have done. Instead, he has continued to garner positive critical reception, as well as legions of fans, not only amongst the wider reading public but also among fellow writers, including screenwriters, who have adapted his work into a stunning body of film masterpieces.
Elmore Leonard will likely go down as the greatest crime writer of his time, a title he justly deserves.
Elmore Leonard Books to Read:
Pagan Babies, Get Shorty, Road Dogs, Bandits, Riding the Rap, Out of Sight, Rum Punch, Mr. Paradise, Killshot, Maximum Bob.
Elmore Leonard Links:
The Black Cat Moan 
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