The Maltese Falcon

By: Dashiell Hammett

Narrated by: William Dufris

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)

If you've seen the movie . . .

One of the other reviewers says "This is a wonderful adaptation from a great film." There's an excellent reason for that, even though the film was made eleven years after the novel was published: If you've seen the movie, it will play in your head as you listen. The actors and director must have read the book to the point of memorization. For example, all of Bogie's gestures and facial expressions are described almost cinematically in the novel. The same can be said of Lorre, Greenstreet and Astor. It is, of course, THE landmark in the genre. Every detective novel in the past eighty years has been influenced by this book. It is well worth a listen.

William Dufris is amazing.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. I found at moments I had to remind myself that cliché things weren’t cliché at the time of the book. In fact those things only became cliché when other stories tried to emulate this one. You don’t see somethings coming and you do see others but all in all it’s a good story.

When it comes to the narrator William Dufris I can not give enough praise. All of the voices he picks are amazing and you never get anyone confused. He puts an amazing amount of emotion into his reading and doesn’t leave you wanting. I will be looking for more books that he has narrated he’s a new favorite for me now.

Review

Where does The Maltese Falcon rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of my favorites. I like the story line and the noir feel. I can close my eyes and put myself in the place of the characters.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I have seen the film meny times and knew the plot

Fantastic performance

A classic brought to life by wonderful narration inspired by the 1941 Humphrey Bogart movie. One of the best audiobooks I've heard!

Better than the movie!

The narration of the characters voices borderd on inspired. Most convincing to me were the female voices. Great job by William Dufris.

Give this man an Oscar

Best voice performance I've ever heard in an audiobook. Well done, Dufris. Someone give this man an Oscar.

Very Pulpy!

I watched this movie when I was kid and wanted to relive the experience from the book. It is definitely dated, but in a great way!

Fun listen

What made the experience of listening to The Maltese Falcon the most enjoyable?

The story was familiar to me from the classic film with Humphrey Bogart. I was eager to hear how

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Since I had watched the film several times, there were no surprises.

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

I have never heard any of the performances of Mr. Dufris before. Considering how this story is so identified with Humphrey Bogart (at least for me), Mr. Dufris made a very good attempt at pushing Bogie's ghost aside.

Any additional comments?

If you are interested in discovering the Maltese Falcon beyond the film, then you should definitely check out recording.

A fun book to listen to.

A completely entertaining book. It probably could not be written today. I laughed all the way through the book. Sam Spade lived life the way it should be lived, and as a bonus it was a good detective story.

Like listening to the radio in the ‘40’s

Sam Spade, the ultimate detective! A great plot, terrific characters and a narration that is drama at its best.
The only hiccup for me was chapter 17… a bit too much but not enough to ruin my enjoyment!