Snowblind - A Brief Career in the Cocaine Trade (Paperback, New edition)

If you didn't catch this classic narcol-epic first time round in 1976, Canongate's current reprint is a good chance to fill the gap in your library. Reeking of that hitherto unfashionable decade - now inexplicably hip again - Sabbag's narrative follows Zachary Swan - ex-Marine, cosmetics salesman and drug smuggler - in an increasingly baroque series of scams during the 'brief career in the cocaine trade' of the subtitle. Combining journalistic detachment with the sort of hyper-prose that runs in a line from Damon Runyan to Irvine Welsh, Sabbag remains honest without being judgemental, cutting the beguiling highs of '70s drug culture with the inevitable downs - violence and misery are always there the morning after. That's not to say that this is in any way a grim read; it's brazen and audacious, forcing you to laugh against your informed 21st-century will at the elaborately named dramatis personae in New York, Colombia, and all stations between, and astoundingly inventive - and unexpectedly benign - smuggling strategies such as the coffee jar system. A gloriously laid-back introduction by Howard Marks lauds this book as 'still the best' book on that hedonistic, decadent, post-flower/pre-recession scene. As the definitive counter-culture account which informs much of '80s and '90s Brit Lit, it can't be ignored. (Kirkus UK)

It tells the true story of legendary cocaine smuggler, Zachary Swan, whose exploits and scams in the sixties and seventies baffled police and customs officials alike. Robert Sabbag's riveting account of Swan's brief career provides a compulsive insight into the cocaine underworld in which all the double-dealing, crazy characters and paranoia are captured brilliantly. The combination of Sabbag's sandpaper dry wit and meticulous research, with Swan's roller-coaster ride lifestyle, have made Snowblind a book of enduring appeal.

General

Imprint:	Canongate Books Ltd
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	February 2002
Authors:	Robert Sabbag
Introduction by:	Howard Marks
Dimensions:	198 x 130mm (L x W)
Format:	Paperback - B-format
Pages:	320
Edition:	New edition
ISBN-13:	978-1-84195-225-3
Categories:	Books > Fiction > True stories > Crime Promotions
LSN:	1-84195-225-7
Barcode:	9781841952253

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!