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Books by
Dennis Lehane
MYSTIC RIVER
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Dennis Lehane
 Bio
Fast Facts
Trivia
Website
Author Bibliography
Buy the books!
Shutter Island Review & Excerpt
Past Interview - March 2001
Dennis Lehane wrote his first novel, A Drink Before the War, in three weeks and subsequently tossed it into a box. He wrote this first draft merely because he was bored and thought it would be a good way to entertain himself. Yes, it took about a dozen more drafts before it was accepted for publication. Little did he know that this "diversion" would receive much attention and win the Shamus Award for Best First Novel.
Since then, Lehane has been crafting one novel after another. His first five titles were the Kenzie/Gennaro series, which have featured the popular duo, Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro, investigative partners and friends since childhood.His first stand-alone novel, Mystic River, was a smash success and landed on numerous bestseller lists. Mystic River is being made into a movie scheduled for release this fall. Clint Eastwood directs it and the big-name cast includes Sean Penn as Jimmy, Kevin Bacon as Sean, Tim Robbins as Dave, Laura Linney as Annabeth (Jimmy's wife) and Marcia Gay Harden as Celeste (Dave's wife).
This month Lehane has returned with Shutter Island, the highly anticipated thriller that promises to be his next major bestseller.
To celebrate the release of Shutter Island, AuthorsOnTheWeb has chosen Dennis Lehane as our Author of the Month. Readers can learn more about Lehane's life and works through trivia questions, fast facts and biographical information, as well as links to his website, bibliography, an interview and book reviews.
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Fast Facts
- After writing five novels in the Kenzie/Gennaro series, Lehane thought about how battered his two detectives were and determined that they needed some rest and relaxation after the gun fights, car chases and a number of physical and emotional injuries. He welcomed the challenge of developing new characters and creating storylines that could be flexible, where previous rules no longer applied.
- As a little boy, Lehane and his uncle made a habit of watching gangster films like The Roaring Twenties and Public Enemy together. These films had a huge impact on Lehane and he became eager to tell these types of stories --- friends who grow up, choose different paths in life and then must face both the positive and negative consequences of those decisions. This served as the inspiration for Lehane's first stand-alone novel, Mystic River.
- Lehane does most of his writing in the early morning or very late at night. He's less likely to be interrupted or disturbed at these times, which allows him to think more creatively. Also, Lehane always writes longhand first. A computer screen leaves him feeling self-conscious and boxed-in, but a smooth-flowing pen allows him to loosen up.
- Among Lehane's favorite writers are Richard Price (his biggest influence in terms of writing), William Kennedy, Pete Dexter, Don DeLillo, JM Coetzee, Michael Connelly, George Pelecanos, Martin Amis and Toni Morrison (who he calls a genius).
- Lehane wrote, produced and directed the feature film Neighborhoods, a romantic comedy/drama; unfortunately, it has failed to find a distributor.
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Bio
Dennis Lehane was born and raised in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He has written seven novels, A Drink Before the War, Darkness, Take My Hand, Sacred, Gone Baby Gone; Prayers for RaiN, Mystic River, and the upcoming Shutter Island (April 2003).
Mystic River was a finalist for the PEN/Winship Award and won both the Anthony Award and the Barry Award for Best Novel as well as the MASSACHUSETTS BOOK AWARD IN FICTION given by the Massachusetts Center for the Book.
Before becoming a full-time writer, Mr. Lehane worked as a counselor with mentally handicapped and abused children, waited tables, parked cars, drove limos, worked in bookstores, and loaded tractor-trailers. His one regret is that no one ever gave him a chance to tend bar. He lives in the Boston area.
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