About “The Big Sleep”

One of the most acclaimed works of crime fiction ever written, The Big Sleep is the first novel featuring Raymond Chandler’s iconic creation Philip Marlowe, hailed as the “quintessential urban private eye” (Los Angeles Times). One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years “Chandler seems to have created the culminating American hero: wised up, hopeful, thoughtful, adventurous, sentimental, cynical and rebellious.” —Robert B. Parker, The New York Times Book Review When old man Sternwood, a dying millionaire, hires Philip Marlowe to expose the blackmailer of one of his troublesome daughters, Marlowe finds himself involved with more than simple extortion. Kidnapping, pornography, and seduction are just a few of the complications standing in the way of completing the task at hand. And just as Marlowe feels he’s getting ahold of the situation, he discovers the first body. (Description courtesy of Penguin Random House.)

Praise for “The Big Sleep”

“Raymond Chandler is a master.”

— The New York Times

“[Chandler] wrote as if pain hurt and life mattered.”

— The New Yorker

“Chandler seems to have created the culminating American hero: wised up, hopeful, thoughtful, adventurous, sentimental, cynical and rebellious.”

— The New York Times Book Review

Book details

Published
1939
Latest edition
1939 · ISBN 9780394758282
ISBN
9780394758282

Frequently asked questions

How many pages is The Big Sleep?

The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler has 231 pages.

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Book descriptions, author biographies, award records and review quotes on this page are courtesy of Penguin Random House.