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The Alcoholics
Jim Thompson Book Review

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Plot Summary of The Alcoholics
"THE ALCOHOLICS is a book written by Jim Thompson in 1953.

El Healtho is a clinic for alcoholics run by Doc Murphy who is more interested in finding a way to cure his patients than in dragging new rich clients. He must quickly find $15,000 if he wants to keep the clinic open. There could be a solution if only he could disregard his ethics for a moment, he only has to accept to host for the rest of his life in his clinic the degenerated son of a rich californian family who's just undergone a frontal lobotomy in New-York."

Daniel Staebler, Resident Scholar

Review Analysis of The Alcoholics
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book? - very sensitive (sigh)
Time/era of story - 1930's-1950's
Life of a profession: - doctor
Internal struggle/realization? Yes
Struggle over - vague finding self/purpose in life (i.e. no plot to book)
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Job/Profession/Status story Yes
Druggie/Wino problems? - alcohol
Brain/Body disability? - mental illness

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - doctor
Age: - 40's-50's
Ethnicity/Nationality - White (American)
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - none

Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings? - 1 (None)
United States Yes
The US: - California

Style
Person - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - touching of anatomy - descript. of female anat. (the big B's)
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
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