Mr Blue

Winner of the Macallan Gold Dagger 2000 for non-fiction

Edward Bunker’s life is beyond the imaginings of most fiction writers. Born in Hollywood, and propelled into a series of boarding homes and military schools, from the age of five he repeatedly ran away, roaming the city streets at night. He became the youngest ever inmate of San Quentin at the age of seventeen, and there he learned survival skills and faced down the toughest prisoners in the system.

A spell crossing America as a fugitive on the FBI’s most wanted list eventually led to Folsom prison. Encouraged by the example of Dostoevsky, Cervantes and Caryl Chessman, and by the kindness of former silent movie star Mrs Louise Wallis, he determined to write his way out of prison. Bunker’s first published novel, No Beast So Fierce, viewed by many including Quentin Tarantino as the finest crime novel ever written, changed his fortunes. He published three other novels, The Animal Factory, Little Boy Blue and Dog Eat Dog, (all published by No Exit) in his lifetime, and another novel, Stark, was discovered in his papers after his death in 2005.

Bunker appeared in a score of films, most notably his legendary role as Mr Blue in Reservoir Dogs. This blistering narrative is a memoir like no other.