Snowblind

A Brief Career in the Cocaine Trade

By: Robert Sabbag

Narrated by: Andrew Eiden

A look at the supercharged life of American drug smuggler Zachary Swan. “An extremely rare cut of dry wit, poetry, rock-hard fact and relentless insight” (Rolling Stone).

Robbert Sabbag’s Snowblind, the true story of an American smuggler whose intricate, ingenious scams made him a legendary figure in the cocaine world of the late 60s and early 70s, is a modern classic. In this “witty, intelligent, fiercely stylish, drug-induced exemplary tale” (Los Angeles Times), Sabbag masterfully traces Zachary Swan’s Roman-candle career, from his first forays into smuggling marijuana to his jaunts to Colombia to buy pure cocaine, and his ever more elaborate plans to outwit the police and customs officials. Updated by the author, this captivating portrait of a dashing antihero and enthralling look at a turbulent age is sure to reach a new generation of audiences.

©1976, 1990 Robert Sabbag; Afterword copyright 2010 by Robert Sabbag (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Narrator ruined it

For as far as I could get into the book the writing was very rich and in some cases overwhelmed the narrative. I really enjoyed some of the cynicism and dark humor. I also enjoy the mixture of geography and history of that era.

It would be nice to know how much was fiction. From what I gathered Swan, the protagonist, was a fictional character based on interviews with a "real" smuggler. There are a number of famous persons in the book (as far as I could tell Swan's wife was real based on googling Dick Cavett show guests). I found the blurring off between "fact" and fiction and confusing.

The issue for me is the narrator. His tone has this kind of awestruck and cynical reverence for all the deeds and misdeeds of Swan and cohorts. I think a neutral tone would have done much better in this case, The writing is more than adequate to convey the above qualities to the listener. I suggest you hear the sample and know that that tone persists for at least a third of the book. That's when I quit.

never boring. the material is well researched

well researched and developed. plenty of detail without being over detailated.
some humor thrown in to lighten. narration very good