''The 25th Hour'' is the 2001

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

David Benioff David Friedman (; born September 25, 1970), known professionally as David Benioff (), is an American novelist, screenwriter, and producer. Along with his collaborator D. B. Weiss, he is best known for co-creating ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–201 ...

. A

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

, for which Benioff wrote the screenplay, was directed by

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary ...

and released in 2002.

Background

The idea for the book came when Benioff returned home to New York for

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Biblical Egypt, Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God in ...

while he was away working in Wyoming. He suffered from appendicitis and had to undergo emergency surgery. Benioff said: "Walking the halls of Mount Sinai afterward, seeing people walking up 5th Avenue and Central Park and trapped in the hospital, I had a sense of being so close to the city and not being a part of it." He continued: "I thought, 'What if you are not stuck for five days, but seven years?' And that is writing what you don't know. Taking a banal problem and making it much more serious." Benioff spent two years writing the novel, and completed the book as his thesis for a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

degree in creative writing at the

University of California Irvine The University of California, Irvine (UCI or UC Irvine) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Irvine, California, United States. One of the ten campuses of the University of California system, U ...

in 1999. The book was originally titled ''Fireman Down'', but was changed to ''The 25th Hour'' on the advice of the publisher who accepted the book with a $7,500 advance. The book was published in 2001.

Plot

New York drug dealer Monty Brogan is arrested for

drug possession The prohibition of drugs through sumptuary legislation or religious law is a common means of attempting to prevent the recreational use of certain intoxicating substances. An area has a prohibition of drugs when its government uses the for ...

with intent to sell, and sentenced to seven years in prison. He spends his last night of freedom with two friends, contemplating his uncertain future and the decisions he made that brought him to this point.

Reception

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' said ''The 25th Hour'' was "brilliantly conceived, this gripping crime drama boasts dead-on dialogue,

chiaroscuro In art, chiaroscuro ( , ; ) is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to ach ...

portraits of New York's social strata and an inescapable crescendo of tension." ''Bookseller'' said that it had "powerful characterization and dialogue." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' rated it an A-minus, saying that Benioff "shows a knack for critiquing his genre while revitalizing its cliches" and the novel "achieves both pathos and excitement."

Adaptations

Actor and producer

Tobey Maguire Tobias Vincent Maguire (born 27 June 1975) is an American actor and film producer. He is best known for starring as Peter Parker (2002 film series character), Spider-Man in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man in film#Sam Raimi's trilogy, ''Spider-Man'' tr ...

read a preliminary trade copy of the book and became interested in making a film from it. He purchased the rights and asked Benioff to write the screenplay. The film was entitled ''

25th Hour ''25th Hour'' is a 2002 American drama film directed by Spike Lee and starring Edward Norton. Adapted by David Benioff from his 2001 debut novel '' The 25th Hour'', it tells the story of a man's last 24 hours of freedom as he prepares to go to ...

'' (2002), starring

Edward Norton Edward Harrison Norton (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. After graduating from Yale College in 1991 with a degree in history, he worked for a few months in Japan before moving to New York City ...

and directed by

. Filmed and released after the 9/11 attack, it has numerous references to it through Lee's work; he reflects on the effect on the city and its residents.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:25th Hour, The 2001 American novels American novels adapted into films Novels set in New York City 2001 debut novels Novels by David Benioff Novels set in one day