"If proper usage gets in the way, it may have to go."

That's Elmore Leonard, quoted here in Olen Steinhauer's piece about Leonard's new novel, Raylan. Here's the fuller quote:

Or, if proper usage gets in the way, it may have to go. I can’t allow what we learned in English composition to disrupt the sound and rhythm of the ­narrative.

I like it.  Steinhauer, though, doesn't. Or at least he's torn by it:

Jazzy prose that occasionally lets go of “proper usage” is Leonard’s trademark. He’s a stylist of forward motion, placing narrative acceleration above inconveniences like pronouns and helping verbs. While this creates in most readers a heightened sense of excitement, newcomers may find the transition from complete sentences daunting; it may take a little time to accept Leonard’s prose before you allow it to do its work on you. I’ll admit to having to make such an adjustment when beginning “Raylan.” At the same time, I’m also a novelist who lives in fear of my copy editor; being such a coward, I can’t help respecting Leonard’s grammatical bravery. 

It's been a long time since I read him, so help me out here Elmore Leonard fans: I think I get the notion of 'narrative acceleration' and that sounds like a good description of Leonard's writing. But does he somehow omit pronouns and helping verbs in ways that English speakers don't?

May just have to read that book …